League: Soccer Team Didn't Use 'Common Sense' With Dolls

FC Seoul didn't intentionally order sex dolls, but should have figured it out, says K-League
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted May 21, 2020 8:25 AM CDT
Soccer Team Fined Over Attempt to Populate Stands
In this May 17, 2020, photo, cheering mannequins are installed at the empty spectators' seats before the start of a soccer match between FC Seoul and Gwangju FC at the Seoul World Cup Stadium in Seoul, South Korea.   (Ryu Young-suk/Yonhap via AP)

A professional soccer team in South Korea has received a record fine after using sex dolls to fill stadium seats. Since the K-League resumed games in empty stadiums earlier this month, teams have been recreating the atmosphere with crowd noises and cardboard cutouts of people. FC Seoul went a different route Sunday, filling seats with about 20 full-size dolls, some of which advertised an adult toy manufacturer, per the Guardian. The team later apologized, saying the dolls were delivered due to a "mix-up" with the supplier, and the league did confirm the team didn't intentionally order sex dolls. But in imposing an $81,000 fine, the league said officials "could have easily recognized their use using common sense and experience."

The K-League said the controversy had "deeply humiliated and hurt women fans, and damaged the integrity of the league." FC Seoul, the league champions in 2016, "humbly accepted" the decision. The team previously said it intended to do "something lighthearted in these difficult times." The corporation that operates the 66,000-capacity Seoul World Cup Stadium has begun its own investigation, with an official noting the club must get the OK before placing any advertising there, per Reuters. The team could therefore face further punishment, including getting kicked out of the stadium. "That would be the most serious measure," the official says. (More South Korea stories.)

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