Despite a semi-final to be played, fans are already angered by a decision that has been made for the 2026 World Cup final.
Spain have already booked themselves a place in the 2026 World Cup final after a convincing 2-0 win over France in the first semi-final.
Now it’s over to England and Argentina to battle it out for the remaining spot this Sunday.
Ahead of the final, FIFA announced a glitzy closing ceremony at the MetLife Stadium, featuring Robbie Williams, Nicole Scherzinger, IShowSpeed and Tom Cruise.
However, the decision to have Jennifer Hudson perform the U.S. national anthem right before kick-off has sparked immense outrage among fans worldwide.
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Fans react as Jennifer Hudson to sing the USA national anthem
The news of the national anthem of the USA being played at the 2026 World Cup final was shared by journalist Ben Jacobs on X, but it didn’t attract the best of reactions.
This fan went on a rampage: “Why should the US national anthem be played? And don’t give me the “because they’re the host nation” argument. I can’t remember a single World Cup where the host country’s anthem was played before the final unless the host nation was actually one of the finalists. This World Cup has been more politicised than ever. Trump will present the trophy, and for the first time the US national anthem will be played despite the United States not even being one of the finalists. It’s all becoming pretty disgusting. More than ever, FIFA needs its next president to be someone who can’t be manipulated – someone with integrity, who will do the job properly. The current president is doing nothing but damaging the world of football.”
“Forgive my ignorance, but is it normal to sing the anthem of a team not in the final?? Or is it America being annoying again?” another fan said.
An English fan joined in: “Why are they playing the US anthem when they’re not in the final? That’s not how football does things.”
“Donald Trump at it again. Anything to make the final about himself and America,” said this fan.
Usually, in the history of the FIFA World Cup, only the national anthems of the two competing finalist teams are played immediately before kick-off.
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