NFL players kneel for anthem after Donald Trump ramps up dispute

Jacksonville Jaguar players show their protest during the National Anthem during the NFL International Series match between Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium. Pic/Getty Images

National Football League players from the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars knelt and linked arms during the pre-game national anthem on Sunday, hours after US President Donald Trump called on fans to boycott teams that do not discipline players who protest.

At the first game since Trump stepped up his criticism of NFL players, dozens of members of the Jaguars and Ravens did not stand for the anthem and took a knee, a form of protest that began last year over excessive use of force by police against African-Americans.

Jaguars owner Shad Khan linked arms with team players in solidarity at the game in London's Wembley Stadium. Khan donated $1 million to the Trump inauguration fund.

In a post on Twitter, Trump pressed ahead with his feud about players who refuse to stand for the anthem "If NFL fans refuse to go to games until players stop disrespecting our Flag and Country, you will see change take place fast," Trump wrote on Sunday. "Fire or suspend!" In a second tweet, Trump said that the "league should back" fans who are upset about the protests.

The form of protest began in 2016 when then San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick put one knee to the ground during pre-game renditions of the ‘Star Spangled Banner'. Several players have since made similar gestures of protest before games. At a political rally in Alabama on Friday, Trump suggested any protesting football player was a "son of a bitch" and should lose his job.

New England Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft, who the president considers a friend, criticised Trump and defended players' right to protest. "I am deeply disappointed by the tone of the comments made by the president," Kraft said on a statement posted on Twitter.

2016
Colin Kaepernick stirred a national debate after refusing to stand during the anthem