A singer performing the American national anthem at the beginning of an NFL football game sided with players sending a defiant message to Donald Trump after she dropped to her knee.

Former The Voice contestant Meghan Linsey showed her support for athletes embroiled in the racism row while completing her rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner" ahead of the Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans clash in Nashville.

Top stars in the sport have been kneeling and bowing their heads in stadiums during the patriotic song in protest at what they see is injustice, including police brutality, against minorities in the US.

Mr Trump poured fuel on the fire when he described each of them as a “son of bitch” who “disrespects our flag” – and called for them to be fired.

But rather than dampen their defiance he sparked wider protests, with scores of players in two major NFL games on Sunday either staying in their locker rooms or taking a knee during the anthem.

The entire Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans squads remained off the field in the Nissan Stadium amid the national song, with the Seahawks later saying their act of defiance was in protest at the “injustice that has plagued people of colour in this country”.

Ms Linsey sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" with a guitar player on the field empty of players, and in the last notes drew applause from thousands in the stadium when she took a knee and bowed.

The Voice runner-up didn’t comment after but did re-tweet messages of support.

One included a post from author Bobby Jones, who wrote: “@meghanlinsey respect. Took guts. And heart. Glad you followed it. Love this country.”

Another she shared on the social media site came from singer Haley Grace,‏ who posted: “No matter what anyone says, I'm proud of @meghanlinsey for standing up for what she believes.”

The Seahawks said they stayed away from the national anthem in protest against racism in the US, speaking out ahead of the clash where the Titans clinched the game with 33 to 27 points.

A statement read: "As a team, we have decided we will not participate in the national anthem. We will not stand for the injustice that has plagued people of colour in this country.”

American sportspeople kneel in protest Show all 14 1 /14 American sportspeople kneel in protest American sportspeople kneel in protest Terrance Smith #48, Eric Fisher #72, Demetrius Harris #84, and Cameron Erving #75 of the Kansas City Chiefs is seen taking a knee before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at the StubHub Center on 24 September, 2017 in Carson, California Sean M. Haffey/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Members of the Dallas Cowboys link arms and kneel during the National Anthem before the start of the NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at the University of Phoenix Stadium on 25 September, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona Christian Petersen/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Bruce Maxwell of the Oakland Athletics kneels as teammate Mark Canha #20 places his hand on Maxwell's shoulder during the singing of the National Anthem before their MLB American League baseball game against the Seattle Mariners at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California on 25 September 2017 Reuters/Stephen Lam American sportspeople kneel in protest Members of the Oakland Unified School District Honor Band kneel as they perform the national anthem before a MLB American League baseball game between the Oakland Athletics and the Seattle Mariners at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California on 25 September, 2017 Reuters/Stephen Lam American sportspeople kneel in protest Samaje Perine #32 and Chris Carter #55 of the Washington Redskins hold hands as they stand and kneel in unison during the national anthem before playing against the Oakland Raiders at FedExField on 24 September, 2017 in Landover, Maryland Patrick Smith/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Meghan Linsey, a former contestant on "The Voice," kneels after singing the national anthem before the start of the Tennessee Titans and Seattle Seahawks football game at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee on 24 September, 2017 Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP American sportspeople kneel in protest The Los Angeles Chargers are seen during national anthem before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at the StubHub Center on 24 September, 2017 in Carson, California Jeff Gross/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Nick Kyrgios of Team World joined NFL stars from Wembley by dropping his knee before his Laver Cup match with Roger Federer today during his mens singles match against Roger Federer of Team Europe on the final day of the Laver cup on 24 September, 2017 in Prague, Czech Republic Julian Finney/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Laremy Tunsil #67, Maurice Smith #27 and Julius Thomas #89 kneel with Jarvis Landry #14 of the Miami Dolphins during the National Anthem prior to an NFL game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on 24 September, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey Steven Ryan/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Tampa Bay Buccaneers Wide Receivers Mike Evans #13, and DeSean Jackson #11, take a knee during the national anthem before the game against the Minnesota Vikings on 24 September, 2017 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota Hannah Foslien/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Denver Broncos players kneel during the American National Anthem before an NFL game against the Buffalo Bills on 24 September, 2017 at New Era Field in Orchard Park, New York Brett Carlsen/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Buffalo Bills players kneel during the American National anthem before an NFL game against the Denver Broncos on 24 September, 2017 at New Era Field in Orchard Park, New York Brett Carlsen/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium on September 12, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. The kneel began as a protest against police killing people of colour Thearon W. Henderson/Getty American sportspeople kneel in protest Megan Rapinoe #15 kneels during the National Anthem prior to the match between the United States and the Netherlands at Georgia Dome on 18 September, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia Kevin C. Cox/Getty

Elsewhere, the Pittsburgh Steelers players remained in the tunnel before their game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field stadium in Chicago, Illinois. But Alejandro Villanueva, who served with the US Army in Afghanistan, stood alone in front of it.

The protests came after Mr Trump on Friday said: “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired. He’s fired!’”

He hit out again after scores of major stars protested on Sunday.