It is the heaviest fine ever given by the K-League, the South Korean Football League, during its 38 years of existence. FC Seoul was ordered to pay 100 million won (around 74,000 euros) for filling its empty stands with sex dolls last Sunday in a match 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 sex toy seller. 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 in a statement. 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, ”said a detractor online. "FC Seoul has transformed its stadium into a classified X area," added a supporter.
The first local division resumed on May 8 without any spectators in the stadiums, after more than two months of stopping 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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South Korea: Sex dolls in the stands? FC Seoul apologizes for the discomfort it causes
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