Watch: In a border city stadium, American NFL fans sing Canada’s anthem with gusto

There are no Canadian teams in the NFL – but there are millions of fans.

At the Buffalo Bills game in New York on Thursday night, plenty of Canadians wore the team’s trademark red, white and blue while drinking beside their pick-up trucks, which were parked to tailgate – a very American pre-game tradition.

The Bills’ stadium is only 112 miles (180 km) from Toronto – about a two and a half hour drive for fans – and right across Lake Ontario, which President Donald Trump has sought to rename Lake America.

So it was no surprise that many Canadians arrived long before kick-off to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the sights of the new Highmark Stadium for their team ‘s home opener against the Detroit Lions.

What was unusual was that their national anthem rang out through the stadium.

The field was decked out with both the stars and stripes of the US flag and the maple leaf of the Canadian one, and the 1990s Canadian band The Barenaked Ladies belted out Oh Canada! in front of a massive crowd.

There was a fireworks display for the team’s home opener at their new stadium

The Barenaked Ladies belted out Oh Canada! in front of a massive crowd

It was an emotional moment for many of the Canadian fans, who said they felt an extremely warm welcome even if their country’s mood has recently grown more frosty towards the US.

“I’ve always felt welcome here,” said Ben Kerr, from Bradford, Ontario.

“I think it’s a nice acknowledgement,” he added. “I appreciate that the Bills are doing that for Canada.”

The relationship between the two countries, which began to sour when US President Donald Trump returned to office and made repeated calls to annex Canada, has frayed further with an escalating tit-for-tat tariff showdown.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has said Canada, which shares the world’s longest undefended border with the US, is “at war” with its southern neighbour over trade. Trump has called Canada “nasty” and “entitled”.

The Bills’ new home, Highmark Stadium, cost $2.2bn to build

Both sides are feeling the economic impact, with Canadian industries reeling from tariffs and Canadians boycotting travel and spending in the US.

The ongoing tensions made the decision to travel to Buffalo a little more complicated for Kerr.

Source : BBC États-Unis/Canada