The 49ers are investigating a fan tailgate after a hanging skeleton was seen in online videos

The 49ers are investigating why a prominent fan tailgate group hung a skeleton wearing a Seahawks jersey by its neck before Sunday’s game.

On Sunday, the tailgate group 408 Faithfuls set up its usual “Faithful Boulevard” event in the Green Lot at Levi’s Stadium. The group also hosted Travis King, a Bay Area musician who makes 49ers songs, for a music video shoot for King’s 49ers version of the song “Ball’n” by Mustard and Roddy Ricch. The track is called “49er Faithful Official” and features Bay Area rap legend E-40.

The hanging skeleton dressed in a Seahawks jersey — which appears to be No. 3, the number of former Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson — was clearly visible in several videos posted on Instagram and X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday. The skeleton was hanging directly behind where King positioned himself and the 49ers fans for his music video shoot.

When approached by SFGATE for comment, the 49ers declined to make any person available, but a team spokesperson sent a statement.

“We condemn the use of racist imagery and anyone involved in this incident,” the statement read. “We are continuing to investigate and remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring that our community continues to be a safe and inclusive atmosphere for all fans to enjoy the sport.”

Representatives from 408 Faithfuls did not respond to multiple requests for comments from SFGATE by the time of publication. After SFGATE reached out to 408 Faithfuls requesting comment, two videos on the organization’s Instagram page that displayed the hanging skeleton were deleted.

King himself posted a video from Sunday that had the skeleton prominently displayed directly behind him, but deleted that video from his social media accounts Tuesday. According to videos from E-40’s Instagram story, King was also back at Levi’s Stadium on Monday, shooting additional clips for his music video inside the stadium with the rapper. E-40 was not at Sunday’s shoot.

When reached for comment by SFGATE, King wrote, “I took down the content because the images shown don’t align with my personal values. I apologize to anyone who was offended or found the content harmful.”

While the exact circumstances around the skeleton are unclear, the image of a noose in the background of celebratory social media videos is jarring. As the Anti-Defamation League wrote in a 2017 handout, “The hangman’s noose has come to be one of the most powerful visual symbols directed against African American people and evokes racial history, hatred and bigotry. Its origins are connected to the history of lynching in America.”

The sports world has seen several outright racist incidents involving nooses in recent years. In 2020, what appeared to be a noose was found at the Talladega Superspeedway stall of Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s only Black full-time driver, sparking an FBI investigation; another suspected noose was found at Sonoma Raceway in the North Bay days later. Earlier this year, four people were accused of a hate crime in Spain for hanging an effigy of Real Madrid soccer player Vinicius Junior off of a bridge in Madrid.

There have also been some high-profile racist incidents within the 49ers: Cardinals safety Budda Baker shared a string of racist messages he received from a Niner fan after a 2020 game, and star wide receiver Deebo Samuel said he heard death threats and racial slurs from Niner fans in April 2022, when he was in the middle of a contentious contract negotiation with the team.

Levi’s Stadium doesn’t explicitly state what fans can and cannot have as imagery at tailgates, with the only listed rules on the stadium’s security policies page focused on conduct inside the stadium. On both that page and the stadium’s parking information page, the only thing explicitly prohibited from tailgates are glass containers.

SFGATE sports reporter Gabe Fernandez contributed reporting.