Boo!!
Fans were finally let back into sports stadiums on Wednesday.
But instead of cheers, there were loud boos in Dallas, TX.
Players from both the FC Dallas and Nashville SC soccer teams kneeled during the national anthem.
There was no question what the fans thought: they were appalled!
Booing started immediately and grew in intensity.
The players, refs, and captains all refused to stand in respect for the national anthem and the American flag.
So the fans booed them throughout the anthem!
See the video below:
But as though the disprespect for the American flag and national anthem weren't enough, soccer star Reggie Cannon called fans "disgusting."
Why?
Apparently it's "disgusting" that the fans didn't want the players disrespecting the anthem!
According to Yahoo Sports:
United States national team and FC Dallas defender Reggie Cannon blasted some FCD fans after they booed and threw objects at their own players for protesting police brutality and systemic racism by taking a knee as the national anthem played before Wednesday’s Major League Soccer match against Nashville SC.
Nearly 3,000 spectators attended the game in Frisco, Texas, making MLS the first major North American sports league to welcome fans back into its stadiums since the coronavirus pandemic began in March, and since the May 25 death of George Floyd while in police custody sparked outrage and protests around the world.
Athletes from MLS, the National Women’s Soccer League, Major League Baseball, the NBA and top European soccer leagues have all made public displays of support for the Black Lives Matter movement since those leagues returned, all of them without fans in attendance because of the ongoing health crisis. But with supporters in the seats for Wednesday’s match, some of those fans took vocal exception to the display. Cannon, who is Black, took exception to them.
“I think it was absolutely disgusting,” Cannon said after the game, which was won 1-0 by Nashville. “You’ve got fans booing you for people taking a stand for what they believe in. Millions of other people support this cause and we discussed with every other team and the league what we’re going to do and we’ve got fans booing us in our own stadium. How disgraceful is that? Honestly, for lack of a better word, it pissed me off.
The Daily Mail confirms:
But as the players protested against racial prejudice, a handful of fans jeered them with one shouting 'stand up' and 'U-S-A'.
One person was reportedly escorted out of the stadium after throwing a water bottle at the players as they kneeled.
And Dallas defender Cannon said: 'How disgraceful is that?
'You got fans booing you for people taking a stand for what they believe in.
'Millions of other people support this cause and we discussed with every other team and the league what we're going to do and we've got fans booing us in our own stadium.
'I think it was absolutely disgusting. I'm sorry for our fans because we had someone chanting 'USA' when they don't understand what kneeling means.
What's truly disgraceful is the fact that the most successful members of our society are telling us to be angry at our own country!
If it weren't for American ideals and freedom, these people wouldn't have found life-changing success!
Some reports appeared to suggest that Reggie Cannon got particularly aggitated when fans began chanting "USA!"
The Western Journal has more details:
Nashville won the game 1-0, but one Dallas player felt more than the sting of defeat.
Defender Reggie Cannon lashed out at fans for booing him and others for kneeling during the anthem.
BBC Sport reported many fans began chanting “USA!” and booed the players as they brought leftist politics into Wednesday’s game.
“How disgraceful is that?” Cannon, who had just refused to stand for his country’s flag, stated.
In an apparent reference to the Black Lives Matter movement, the player attacked his own fans for not supporting his politics.
“You got fans booing you for people taking a stand for what they believe in. Millions of other people support this cause, and we discussed with every other team and the league what we’re going to do, and we’ve got fans booing us in our own stadium,” he said, according to the BBC.
After fans gave Cannon’s political activism an icy reception, he added, “I think it was absolutely disgusting.”
Perhaps players should stop politicizing sports.
And perhaps they should stop bashing the country that has allowed them to find much success!
Instead, we should celebrate American ideals and find ways to ensure that ALL Americans have the opportunity to succeed!
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