The Claim: NFL Banned Beyoncé for Performing ‘Alternative National Anthem’
A September 12 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) features side-by-side photos of singer Beyoncé and the NFL logo superimposed on the American flag.
“TRUE: NFL imposes lifetime ban on Beyoncé for performing ‘alternate national anthem’ at NFL,” the post’s caption read.
The post garnered more than 1,000 shares in three days. Similar versions of the claim were shared on Facebook and X, formerly Twitter.
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Our rating: False
The content comes from a satirical website. There is no evidence that Beyoncé was banned from performing at NFL games.
Beyoncé’s claim is originally a satire
The user shared a link to an article with a matching title in the comments below the Facebook post.
The website “Usacommunity.live” presents itself as satire.
It opens with a bold warning that the text is “a work of satire” and “intended for comic purposes only.”
The article describes an alleged NFL statement criticizing Beyoncé for performing the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing” at an NFL game instead of “The Star-Spangled Banner”, but no such statement was made. could be found on the NFL press site. or on the organization’s website social media accounts.
The singer did not play in a single game during the 2023 NFL season, which began five days before the post was shared on Facebook. She is currently on a world tour to promote her album “Renaissance”.
Similar articles have been published by The Dunning-Kruger Times and Esspots, both of which have disclaimers on their websites stating that their content is also satirical.
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There are no credible reports that Beyoncé has been banned from performing at NFL games.
The Facebook post is an example of “stolen satire,” in which made-up claims, published and labeled as satirical, are republished in a way that makes them appear to be legitimate information. As a result, readers of the second generation message are misled, as was the case here.
USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
This claim was also refuted by Lead Stories and Check Your Fact.
Our fact-checking sources:
- Usacommunity.live (archive), September 15, TRUE: NFL imposes lifetime ban on Beyoncé for performing ‘alternate national anthem’ at NFL
- USA TODAY, September 12, Who plays in the first week of the NFL? Here is the complete schedule of matches from September 7 to 11
- Beyoncé, accessed September 15, tour
- Dunning-Kruger Times (archives), September 15, Beyoncé banned from NFL after singing “black national anthem” instead of the Star-Spangled Banner
- Dunning-Kruger Times (archive), August 29, About Us
- Esspots, September 12, TRUE: NFL imposes lifetime ban on Beyoncé for performing ‘alternative national anthem’ at NFL
- Esspots, September 12, disclaimer
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