This archive report was first published on 18 May 2020.
On May 17, 2020, South Korea's top football club, FC Seoul, found itself at the center of a controversy after using sex dolls to fill empty seats at a weekend game.
The club, which had been banned from hosting fans due to the coronavirus pandemic, deployed the dolls in the absence of spectators. However, the move backfired when it was discovered that some of the dolls wore T-shirts with the logo of SoloS, a sex toy seller.
Other dolls, which wore facemasks and were separated according to social distancing guidelines, held placards advertising the company and some of its models. Most of the dolls were female, but some were male.
FC Seoul claimed that the company which provided the dolls had previously provided them to SoloS, hence the advertising in which they were clad. The club apologized for causing 'deep concern' among fans and media, stating that the dolls had 'no connection to sex toys.'
However, fans were not convinced, with one online critic saying, 'I wonder how they even came up with this bizarre idea. This is an international disgrace.'
Another fan added, 'FC Seoul turned its stadium into a X-rated zone.'
The K-league's new season had kicked off on May 8 after being postponed for more than two months over the coronavirus pandemic, but fans remain barred. Instead, clubs have used cardboard cutouts, placards, and banners to fill up the stands.
