The Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China (SF&OC) has issued the formal warning to the national governing body over the mistake - a move that has received the support of the country’s Government.

The blunder happened before Hong Kong’s match against Iran at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship Division III in Bosnia and Herzegovina in February.

Glory to Hong Kong, a song associated with the pro-democracy protests in 2019, was briefly played instead of the Chinese national them March of the Volunteers before the fixture in Sarajevo.

An apology was issued over the public address system after Hong Kong won the match 11-1, the mistake was "strongly deplored" by the Hong Kong Government (HKSAR).

SF&OC honorary secretary general Edgar Yang Joe-tsi claimed the organisation ruled that the ice hockey team had not followed guidelines and would be hit with a "written reprimand".

The HKIHA was also given 14 days to demonstrate to the SF&OC how it would improve its corporate governance, integrity management and membership system, according to a report by Hong Kong newspaper The Standard.

Yang underlined the importance of ensuring that the correct national anthem is played and national flag is used at sporting events, insisting that athletes should be withdrawn from ceremonies if organisers refuse to do so.

The HKSAR has pledged its support behind the SF&OC’s decision to issue a warning to the HKIHA, claiming it is "appropriate disciplinary action".

"The HKIHA failed to fully adhere to the guidelines in taking adequate measures to ensure that the organiser played the correct national anthem during the Ice Hockey World Championships held in Bosnia on February 28 this year," the statement read in a report by the China Daily.

The HKSAR insisted that the HKIHA should make improvements "as soon as possible" to avoid potentially losing funding and said that other national governing bodies should learn from the anthem blunder.

"In order to safeguard national dignity, [the HKIHA] must comply with all requirements as stipulated in the guidelines in the future and make their best endeavours to ensure the organiser plays the correct national anthem," the HKSAR said.

"As the SF&OC has pointed out various concerns in the corporate governance of the HKIHA, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department is further reviewing the use of Government funding by the HKIHA with a view to identifying room for improvements and ensuring the proper us of public resources.

"The aim is to make sure that public resources are used effectively in the promotion of ice hockey and provision of better support to athletes in their training and international competitions.”

Hong Kong was previously a British Overseas Territory, and was handed back to China in 1997, with March of the Volunteers used as the national anthem at sports events since then.

The city is deemed a "special administrative region" of China under the principle of "one country, two systems".

Glory to Hong Kong was banned in 2020 after China imposed national security laws that punished what the country's Government defined as secession, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces.

It had been closely associated with the 2019 Hong Kong protests, sparked by a proposed and later withdrawn controversial Bill that would have allowed extradition to mainland China.