REPUBLIC of Ireland soccer fans have been left bemused by a subtitling error which saw the wrong words displayed during the national anthem.
The friendly international match between England and the Republic at Wembley was broadcast by ITV on Thursday.
As Amhran na bhFiann was played ahead of kick-off, the words to Ireland's Call - a song adopted by many 32-county teams such as rugby and hockey - instead appeared on screen.
While the error would only have been picked up by a small number of people with subtitles switched on, it reached a larger audience when shared on social media.
Many pointed out the mistake with some asking ITV to apologise. Others described it as poor and showing a lack of respect.
Ireland's Call, written by Derry's Phil Coulter, was commissioned by the Irish Rugby Football Union for the 1995 World Cup.
The idea was to create a song that had no political undertones and could be sung by players from both Northern Ireland and Republic, playing together on one team. The song refers to the "four proud provinces of Ireland" standing "shoulder to shoulder."
It has attracted opposition, both on musical grounds and from nationalists.
Amhran na bhFiann is the only anthem played before Ireland soccer matches.
Sinn Féin's culture, arts and sport spokeswoman , Sinead Ennis said "the real problem is the existence of Ireland's Call in the first place".
"Ireland doesn't need an alternative anthem. We have one already," she added.
Musician Aoife Ní Bhriain lumped the blunder together with a new film which has been heavily criticsed for its bizarre Irish accents.
"Just when we thought the Wild Mountain Thyme trailer was the most offensive thing this week," she posted.
The Irish News asked ITV for an explanation but the broadcaster did not respond.
