DÜSSELDORF, Germany (AP) — An alliance of soccer fan groups across 16 European nations launched a campaign Wednesday against artificial crowd noise being used on broadcasts of games held in empty stadiums amid the coronavirus pandemic.
In an open letter on the day the English Premier League resumes and UEFA decides on rescheduling the Champions League, the fan groups say that “augmented reality technology, pre-recorded chants, and other forms of artificial support represent a rebuke to match-going fans.”
When the Bundesliga resumed last month, German broadcasters started offering TV viewers a choice between live sound from the empty stadiums or a soundtrack of recorded fan chants mixed by a producer to accompany the action.