Only three players from the United States sang the national anthem at the World Cup

Sounds of silence came face to face with the star banner at Eden Park before the match between Portugal and the USA Photo: Getty Images/Phil Walter

However, despite the fact that eight of the starting line-up on Tuesday morning kept their mouths shut, despite being harassed for not singing, only three players chose to sing the national anthem.

Captain Lindsey Horan and forward Alex Morgan sang the national anthem, while goaltender Alyssa Naehher and linebacker Julie Ertz clapped their hands to their chests, as is customary for the American national anthem.

But for most of the start, the line up chose to remain silent once again, which is likely to spark further criticism of their performance in New Zealand.

The players chose not to explain why they chose not to sing the national anthem before the match. Defender Naomi Girma brushed off the criticism ahead of their second group game but declined to say what the players were protesting against. «I think when we're there, we're getting ready for the game and that's not the point,» Girma said last week. «So, ultimately, every player has a choice.»

Team USA looked in stark contrast to their Portuguese rivals, who all sang their national anthem in unison before kick-off.

Several US fans denounced the failure to sing the anthem immediately after it was broadcast to the world. «It's sad when only a few players show respect during the national anthem,» one fan tweeted. “And many are wondering why Americans are rooting for the defeat of the United States.

“The world stage is not a place where you try to advance your agenda, it [is] a place where you show pride and unity. Come on, USA!»

Not all Americans at Eden Park agreed with the decision of the majority of the starting lineup. don't sing the anthem. Photo: Getty Images/Robin Alam

Another added: «What this team just did during Anthem was discouraging and shameful, especially in contrast to Portugal.»

A third said: “It's embarrassing to watch @USWNT during the national anthem. Thank you @Lindsey Horan @julierz for showing patriotism.»

Players' protests around the anthem date back to 2016, when outspoken player Megan Rapinoe was inspired to take a knee after an American football player Colin Kaepernick did the same to highlight racial inequality and police brutality in the US.

The following year, US Soccer introduced a policy that players could not kneel during the anthem, but this was lifted in February 2021 ahead of that year's match against Australia at the Olympics, where all but one of the players knelt on knees.

Before the last World Cup in France in 2019, Rapineau said: “Maybe I will never lay my hand on my heart. I will probably never sing the national anthem again. I feel like it's a kind of defiance in itself to just be who I am and wear the jersey and represent it.”

The women's team was in a longstanding dispute with US Soccer until last February. year when their equal pay lawsuit against the federation was settled for $24 million (£19 million).

The US was on the verge of a shock elimination, with a scoreless draw enough for them to avoid of her first World Cup group stage elimination after Portugal's Ana Capeta saw her injury time kick that would have knocked out an American hit the post before it was taken off.