Donald Trump suggests NFL players who refuse to stand for national anthem 'shouldn't be in the country'

Donald Trump suggested NFL players who refuse to stand for national anthem 'shouldn't be in the country' - AP

Donald Trump has suggested American football players who refuse to stand for the national anthem "shouldn't be in the country".

The National Football League (NFL) owners voted unanimously to approve a new rule to fine clubs whose players kneel during the Star Spangled Banner on Wednesday.

In an interview with Fox News morning show Fox & Friends, Mr Trump said: "You have to stand proudly for the national anthem [or] you shouldn’t be playing, you shouldn’t be there. Maybe they shouldn’t be in the country."

NFL players have been protesting against police brutality and racial injustice by kneeling during the pre-match national anthem since 2016.

Under the new rule, players who do not wish to stand for the anthem must remain in the locker room while the anthem is played - or face an unspecified fine.

"I don’t think people should be staying in the locker rooms, but still I think it’s good," Mr Trump said in his first statements since the announcement.

"You have to stand proudly for the National Anthem and the NFL owners did the right thing with that if that’s what they’ve done."

Mr Trump has previously called for protesting players to be fired, calling the decision a "total disrespect of our heritage".

Players will now have to remain in the locker room if they do not wish to stand Credit: USA Today Sports

News of the fine has been met with fierce criticism in some quarters. 

In Thursday's editorial, the New York Times accused the NFL of capitulating "to a president who relishes demonising black athletes".

The owner of the New York Jets said he would allow his players to continue to protest on the pitch. 

"If somebody takes a knee, that fine will be borne by the organisation, by me, not the players," Christopher Johnson told Newsday.

"I never want to put restrictions on the speech of our players."

Colin Kaepernick, the player who started the movement in August 2016, was named GQ's 'Citizen of the Year' in 2017 and was a runner up for Time's 'Person of the Year'.

Colin Kaepernick's protest has split opinion Credit: Orlando Jorge Ramirez / USA Today

Critics claim that the protest is a mark of disrespect to the American flag and to the military service men and women who defend it.

Accepting an Amnesty International award last month, Kaepernick said: "While taking a knee is a physical display that challenges the merits of who is excluded from the notion of freedom, liberty, and justice for all, the protest is also rooted in a convergence of my moralistic beliefs, and my love for the people."