Stadium anthems orsports anthems orarena anthems are terms to refer songs that are played over thepublic address systems at stadiums and arenas during breaks in the action to rally the fans. Unlike collegefight songs, most stadium anthems were not written primarily for use at sports events, thoughcompilations such asESPN Presents Stadium Anthems and the"Jock" series occasionally featureremixed versions of these songs designed tosegue together or to accentuate the rhythm or other elements of the songs. Somefootball events have their own anthems, which are not played during breaks, but rather as entrance music, the most notable being theFIFA Anthem and theUEFA Champions League Anthem.[1]
Stadium anthems are characterized by a catchy uptempo rhythm and a repeated vocalcall-response catchphrase, often a statement of pride (such as "We Will Rock You", "We Are the Champions" and "Another One Bites the Dust" byQueen).[2][3] Most stadium anthems are drawn from popularrock and roll, dance orrap hits. Atcollege football games, the schools'marching bands often add stadium anthems to their repertoires. Inbaseball, many stadium anthems are used as entrance music for various ballplayers. For example,AC/DC's "Hells Bells" was the entrance music forTrevor Hoffman andMetallica's "Enter Sandman" filled the same role forMariano Rivera.
Some stadium anthems are popular in a particular region, or with a specific team because of a reference in the song's lyrics.Gerry and the Pacemakers' version of "You'll Never Walk Alone" is the club anthem ofLiverpool F.C.[4] The 1968Beatles song "Hey Jude" is the club anthem for London clubBrentford F.C.[5][6] "Just idag är jag stark" byKenta is the club anthem ofHammarby Fotboll, while "When We Were Young" was the anthem ofCork Hibernians.[7] TheDallas Cowboys made heavy use of "Should've Been a Cowboy" byToby Keith in the 1990s, while sports teams inAlabama often use "Sweet Home Alabama" byLynyrd Skynyrd. In a rare example of a team actually being mentioned in a song's lyrics, theUniversity of Alabama marching band often plays "Deacon Blues" bySteely Dan due to the school being referred to as one of"the winners in the world", even though the reference was intended to besarcastic.
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We Are the Champions" is a bombastic monument of an anthem. Its soaring, triumphant melody is known at sporting events and award ceremonies the world over
Gerry and the Pacemakers' version hit No 1 in October 1963, it was picked up by the Kop and the game's greatest anthem was born
