Flag/National Anthem Mishap At Beginning of All Star Game
Wow ... I couldn't believe how they didn't bring out our flag until AFTER the English and US national anthems. Made us absolutely livid and we even ended up booing during both anthems. Terrible Terrible timing on the Organizers part. Did it sound/look bad on TV?
I sort of feel bad now after the fact ... But Seriously... What were we suppose to think?
I was there. Nobody around me booed. It was brutal. No excuse for that kind of shit, IMO. I'm sure I'll take tons of shit for this, but it was utterly classless, and you're right for feeling bad.
They were clearly going to sing Oh Canada. To think they wouldn't is absurd.
Yeah I don't really feel bad about it because it's their own fault... it looked like we weren't going to have our anthem played. Breaking out into Oh Canada halfway through the American anthem was epic.
I can't believe that there are people lucky enough to work for TFC or MLS and they can be that stupid as to not anticipate peoples reactions....absolutely unbelieveable and amateurish...
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I had just made it into the stadium at that point... The second I heard booing I was shocked, honestly shocked; that shit simply can't go down. After hearing what happened now though, I don't think you guys deserve too much blame.
I feel bad for what happened... but the organisers really should have thought it out better.
Telling fans to stand for the anthems of England and USA, while not mentioning Canada was asking for trouble.
They should have mentioned all three at once or just one at a time!
They annouced the England and US anthems and no indication of the Canadian one coming ... not even the flag on the field.
When they dragged our flag out it looked like it was an after thought. Took a while to realize it wasn't (the organized singer was the thing that made me realize).
On a side note ... why have someone sing? ... the fans are known to do it amazingly.
They needed to have all flags out at first ... or at least mention that the Canadian anthem would follow. It was an unfortunate outcome facilitated ENTIRELY by poor planning on the part of the organizers.
As I was typing this Global news just had this as their top story on the 11pm news.
For my money, that was an epic MLSE error. It's their job to vet the plans. They'll say no one could have seen it coming, but that's BS.
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I think CBC wanted to only show our anthem, and since it was an all-star game they also wanted someone to sing it.
Just a thought
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^^QFT - My six year old said "dad, why didn't they just bring the flags out at the same time?"Originally Posted by ensco
Booing and anthem is never acceptable, regardless of who screwed up.
I have never been as embarrassed to be a TFC fan as I was tonight.
You wanna boo Garber or MLS or MLSE...fine. But disrespecting an entire nation, our guests because somebody was stupid enough to slight Canadians is stupid. TFC fans looked like petulant children.
Ok, I actually have the answer. Straight from the MLS Board via Miller.
Turns out ESPN didn't want to show the English or American Anthems before the game, they wanted the Canadian Anthem to kick off the game (probably because they knew the crowd would get up for it). Surprising eh?
So they asked the MLS get the other two lesser anthems out of the way early so they could que the feed for the Canadian one. Hence the big show with America's favourite Canadian, the Mountie. Too bad they forgot to inform the crowd about this little scheduling quirk. Apparently they were very embarassed about the whole thing.
I also snagged the operations program book for the game (tells when whats supposted to happen and how, including anthemns, player exits, ref queing, etc.), and the delayed-for-TV Canadian anthem is right in the book.
Last edited by Draracle; 07-24-2008 at 10:32 PM. Reason: edited because people are still bitching and posting without reading this
F***in' Global! Always the negative making their news hour! Reminds me of FOX News.
It was just weird.....It seemed like it was "shit, we forgot the Canadian anthem, find me some mounties, a singer and a flag...STAT!!"
They intro'd it with what a disgrace it was ("Canada the good turned into Canada the bad") then they talked to fans who explained their reasoning (that it looked like they were skipping our anthem).
As for TV wanting to lead in with the anthem ... is the concept of editing new to them ... set a delay ... record anthem ... play it as the lead in and then cut to game intro.
I feel bad for booing but i wouldn't have put it past MLS for only having the US anthem for the All-Stars and the England anthem for WHU ... but that is cause I am a pessimist
They should have lead with the Canadian anthem ... then the team anthems ... then the game.
I agree with Roogsy on this one... that was disrespectful, but on the other hand... poor planning on that.. it did look like: oh geez, let's find a flag somewhere and you can you sing?
booing a national anthem is just all around bad though
Singing Our National Anthem. Loving it!
What went on tonight at the beggining of the game was one of the most outragious displays ever witnessed at a football game. I still can't believe the fury and passion we all took part of. we made sure that everyone understood that CANADA and Canadian fans are an important part of the MLS. Today, BMO Field was OUR HOUSE.
If there was ever a doubter out there who questioned our passion, I am confident they doubt no more.
Today was a day we should all be proud as fans of TFC. Today was a day that reminded us what fun it is to be proud supporters of a beautiful game and our team.
After all, we did get Jummy B!!!
I don't feel bad at all. I'm sure anywhere else in the world they would've done the same.
Please people, you tell me that if you go to an NHL or MLB All Star game in New York and you say "Please rise for the singing of the Canadian and Russian National Anthem" with no Stars and strips in sight, that those Ny'ers wouldn't go off like we did??
I think it had more to do with people booing the assumption that the Canadian anthem would not be played as opposed to booing the other anthems.
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As far as I know, the MLS was in charge of this event. Seemed like they botched it up.
When we talked with the MLS about it, they were to play the English anthem and then bring the players on the pitch and play Oh Canada.
I guess they made a change and it backfired a bit. I didn't like the booing, or singing over another nations anthem but it made me proud to be Canadian when people belted it out on their own.
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I agree, tonights singing of our National Anthem was AMAZING
Let's hope we can do this for WCQ, to give our boys a boost
AS per my post. Cup half full. I loved being part of the rightious mess and passion that came out of this.
I doubt very much that any other fans could have or would have gone after this colossal screw up with more vigor.
I'm English, but when it was apparent that the Canadian anthem was to be missed out, booed God Save the Horsey Inbred and joined my mates in yelling O Canada.
Major fuck-up by MLS -emabarassing in hindsight, but 100% not our fault.
Correct. I have never and would never boo a country's anthem. I was booing MLS for the preceived slight ... it just occured during the US anthem as that was the timing when we believed that we were about to be shafted.
What I was most impressed by was that the people in 106 very quickly changed from booing to singing O Canada... This was a far more positive response and I think that the organizers were lucky that they got such a positive response. Try that shit in other countries and things would be way worse.....
Toronto 'til I die although still a Leeds fan at heart...
I merged your thread into this one
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Twitter: @RPBPhil
I would think that fans from most other countries wouldn't even consider the possibility of their own national anthem not being played.
However....there is a clear history of Canadian anthems being mucked up in US stadiums, flags being held up upside down, etc...
If it weren't for this fact, most fans would have thought "it's obviously coming".
Was the messy entrance of the flag with the kids and mounties worth it's own segment. Would it have worked better to bring all 3 flags out at once ... do the ENG and US anthems ... then pause bring in the singer ... focus on the flag ... and sing the CDN anthem.
Part of the confusion that the parachuted the CDN flag in. Had me wondering ... was the parachute the Canadian thing in lieu of the anthem?
Other than dragging the flag out there is no reason it shouldn't have been out on the field ... and then there wouldn't have been any confusion.
don't get me wrong. I was in section 105... I did not boo, but did join in the singing of the canadian anthem... I was very proud to be canadian at that game... especially when people cheered like crazy with Brennan came on...
Lighten the fuck up, its an anthem at a soccer game not a state funeral. Honestly North Americans take their anthems way too seriously, it was an honest mistake on those that were there. What about all the dozens of times they've played the star spangled banner at MLS games and its been totally respected.
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