US Vice President Mike Pence walked out of a football game in which players knelt during the national anthem, saying he “will not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our Flag, or our National Anthem”.

"While everyone is entitled to their own opinions, I don't think it's too much to ask NFL players to respect the Flag and our National Anthem," he said in a statement, after walking out of a Indianapolis Colts vs San Francisco 49ers game in his home state of Indiana.

He added: "I stand with President Trump, I stand with our soldiers, and I will always stand for our Flag and National Anthem."

Mr Trump later took credit for the display, tweeting that he had asked his Vice President to walk out of the stadium if any players kneeled.

“I am proud of him and @SecondLady Karen,” the President tweeted.

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

The White House said the Vice President attended the game to honour former Colts player Peyton Manning, whose number was to be retired that day.

More than 20 members of the 49s knelt before the game, according to the New York Times. Colts players wore black t-shirts reading “We Will” on the front and “Stand for equality, justice, unity, respect, dialogue, opportunity” on the back.

Pool reporters covering the Vice President said they were held in their vans outside the game, in case of an early departure.

Afterward, San Fransisco 49s player Eric Reid told reporters the incident "look[ed] like a PR stunt".

"Wait. This was orchestrated to make a point?" tweeted Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz. "That's not an inexpensive thing to do."

A number of football players have started kneeling during the national anthem in recent weeks, as a form of peaceful protest. Former 49s player Colin Kaepernick initiated the practise last year, by sitting out the national anthem in protest of police brutality of black people.

Mr Trump brought renewed attention to the issue last month, when he began tweeting and talking about his opposition to the protest.

“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,” the President said at a campaign rally in September.

The comments caused dozens more NFL players to begin kneeling before games. Other players developed new forms of protest, such as linking arms or raising their fists during the national anthem. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell criticised Mr Trump for his comments, calling them “divisive”.