FC Seoul, a professional soccer team in the capital city of South Korea, has apologized for inadvertently choosing sex dolls to use as faux fans in the stands at a recent game.
FC Seoul thought it was getting standard mannequins from a local company, Dalkom, that wanted to lend a hand with their efforts. But fans watching at home began to notice that they looked suspiciously like sex dolls, which the club still tried to deny.
“We would like to apologize to the fans. We are very sorry about the supporting mannequins that were placed during the game on May 17,” the club said in a statement. “These mannequins may have been made to look and feel like real humans but they are not for sexual use — as confirmed by the manufacturer from the beginning.
“Our intention was to do something lighthearted in these difficult times,” the club said. “We will think hard about what we need to do to ensure that something like this never happens again.”
Sports in the country have been allowed to resume after South Korea was able to slow the spread of the coronavirus. But leagues such as the K-League (soccer) and the Korean Baseball Organization still cannot allow spectators inside the building. Teams such as FC Seoul and some German Bundesliga soccer clubs have tried putting fake “fans” in their stands, often using mannequins or cardboard cutouts.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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