FIFA World Cup Anthems and Songs

Wavin’ Flag

• Artist: K’naan
• World Cup: South Africa 2010

Who could forget this euphoric arm raiser from the South Africa 2010 World Cup? This anthemic crowd pleaser by Somali-Canadian musician K’naan really brought the feel good factor to this tournament.

“Wavin’ Flag” has got it all – a bouncy rhythm, uplifting lyrics and a “Woah-oh-ho” chorus that everyone can join in with. It’s hardly surprising that this spine-tingler is still blasted out in pubs and clubs across the world to this very day.

Waka Waka

• Artist: Shakira featuring Freshlyground
• World Cup: South Africa 2010

OK, so we’ve cheated slightly and used two official World Cup songs from the same tournament, but how could we leave out this classic dance floor filler? South Africa 2010 was just a great World Cup for music. After all, something had to drown out the awful sound of those vuvuzelas!

There’s an argument that “Waka Waka” has been so successful that it has become bigger than the tournament that it was originally written for. It might have started life as the South Africa 2010 World Cup anthem, but “Waka Waka” lives on as a true party anthem now and forever.

La Copa de la Vida

• Artist: Ricky Martin
• World Cup: France 1998

If we wind back the clock a little bit further, Ricky Martin took the world by storm with “La Copa de la Vida”, the official song for the France ‘98 World Cup. It was released one year earlier than his iconic banger “Livin’ la Vida Loca” and was one of the first true hip-swinging World Cup anthems.

And when we say he took the world by storm, we really mean it. “La Copa de la Vida” reached number one in the charts in several countries across all continents. Most notably, it spent an astounding six weeks at the top in France, Sweden and Australia.

Live It Up

• Artist: Nicky Jam featuring Will Smith and Era Istrefi
• World Cup: Russia 2018

Bringing it back a little bit closer to the present day, we simply cannot leave out the official FIFA World Cup anthem from Russia 2018. From the bouncing beat to the catchy chorus and “one life, one dream” lyrics, there’s very little to dislike about this club classic.

“Live It Up” might not have received the same initial critical response or chart positions as the songs above. However, how can we not rate a song with a video that features Will Smith swaggering through an abandoned warehouse? That’s about as cool as it gets!

We Are One (Ole Ola)

• Artist: Pitbull featuring Claudia Leitte and Jennifer Lopez
• World Cup: Brazil 2014

What better place to finish than with the official anthem for Brazil 2014?  The host nation and record five-time World Cup winners might want to forget a certain match against Germany in this tournament. However, the rest of us simply cannot forget jumping around to the sound of “We Are One (Ole Ola)”.

Pitbull was at the height of his musical fame back in 2014, so it was hardly a surprise when he delivered a World Cup anthem that’s up there with the very best of them. Brazilian Claudia Leitte brings the language and flavour of the home nation, while J-Lo rounds it off with some style.

Mexican National Anthem

The Mexican national anthem is Himno Nacional Mexicano, a sweeping, cinematic, and somewhat intense tune. It was written by Francisco González Bocanegra, and Jaime Nunó was the official composer. As it happens, Himno Nacional Mexicano has been Mexico’s official national anthem since 1854, which gives it a nice historical touch.

Compared to other anthems, it’s the imagery in the lyrics that really captures your attention. Translated, the anthem talks proudly of soldiers defending their homeland to the death and banners soaked in blood. This may sound somewhat grim when written in plain English, but the anthem clearly gets across the pride of the Mexican people.

Mexico’s national anthem is by no means a difficult listen, despite the morbid lyrics. If you can imagine the scene where 80,000 people sing the lyrics with pride inside the Estadio Azteca, it’s clear that this is actually one of the most powerful songs in football.

Canadian National Anthem

O Canada is the official name of the Canadian national anthem. The song seems simple on the surface, but it has a surprisingly complicated backstory. First composed in 1880 by Calixa Lavallée, the song was originally established with French lyrics, as created by Adolphe-Basile Routhier. The English version that most football fans recognise today didn’t come until much later, in 1908, as written by Robert Stanley.

However, despite the song originally being composed in 1880, it didn’t officially become Canada’s national anthem until 100 years later in 1980. These days, O Canada is typically performed in both French and English at international events, which is appropriate given Canada’s bilingual national identity. And of course, the most well-known line of them all is “we stand on guard for thee”, a line that even non-Canadians occasionally sing!

US National Anthem

The Star-Spangled Banner might just be the most famous national anthem in the world. Americans sing this anthem with pride before most sporting fixtures and other important events. Artists who have previously been tasked with singing this anthem at high-profile events have regularly stated that it’s one of the most demanding songs to do live, too.

Without getting overly technical, this anthem covers one and a half octaves of range, including a climactic high note that people all over the world know – the famous “land of the free” line. And on the subject of the anthem’s lyrics, these were first written by Francis Scott Key in 1814. As the story goes, after watching British forces shell Fort McHenry during the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key saw the American flag still flying strong through the smoke from his ship.

That image was then recreated with the powerful lyrics we now know. Yet, the song itself wasn’t officially turned into America’s national anthem until 1931, more than a century after it was first written. And almost another century later, The Star Spangled Banner is set to be sung with pride prior to the World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.