Surjit Patowary

Liverpool Make History With Sign Language YNWA At Anfield Pre-Kickoff

Anfield, Football Chants, Liverpool, YNWA

For the first time ever, You’ll Never Walk Alone was performed in British Sign Language at Anfield, before Liverpool’s Premier League clash with West Ham United.

The historic moment was part of Carlsberg’s “Signs of Unity” campaign, developed alongside Liverpool FC and the British Deaf Association (BDA).

Eight qualified BSL interpreters were positioned pitchside, wearing red LFC jumpers, to sign the full rendition of You’ll Never Walk Alone and the team announcements. 

The move was a long time coming, given that 81% of Deaf and hard of hearing fans say they want to join in matchday chants but feel unable to, and 74% report feeling disconnected from the stadium atmosphere.

The game was also Liverpool’s official “Red Together” fixture, celebrating the club’s commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.

Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish was spotted in the stands doing the sing language along to YNWA, which was a lovely moment.

As part of the campaign, Carlsberg is also training LFC bar staff in basic sign language, including staff at 16 Greene King Sport pubs across Merseyside.

This is not a one-off either, with BSL fan interpreters set to be present at every future LFC men’s and women’s home fixture. It is a proper step forward for deaf and hard of hearing supporters who have waited a long time for this kind of inclusion.

On the pitch, Liverpool made it a day to remember by thrashing West Ham 5-2, with goals from Ekitike, Van Dijk, Mac Allister, Gakpo, and a late Disasi own goal sealing a dominant win at Anfield.

Sir Kenny Dalglish — Liverpool legend and official club ambassador Source: liverpool.com

“You can understand that deaf and hard-of-hearing fans feel as if they’ve missed out on part of the match day experience, but at the end of the day, we want everyone to be all one. There are other people who get assistance for the game and there’s no reason to think because you’re hard of hearing that you can’t also get some help when you turn up at a match.”

Lynsey Woods — Global Brand Director, Carlsberg Source: Carlsberg Group Press Release / PRNewswire / liverpoolfc.com

“One of the best parts of football is the shared roar and raw emotion, the spontaneous explosion of joy. It creates a feeling of belonging that unites millions. However, the roar is only truly collective when everyone has access to it. As a proud partner of Liverpool FC for over 30 years, we’ve been working together to make sure fans have the best experiences — helping to remove the barriers for those who miss out. By introducing sign language into the heart of Anfield, we are not just teaching signs; we are signing our commitment to a more inclusive, accessible game for everyone who bleeds Red.”

Rishi Jain — Director of Impact, Liverpool FC Source: liverpoolfc.com / Carlsberg Group Press Release / PRNewswire

“Together with Carlsberg, we’re proud to deliver an initiative that truly lives up to everything that ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ means. By teaching fans at Anfield how to sign the anthem in British Sign Language, we wanted to give something back to our Deaf and hard-of-hearing supporters and with the campaign’s aim of ensuring that they feel more included in the matchday experience. This long-term commitment to BSL fan interpreters and wider supporter inclusion sits at the heart of our ongoing Red Together strategy to make our club accessible and inclusive to all, and its launch during our dedicated 2025-26 Red Together match makes it especially meaningful.”

Rebecca Mansell — Chief Executive Officer, British Deaf Association (BDA) Source: liamodell.com

“Seeing BSL take its place at Anfield is recognition of our language, our culture and our community. Signs of Unity demonstrates what true partnership looks like — Deaf expertise informing creative ambition, and accessibility embedded from the outset, not added at the end.”

Additionally, she described the project as “substantial and important” and said the BDA was “proud” to have worked with Carlsberg and deaf Liverpool fans to ensure BSL was “represented with authenticity, respect and confidence.”

More fan reactions on Anfield doing sign language YNWA pre-kickoff –

@alfiecassidy62 – Whoever had the idea to do the sign language fair play. Made YNWA even more special

@Kulusevski_SZN – The sign language interpreter for YNWA is one of the best things I’ve seen at a prem football club

Great inclusion for deaf people to be able to support their club more

@harrishour – That women doing sign language to ‘ynwa’ was sensational 🤣🤣

@ViktorFagerLFC – Oh man, super wholesome scenes at Anfield today during YNWA. Sign language all around. You love to see it.

@Littlechic – Goosebumps Walk On in sign language and Kenny Dalglish taking part Just beautiful 😍 ♥️ YNWA

@Robbie_OR – Kenny and Marina doing the YNWA sign language 😭😭

@bombsquad67 – Was there always a sign language person for deaf people at anfield during YNWA? Never noticed that before, nice touch.

@ConorThreadgold – These folks are amazing.

Watched the Sign Language guys interpreting songs at the Oasis gig in Dublin last summer. Absolutely incredible.

Once you’ve seen “what’s the story morning glory” you’ll never unsee it!

@Rusticossendi – The song felt new today. It was so different. Everyone was singing along. Beautiful to watch

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