The Barenaked Ladies drew cheers from thousands of football fans in Buffalo, N.Y., on Thursday as they sang O Canada ahead of the Bills' home opener.
Amid ongoing trade tensions between Washington and Ottawa, the Toronto-based band was invited to sing by the team, which has about 10,000 Canadian season ticket-holders.
Kate Hussmann, Buffalo Bills chief strategy officer, said in a statement: "We are thrilled to be part of such a unique event and to celebrate the connection we share with Bills fans across southern Ontario. The passion and support we feel from our Canadian fans is incredible, and we look forward to continuing to deepen those relationships and create memorable experiences together for years to come."
One day before the game, the White House said President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum to identify Canadian-origin goods in federal civil government procurement for the purpose of removing them. The Bills celebrated their Canadian fans with a game of cross-border catch, from boat to boat, floating along the Niagara River.
Trump's memorandum, signed Wednesday, is the latest move in the escalating trade war between Canada and the U.S. after talks fell apart last month. It came a week after he banned the import of Canadian alcohol, motorcycles and various other products into the U.S.
For the Bills, it was the latest effort to celebrate their Canadian fans in advance of their home opener, the first ever regular-season game at the team's new Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York.
"The Canadian fan base for the Buffalo Bills has always been very important to them," said Sal Capaccio, a sports talk host and reporter who follows the Bills.
"It's a very important relationship, because Buffalo isn't New York, it's not Chicago, it's not LA. It's a small market," Capaccio added. "The further they can expand their footprint, going into southern Ontario, going into Toronto… that really matters to the Buffalo Bills. They're a team that wants to make sure they have all their bases covered for people to be welcomed in."
On Wednesday, the team posted a video on social media platform X showing retired Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and retired wide receiver Stevie Johnson complete a few cross-border catches along the Niagara River, tossing to each other from aboard distant ferries.
Niagara Parks, the Ontario agency that manages the Canadian side of the Niagara River, said in a news release on Wednesday that the successful boat to boat passes "will be aired during NFL on Prime’s broadcast of the Buffalo Bills first 2026 home game on Thursday, September 17."
Last week, the team said on social media platform X that both O Canada and The Star-Spangled Banner would be performed before Thursday's home opener against the Detroit Lions and that the team "will celebrate the American and Canadian anthems during pregame." Actress and singer Auliʻi Cravalho performed the American anthem.
The Canadian national anthem is rarely heard before NFL games, but it's commonly played before National Hockey League games in Buffalo, even when the Sabres are up against American opponents. In April, fans at KeyBank Center in Buffalo sang O Canada after a microphone failed before the Sabres' playoff game against the Boston Bruins.
Conrad Collaco is a CBC News producer for CBC Hamilton with extensive experience in online, television and radio news. Follow him on Twitter at @ConradCollaco, or email him at [email protected].
Source: www.cbc.ca — Read the original article
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