ESPN not showing national anthem, USA sings ahead of Sugar Bowl after terrorist attack in New Orleans
The 2025. Sugar bowl was postponed until Thursday as the host city of New Orleans was hit by a deadly terrorist attack on New Year’s Day. During the pregame ceremony, the stadium observed a moment of silence for the victims, after which Georgia and Notre Dame fans gathered in a powerful series of loud “USA” chants.
The scene highlighted the power and unification of American sports. However, viewers of ESPN, which carried the broadcast exclusively, did not get to see the moment of silence, chants of “USA” or even the national anthem.
A general view of the field before the game between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Georgia Bulldogs at the Caesars Superdome. (Stephen Lew-Imagn Images)
ESPN neglected to show any of the three on air.
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It’s a shame the players didn’t kneel during the anthem in the name of “Black Lives Matter”. ESPN would certainly show it, as it did during the 2020 NBA playoffs.
OutKick asked ESPN about the decision not to carry the anthem before the Sugar Bowl, but we did not receive a response. We’ll update this story if the network responds.
A general exterior general aerial view of the Caesars Superdome, Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Tyler Kaufman)
The Daily Mail chronicle extremely negative response to ESPN’s decision ahead of the Sugar Bowl. Here are some of the more notable reactions:
ESPN is already entering the evening facing criticism for its coverage of the Bourbon Street attack, during which police say a suspected terrorist carrying an ISIS flag in his vehicle killed 15 people and wounded dozens more.
ESPN described the news as a “truck attack,” as if the monster wasn’t behind the wheel of the car.
Police investigate a crime scene on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. A driver drove into a crowd of New Year’s revelers and opened fire in the early morning hours. Kat Ramriez for Fox News Digital (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
Shades of 2021 when CNN blamed “car” for the Christmas parade massacre in Waukesha, Wisconsin, during which black nationalist Darrell Edward Brooks Jr. drove an SUV through the parade, killing six people and injuring 62 others.
In fact, ESPN was still downplaying the news as a “truck attack” nearly 24 hours later during 1 a.m. on “SportsCenter,” hosted by a creepy, obsessive DEI employee named Stan Verrett.
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Damn those self-driving cars. They keep stepping on people.
Either way, don’t expect ESPN to show some of the highlights of “USA” either. Instead, expect the network to return to its regularly scheduled programming using race put pressure on NFL voters to give Lamar Jackson the MVP over Josh Allen.
