Fans quite possibly won’t be present for football games in 2020. But that doesn’t mean it will be quiet.
Via John Ourand of Sports Business Journal, FOX’s Joe Buck told Andy Cohen of SiriusXM Radio that “it’s pretty much a done deal” that the FOX and other networks will use fake crowd noise for games played without fans.
Buck also suggested that virtual fans will be used, so that when a wide shot happens the fans at home will see the appearance of a full stadium. Even if it isn’t.
Astute football fans don’t need to be told when to cheer or boo or curse or whatever. But for plenty of viewers the external noise is the nudge they need to know how to feel.
Here’s hoping that, if they do it, they do it right. Up to and including a virtual chant of “bullsh-t” when the home team is on the wrong end of a bad call.
