Throughout the history of Hong Kong, the national anthem of the ruling sovereign state has always been adopted for use in an official capacity and played on occasions such as major sporting events or ceremonies.
The national anthem of the United Kingdom, "God Save the King" (alternatively "God Save the Queen" when the British monarch was female), was used to represent British Hong Kong in an official capacity from and from . "Kimigayo", the national anthem of the Empire of Japan, was used during the Japanese military occupation of Hong Kong from . As "March of the Volunteers" is the national anthem of the People's Republic of China, the song has been adopted by the Government of Hong Kong for anthem performance at major sporting events and ceremonies since the 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China.
The national anthem of the People's Republic of China is protected by statute in Hong Kong under the National Anthem Ordinance, and has since begun broadcasting regularly on radio and television stations including TVB, RTHK, ViuTV, and HOY TV before the main news or morning news programmes as mandated by the Hong Kong government since the introduction of the Ordinance in 2020.
Because these anthems are representative of the sovereign states and not the city itself, over the course of history there have been numerous other songs being circulated as the city's anthem, typically seen as symbolizing the spirit of Hong Kong.