CREEPY dancing robots and dogs have replaced fans at a Japanese baseball ground. Coronavirus has stopped supporters the world over from going to watch their teams in action. Fake fan sounds have been pumped into football games with varying levels of success. But Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have taken it to whole new levels, with robotic […]
CREEPY dancing robots and dogs have replaced fans at a Japanese baseball ground.
Coronavirus has stopped supporters the world over from going to watch their teams in action.
Fake fan sounds have been pumped into football games with varying levels of success.
But Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have taken it to whole new levels, with robotic fans replacing the real thing.
They had 20 of them dancing on an otherwise empty platform ahead of their Nippon Professional Baseball game against Rakuten Eagles yesterday.
The robots carried out a dance that is usually performed by Hawks’ fans before games in the 40,000 capacity Fukuoka Dome.
Some of the robots even had caps on supporting the team and waved flags.
And it must have worked, with the Hawks – who are seeking to defend their 2019 NPB title – winning 4-3.
Although not everyone was in love with the idea.
One person tweeted in response to the video: “This is one of the creepiest things I have ever witnessed.”
Not all new ways of creating an atmosphere without human fans have been quite so successful.
South Korean football side FC Seoul were forced to apologise for filling their stadium with mannequins which actually turned out to be sex dolls.
And Fleetwood filled their ground with naked mannequins and blow-up dolls for their League One play-off game against Wycombe.
