WWE Accused of Lowering Crowd Audio After U.S. National Anthem Gets Booed at Crown Jewel in Australia

Things got awkward fast at WWE Crown Jewel 2025 in Perth — and not because of anything that happened in the ring. Before the matches even started, the crowd reaction to the Star-Spangled Banner had producers scrambling behind the scenes.

As Sophie Foster took the mic to sing the U.S. national anthem inside the RAC Arena, fans loudly booed the performance. The negative reaction was so intense that WWE reportedly had to manipulate the sound levels for the broadcast.

On the October 12 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer revealed what really happened during that moment — and what fans at home didn’t fully hear.

“They had to turn the sound really low. Someone who I know who was at the show basically said that it was a lot worse than it came off on TV, which I’m just shocked that they even did it.”

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Meltzer emphasized that WWE’s decision to include the anthem — especially at an international event — backfired in a big way.

“Do they know what the rest of the world thinks of our country right now? That’s being pretty out of touch… They booed our national anthem. They played it in Australia. They would do it in Canada. You basically can’t do that anywhere but the United States these days.”

Following the U.S. anthem, Sophie Foster performed Australia’s national anthem — and the crowd response couldn’t have been more different. Fans in Perth belted out every word, filling the arena with pride and completely flipping the energy.

The production decision to dial down the crowd audio during the American anthem is now drawing criticism from fans who feel the broadcast didn’t reflect the true atmosphere in the building.