Sex dolls were placed in the stands of the FC Seoul stadium on May 17, 2020. – AFP
It is the heaviest fine ever imposed by the K-League, the South Korean Football League, during its 38 years of existence. FC Seoul has been ordered to pay 100 million won (around 74,000 euros) for filling its empty stands with
sex dolls last Sunday in a game against Gwangju FC.
Dozens of silicone dummies had been installed to replace supporters absent due to the coronavirus, wearing T-shirts and holding placards from a vendor of
sex toys. The South Korean Football League said the club “deeply humiliated its female fans”.
Apologies from FC Seoul
The league accepted the argument advanced by FC Seoul according to which it did not know that they were sex toys, while underlining that it “could easily have recognized their use by showing common sense and experience ”.
“The controversy surrounding this incident (…) deeply humiliated and hurt female fans (and) undermined the integrity of the league,” the K-League added on Wednesday. FC Seoul, who accepted the decision, apologized and promised that the events would not happen again. “I wonder how they got this weird idea. It’s an international shame, ”one detractor said online. “FC Seoul has transformed its stadium into a classified X area,” added a supporter.
The local first division resumed on May 8 without a spectator in the stadiums, after more than two months of arrest to curb the epidemic of coronavirus. To garnish their stands despite the closed door, most clubs used posters, banners or cardboard effigies of supporters.
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