Professional sports are something that some people really enjoy. And since most have been canceled in recent months thanks to the coronavirus outbreak, fans are getting (understandably) restless. The good news is that some professional sports, like baseball, basketball, and hockey, have started anew. The bad news is, like everything else in our lives, fans won’t be able to attend the games in person.
Even if you are not someone who would normally go to live sporting events, watching your favorite teams play without the spectators cheering them on makes the experience quite different. It’s probably weird for players, too, to do their thing in front of empty stands. Fortunately, both the MLB and the NBA have programs in place for people to attend games as virtual fans, Fortune reports. This is what you need to know.
MLB
So baseball has not done very well during the pandemic, with numerous players testing positive for COVID-19, resulting in many games being canceled. Today the stands remain empty, but there are some innovative ways to make fans feel like they are part of this season. For example, some teams are giving people the opportunity to buy cardboard cutouts of their faces, which are then placed in the stands during the game. And then there is Fox, which has made the interesting decision to broadcast the games with computer-generated spectators filling the stadiums. At least then you’re paying more attention to the creepy fake people in fake attendance than the fact that the stadium is empty.
NBA
Unlike MLB, which travels and plays in ballparks across the country like we’re not in a pandemic, the NBA is safely locked in a bubble at the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando (also known as the Plot of the largely forgotten sequel to “Space Jam”). His vision of having virtual fans is also a bit more advanced than MLB’s, with each game featuring the faces of more than 300 people on 17-foot-tall video screens near the pitch. If you want to do that to your face, you can sign up (for free) to virtually support your favorite team.
NHL
There is the NHL, which has resumed its season through two bubbles located in Toronto and Edmonton in Canada. Unfortunately, there are no fans, real or virtual, involved in hockey games. Still, those watching from home have enjoyed using their league jumbotrons, and four cooling fans positioned in the stands in Edmonton quickly became internet sensations among the NHL online fan community. The absence of true human fans of American sporting events is certainly a blow to these sports and their respective products, especially during playoff games that are generally characterized by raucous atmospheres that elevate competitiveness and make competitions more engaging.
