The USSF board of directors abolished the  rule last year, but the decision needed to be confirmed by the full membership of the governing body. At a meeting on February 27, the board’s decision to scrap the rule was supported by 71% of voters, with 29% opposed, AFP reported.

Explaining its decision to repeal the policy last year, the USSF said the rule was wrong and reflected the federation’s failure to address the concerns of blacks and other minorities. The rule requiring players to “stand respectfully” during the US national anthem was introduced in 2017.

The controversy came after US star Megan Rapinoe knelt for the national anthem in 2016 in a gesture of solidarity with former NFL star Colin Kaepernick . The USSF has faced growing pressure to reconsider its anti-kneeling policy following nationwide protests sparked by the death of an unarmed black man, George Floyd, in Minneapolis last year.

Kaepernick’s kneeling protest has become a signature act of solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement adopted in anti-racism protests around the world . Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in August 2016 to draw attention to racial injustice following the deaths of several unarmed black men in confrontations with police…