Fox Sports may add crowd noise for NFL game coverage, including at Arrowhead Stadium
One thing that’s not needed at Chiefs home games is artificial noise.
As any Chiefs fan knows, Arrowhead Stadium had the loudest crowd ever, a fact noted in the Guinness Book of World Records.
But when Fox Sports comes to Arrowhead to broadcast the Chiefs’ game against the Carolina Panthers on Nov. 8, it may use artificial fan noise. Ditto for the Dec. 27 game against the Atlanta Falcons.
In fact, the network is planning it for all NFL games this fall as the league prepares for the possibility of games with no fans during the coronavirus pandemic. Fox Sports broadcaster Joe Buck revealed that plan Wednesday while talking with Andy Cohen of SiriusXM Radio.
“Going into this season coming up, and that comes with a huge asterisk and hopefully there is a season, there’s probably going to be a season in doing games with no fans, which will be difficult,” Buck said. “I think Fox and these networks have to put crowd noise under us to make it as normal a viewing experience at home.”
Cohen asked if that would really happen.
“I do, yeah, I think they’ll do it,” Buck said. “In fact I know they’ll do it. They are to the point now it’s pretty much a done deal. I think whoever is going to be at that control is going to have to be really good at their job and be realistic with how a crowd would react, depending on what just happened on the field.
“So it’s really important, and then on top of that they’re gonna put, they’re looking at ways to put virtual fans in the stands, so when you see a wide shot it looks like the stadium is jam packed and in fact, it’ll be empty.”
In addition to the pair of games on Fox, the Chiefs will play two home games that will air on NBC and four that will shown on CBS.
If Buck is right and other networks are also planning to use artificial noise and virtual fans, it’s going to be a strange season at Arrowhead Stadium and around the NFL.
Last month, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was asked on ESPN’s “First Take” what it would be like to play games with no fans. Kelce first said he loved football and would play anywhere.
“At the same time, it’s going to be very awkward playing in a stadium with nobody in it,” Kelce said. “I can’t even imagine doing that — being in uniform and playing a real game. I can’t even fathom it, really.”
Here is Buck talking about Fox’s plans:
Buck softened his stance a bit while tweeting about the subject on Thursday morning:
This story was originally published May 14, 2020 at 8:55 AM.
