And The Crowd Goes...
We have all heard it one hundred times during the current global pandemic and ensuing lockdown, but we truly are in unprecedented times. The unforeseen consequences of the current events have spread, much like the virus, into every facet of our daily lives. Sport is one of the most common uniting (or dividing) factors in life bringing together total strangers and making them firm friends or enemies depending upon how their alliances align. One would think then in this time of total crisis that sport is what we need most, but the physical bringing together of people would have catastrophic consequences for us all. Perhaps the old idiom should be modified: the only certain things in life are death and taxes and the unending roar of passionate fans and their desire to keep play afoot.
Heeding the general consensus - and some financial input - it seems that many sporting leagues are poised for a glorious return following their multi-month hiatus. Some leagues, namely the MLB, have been less fortunate with their return as players have already begun testing positive, just as things were starting to heat up - therefore delays have been inevitable. The NBA have had better luck, and it would seem so too has the Premier League, with their hiatuses ending on the 30th July and the 1st August, respectively. Of course, to limit the spread of the virus, the plan going forward is to play in empty stadiums to no crowds, or crowds of cardboard cut-outs of the most devoted fans – rendering a very Madden or Fifa 05 feel with static and repetitive crowd members.
The lack of in-person attendance does raise an interesting question, and that is whether there’ll be any psychological impact as the players continue to battle it out in relative silence. To really understand the importance of attending fans, it is worth crossing the pond and travelling some years back into the past to the 2010 NFC Wild Card Playoff game between the Seattle Seahawks and the New Orleans Saints. Seattle already has prominent merchandising for their 12th man paraphernalia indicating that the fans in the seats have as much impact on the game as a 12th man on the field, due mainly to the incredible roar from the fans during play. However, on this particular day, Seattle’s running back Marshawn Lynch ran the ball an incredible distance, breaking nine tackles to seal the win. During this heroic performance, the frenzied fans jumped up and down to such a degree that their celebratory actions were recorded on a nearby seismograph. This game has been known as the ‘Beast Quake’ ever since because of this feat. It is hard to dispute then that fans have a very physical impact on the ground at least, if not the game itself.
One might argue then that the games that are to be played can in no way be considered fair and appropriate without the support of the fans. The home-field advantage after all is not because players know the ins and outs of the clubhouse and the pitch and roll of the field, but rather because of the very vocal support players receive for the 60, 80 or 90 minutes of play. It is a demonstrable fact that the home team wins the majority of the games played (in the NFL at least, with 57% of games being won at home) and therefore the now distinct lack of support will have a verifiable impact. This lack of support will have the biggest impact on those teams at the bottom of the league, who are no doubt shaking in their boots at the prospect of relegation and must make their stand without their fans. Will this lack of fan presence merely serve to create a greater rift between teams? Will this make the best teams better and the worst, worse?
To ask the players would yield less of a concrete answer; many players said that they often tuned out the sounds of the stadium and focused on the game at hand. However, some suggested that the roar of the crowd from a big play revitalised a team’s efforts and morale and could occasionally be the catalyst that was needed for a big comeback. It is likely that both the cases are correct and it is the rallying cries that are remembered and the general stadium hubbub ignored. Players must then accept that a cardboard cut-out will not provide the sort of goosebump inducing, uplifting support they are used to, and it will fall to the players and specifically their team leaders to raise spirits and boost morale to play at the highest level.
There are many uncertainties in sport and the wider world currently, so who is to say what impact empty stadiums will have: we’ll only know as the games are carried out, and I’m sure it will be an interesting if short-lived insight into the symbiotic relationship between home-field fans and players. However, for any true sports puritans this surely presents itself as objectively the best sport available, no fans, no noise, no bias. Some people love it when the crowd goes wild; some may love it when the crowd goes entirely.
Written by Mike Ash
I'm Mike, and while I enjoy writing overly complex instagram captions, I've not ever written a proper opinion piece before. I'm a recently graduated student and hopeful Civil Engineer. I'm not in anyway a sports pundit but feel that every sect of entertainment is worth exploring in some way