Why do Liverpool fans boo at the national anthem? Why booing takes place during God Save the Queen at FA Cup

Booing could be heard as the national anthem was played ahead of Liverpool’s FA Cup final against Chelsea.
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Loud boos were heard from the Liverpool section at Wembley prior to their FA Cup final against Chelsea on Saturday.

The national anthem is traditionally played at domestic finals at Wembley.

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When Liverpool play in these major finals, booing is commonplace so it is no longer surprising anymore.

A flag regularly spotted at Anfield reads ‘scouse not English’ during European matches.

The origins of why the red half of Merseyside boo the national anthem can be traced back to the 1980s, when there was anger at  the then Conservative government over how it dealt with the Hillsborough disaster on April 15, 1989.

Ninety-seven fans were unlawfully killed as a result of Hillsborough, in a game between Nottingham Forest and Liverpool in the FA Cup semi-final.

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A conservative MP at the time, Sir Irvine Patnick was named as one of the sources behind The Sun’s false coverage of the Hillsborough disaster.

The Sun ran headlines that were untrue, and led to a widespread campaign telling people to boycott the newspaper. The campaign remains in place today.

Further driving a wedge between Liverpool and the British establishment was a question put to prime minister, Boris Johnson, by  Labour Party MP for Liverpool West Derby Ian Byrne, in  February:

“We have a humanitarian crisis of food poverty in all constituencies represented in this house,” he said

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This frosty relationship between city and country also translates to the English national team, with many Liverpudlians not supporting England during major tournaments like the Euros or the World Cup.