Wembley Stadium's Arch being lit up in the colours of the French flag and England fans being told to sing La Marseillaise on Tuesday night was understandable. After all, England were playing France just four days after the attacks in Paris and it was a nice way of showing solidarity with the French.
However, yesterday's decision to play La Marsellaise before every Premier League match was ridiculous. Didn't English football already pay enough respects to the Paris dead on Tuesday night at Wembley?
And why does the Premier League deem it necessary to pay Paris tribute when the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes got nothing, despite the greater numbers killed?
Premier League's La Marseillaise tribute is ridiculous. Why wasn't Russian anthem played when plane brought down?
Why does Premier League deem it necessary to pay Paris tribute when the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes got nothing, despite the greater numbers killed?
Solidarity: Is the Premier League's decision a pointless statement? Photo: REX FEATURES
By Mark Ogden
20 Nov 2015
The Telegraph
The Russian national anthem must not have made its way into the music libraries of Premier League stadium announcers, nor Humat al-Hima, the national anthem of Tunisia, or those of Nigeria, Malaysia and Turkey judging by their absence from pre-match playlists in the wake of recent atrocities in, or involving, those countries.
Still, La Marseillaise is quite readily available on iTunes, so it has not taken too much trouble for all 10 Premier League clubs playing at home this weekend to download their own version of the stirring French national song in order for it to be aired shortly before kick-off this weekend.
From Vicarage Road to the Etihad Stadium, Stamford Bridge to Goodison Park, La Marseillaise will ring out in tribute to those killed in the terror attacks in Paris seven days ago.
Wembley paid tribute to the Parisian fallen
It is a noble gesture on behalf of the Premier League, a show of solidarity towards our French neighbours and perhaps even the 31 French footballers currently playing in England’s top flight.
But forgive the impertinence here – has English football not already paid its tribute and displayed solidarity with France with those inside Wembley on Tuesday night singing La Marseillaise as one, whether they were from Portsmouth or Paris, Leeds or Lyon?
Why does the Premier League deem it necessary to pay its own tribute with the widespread playing of La Marseillaise when, already this year, the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes has not led to a similar tribute, despite the greater numbers killed?
Where was the playing of the Tunisian anthem (or, for that matter, God Save the Queen) at the start of the season following the murder of scores of British tourists on a beach in Sousse in June?
Terror attacks in Ankara recently passed by without so much as a minute’s silence and there has been little mention this week of similar atrocities in Beirut and Nigeria.
Football, it seems, is now allowing itself to become stage managed as a theatre for tributes or utterly pointless statements.
When Wayne Rooney spoke of football standing strong and together earlier this week in the wake of the Paris attacks, what on earth did the England captain mean?
Wayne Rooney called on football to stand strong together
How is football standing strong? By playing national anthems and urging supporters to join in?
The singing of La Marseillaise at Wembley was a memorable moment, but imagine how much more touching and meaningful it could have been had it been a spontaneous gesture by 80,000 supporters rather than a pre-planned event?
But the supporters inside the stadium had that opportunity taken away because, by the time the game arrived, singing along to it was what was expected of them.
And so it goes with the playing of La Marseillaise on Saturday.
Imagine instead, a crowd of supporters spontaneously chanting the tune to La Marseillaise during a lull in the game?
But by imposing the tribute, the Premier League has turned it into something rivalling the new John Lewis Christmas commercial as a coffee shop talking point rather than something truly meaningful.
And the obvious question to follow is what happens the next time there is a terrorist outrage?
Should we expect the national anthem to be played before Premier League games or is this just a one-off for some, as yet, undefined reason?
Just let football be football and allow supporters and players to make their own statements, however great or small, rather than laying them out like hymn-sheets.
La Marsellaise played before West Bromwich Albion vs Arsenal yesterday at The Hawthorns:
Premier League's La Marseillaise tribute is ridiculous, why wasn't Russian anthem played when plane brought down? - Telegraph
However, yesterday's decision to play La Marsellaise before every Premier League match was ridiculous. Didn't English football already pay enough respects to the Paris dead on Tuesday night at Wembley?
And why does the Premier League deem it necessary to pay Paris tribute when the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes got nothing, despite the greater numbers killed?
Premier League's La Marseillaise tribute is ridiculous. Why wasn't Russian anthem played when plane brought down?
Why does Premier League deem it necessary to pay Paris tribute when the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes got nothing, despite the greater numbers killed?
Solidarity: Is the Premier League's decision a pointless statement? Photo: REX FEATURES
By Mark Ogden
20 Nov 2015
The Telegraph
The Russian national anthem must not have made its way into the music libraries of Premier League stadium announcers, nor Humat al-Hima, the national anthem of Tunisia, or those of Nigeria, Malaysia and Turkey judging by their absence from pre-match playlists in the wake of recent atrocities in, or involving, those countries.
Still, La Marseillaise is quite readily available on iTunes, so it has not taken too much trouble for all 10 Premier League clubs playing at home this weekend to download their own version of the stirring French national song in order for it to be aired shortly before kick-off this weekend.
From Vicarage Road to the Etihad Stadium, Stamford Bridge to Goodison Park, La Marseillaise will ring out in tribute to those killed in the terror attacks in Paris seven days ago.
Wembley paid tribute to the Parisian fallen
But forgive the impertinence here – has English football not already paid its tribute and displayed solidarity with France with those inside Wembley on Tuesday night singing La Marseillaise as one, whether they were from Portsmouth or Paris, Leeds or Lyon?
Why does the Premier League deem it necessary to pay its own tribute with the widespread playing of La Marseillaise when, already this year, the downing of Russian and Malaysian planes has not led to a similar tribute, despite the greater numbers killed?
Where was the playing of the Tunisian anthem (or, for that matter, God Save the Queen) at the start of the season following the murder of scores of British tourists on a beach in Sousse in June?
Terror attacks in Ankara recently passed by without so much as a minute’s silence and there has been little mention this week of similar atrocities in Beirut and Nigeria.
Football, it seems, is now allowing itself to become stage managed as a theatre for tributes or utterly pointless statements.
When Wayne Rooney spoke of football standing strong and together earlier this week in the wake of the Paris attacks, what on earth did the England captain mean?
Wayne Rooney called on football to stand strong together
How is football standing strong? By playing national anthems and urging supporters to join in?
The singing of La Marseillaise at Wembley was a memorable moment, but imagine how much more touching and meaningful it could have been had it been a spontaneous gesture by 80,000 supporters rather than a pre-planned event?
But the supporters inside the stadium had that opportunity taken away because, by the time the game arrived, singing along to it was what was expected of them.
And so it goes with the playing of La Marseillaise on Saturday.
Imagine instead, a crowd of supporters spontaneously chanting the tune to La Marseillaise during a lull in the game?
But by imposing the tribute, the Premier League has turned it into something rivalling the new John Lewis Christmas commercial as a coffee shop talking point rather than something truly meaningful.
And the obvious question to follow is what happens the next time there is a terrorist outrage?
Should we expect the national anthem to be played before Premier League games or is this just a one-off for some, as yet, undefined reason?
Just let football be football and allow supporters and players to make their own statements, however great or small, rather than laying them out like hymn-sheets.
La Marsellaise played before West Bromwich Albion vs Arsenal yesterday at The Hawthorns:
Premier League's La Marseillaise tribute is ridiculous, why wasn't Russian anthem played when plane brought down? - Telegraph
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