It has been the unofficial Welsh rugby anthem for many years and is regularly sung at the start of a match. But now it should finally be over with “Delilah” by Tom Jones (82) in games of the national team of Wales. At least choirs are no longer allowed to perform this world hit at the upcoming Six Nations tournament in the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. This was announced by a spokeswoman for the stadium, according to the newspaper “The Sun”. Traditionally, all matches of the Welsh selection take place in the arena.
Since 2015, the Welsh rugby association WRU has banned the original song from being played over the loudspeakers in the stadium. The reason for the ban: the lyrics of the song from 1968. In it, a man kills his unfaithful partner (that Delilah) with a knife and then regrets the act. The WRU justified this step in a statement. You condemn “any kind of domestic violence”. The song is “problematic and disturbing” for some fans due to its subject matter.
On Twitter and other social media, displeasure is now boiling up among many Welsh fans. So some feel patronized and still want to start “Delilah” in the stadium. Among other things, it says that this ban is “nonsense”. In addition, literature has been full of similar stories for thousands of years, which then also have to be banned. Wales will play twice in Cardiff this month. First on Saturday 4th February against Ireland and almost three weeks later on 24th February against England.
Tom Jones himself has commented on the “Delilah” text several times in the past. He expressly distanced himself from the protagonist, classified his hit as “apolitical” and asked that his lines not be taken literally. It’s just about a man losing control. When writing, he never thought that he could be the perpetrator himself and that it was just a role. Ironically, Tom Jones performed at Principality Stadium in the summer of 2022 and of course also sang his world hit “Delilah”.
