In an embarrassing mix-up, the wrong national anthem was played for Albania before they faced France in a Euro 2020 Qualifier on Saturday, Sky Sport reports.
Players looked bemused as they realized it was the wrong anthem – Andorra’s anthem, according to UEFA’s official website – with camera images showing angry Albanian fans making offensive gestures in protest.
France coach Didier Deschamps spoke with Albania coach Edoardo Reja as referee Jess Gil Manzano waited several minutes for the right anthem to be played at the Stade de France before starting the game, which was delayed by nearly 10 minutes.
Then, when the correct anthem was about to be played there was another embarrassing incident as the stadium announcer apologised to “Armenia’s fans” and called on fans to respect the “Armenia national anthem” before realizing his glaring mistake and saying Albania.
Deschamps offered a public apology over the anthem mix-up which resulted in a seven-minute delay as Albania would not start the match without the error being rectified.
“I apologized to the bench and the coach,” Deschamps told a press conference.
