Not too long ago, Canadian baseball fans were up in arms after singer JP Saxe performed O Canada a cappella before Game 3 of the World Series. His version sparked backlash from Blue Jays fans for changing the lyrics.

Reportedly, instead of the traditional “Our Home and Native Land,” Saxe went with “our home on native land,” and fans weren’t exactly thrilled. And probably just when they were starting to move on, the controversy popped up again. This time, it’s Rufus Wainwright’s turn in the hot seat after his rendition of O Canada tonight.

“THAT’S ONLY US COMMAND?!? Where do they get these goofy, homeless-looking anthem singers that don’t know O Canada? Yup, they butchered our national anthem again,” one Blue Jays fan shared his frustration via X.

Rufus Wainwright stumbled through both the English and French parts of O Canada before Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium. The Montreal-born singer gave the anthem his own little twist.

He accidentally sang “that only us command” instead of the correct “in all of us command.”

Wainwright’s bilingual rendition came ahead of the Blue Jays’ matchup with the Dodgers. But expectedly, it didn’t sit well with everyone.

The change brought back memories of Chantal Kreviazuk’s protest version of O Canada during the 4 Nations Face-Off hockey final back in February. And for traditional Canadian fans, this was the last straw. Especially since it’s the second time during this World Series that the anthem has been altered.

The reaction online has been heated, with Blue Jays fans venting their frustration at MLB for not being able to get a single, controversy-free rendition of their national anthem.

The Blue Jays fans are calling out the botched anthem rendition

Amid the chaos, one major question is whether the rendition of the Canadian National Anthem is intentionally altered or just a mistake. “Are the words in the Canadian National Anthem *that* difficult to remember?” One fan asked. However, he got his answer quickly.

“Could we not have someone sing O’Canada as it is written! It is not the singer’s song to change; it isn’t a cover song. It is our national anthem,” another fan countered. “The national anthem is important to a lot of people. Please sing it correctly,” another added.

Well, it looks like Wainwright not only altered a few lyrics but also flubbed a few lines. For instance, while singing the bilingual O Canada, he got the English and French lyrics wrong… He sang “True patriot love that only us can command” instead of “True patriot love in all of us command.” And then made several errors during the French section as well. So, while mistakes are part of any performance, Blue Jays fans are not in favor of tinkering with their national anthem.

“I don’t think a single person has sung the Canadian National Anthem properly once this World Series,” one user remarked. Blue Jays fans have officially hit their breaking point after the national anthem got botched for the second time this World Series. With teams from two countries facing off, it’s especially touchy, and after the lyric changes in Game 3 and again in Game 5, fans are asking the same question all over again… Should the national anthem be off-limits when it comes to personal tweaks or protest statements?

“Oh, you know, just Rufus Wainwright out here butchering our national anthem at the World Series. Wow. What an abomination,” another added. Well, it’s been a rough year for Canada-U.S. relations. So a clean, accurate performance of the Canadian anthem on baseball’s biggest stage felt not just appropriate, but necessary.

That said, on a stage this big, the expectation is to nail it, and Wainwright didn’t quite get there. Still, when you think about some of the worst anthem renditions MLB has featured in past Octobers, his version wasn’t anywhere near the worst we’ve heard.