Anthony Gordon’s clumsy failure to sing the national anthem was caught on by England supporters as the Barcelona star appeared to be singing ‘God Save the Queen’. The 25-year-old was absent from the game against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but returned to the starting XI for the Three Lions’ 3-2 win over Mexico on Monday.
The national anthem was known as “Long Live Her Majesty” for more than 70 years during the reign of Queen Elizabeth II, but was changed to honor King Charles following the Queen’s death on September 8, 2022. One X user posted: “Anthony Gordon gave it his all during the national anthem in England vs. Mexico clash… still singing ‘God Save the Queen’ in 2026! We have a king now, dude.”
Another commented: “I’m so glad I’m not the only one who noticed that,” while a third expressed sympathy for the apparent mistake: “Can’t blame him. She’s been around so long that sometimes you forget there’s a king now.”
Jude Bellingham scored two of England’s three goals and confessed after the match that the victory in Mexico City was the best moment of his international career. “I have never been more proud of a group of players, of a team, of a country. That was a national performance,” said the Real Madrid star.
“It felt like everything we saw this week was the country behind us. All we talked about this week was how difficult it is to play against such a good team in an unbelievable atmosphere. To get this win was certainly the best night of my England career so far.”
The 23-year-old added: “I’ve been an England fan since I was seven years old. I remember the 2010 World Cup being my first World Cup and obviously there have been better moments in recent times, but I remember watching some of the tournaments and some of the players, you talk about a lot on TV now, they were struggling on nights like this.”
“It was tough because I didn’t feel like I was really able to push them, because there wasn’t really a reason to do that. It’s been really meaningful in my career and in my life to be part of an England team that gives them moments and nights like this and does so much for the country.”
