Would you watch pro-sports without a crowd?

There has to be a camera angle that could hide the crowd? Then cbs/fox/nbc could add the equivalent of a laugh track. The games would have to be on delay though, 3pm for Houston. It can be sound engineered. I'd listen on the radio.

 

Hell yeah even better. I like to watch 1v1 on youtube with Devin in the lab series or Rico Hines scrimmage games. I just find it therapeutic and competitive.

 

I agree for the most part. The regular season is so long that the games are almost meaningless. Postseason baseball is different, especially if you're a fan of the teams playing. But it's still largely a game of anticipation. And it's so slow... which is why cameras are often cutting to the crowd or dugouts for reactions. I think if you take the fans away you take a big part of the drama with it.

I'm sure that diehards like my father that listen on the radio would still enjoy it, but empty ballparks would be tough to overcome mentally for casual fans like myself.

 

Yeah, I definitely don't watch sports for the crowds. Especially in the modern NBA, the arenas are playing such loud and stupid music throughout each play that you can't really hear the (increasingly corporate and bored) crowd anyway.

Is it better when you have something like the old Warriors crowd in Oakland in the Nellie years? Hell yes. Or the old Boston garden? Sure. But those days are gone and I really just watch for the hoops.

As I've joked before though, for the modern NBA, you could totally simulate games with easy 6-foot spacing. Just let guys take turns shooting 3's or dunking.

 

Well yeah that’s why I mentioned postseason and certain situations are different but baseball can get away with no fans for regular games for the time being much better than other sports

 

/thread

 

Definitely would watch. No doubt would detract from the experience, though

 

I`m torn, the hype of the crowd makes the experience so much better, the athletes feed off the energy and emotion of the crowd and the optics would be hard to swallow. I would give it a shot and hope I was wrong because I miss it already. The revenue loss would be horrific for the owners and I dont see how the players would get paid their full contract value if the owners cant charge me 20 bucks for a hot dog and beer

 

So you do watch the competitiveness or the thots in the audience?

 

Imagine Altuve's walk off HR in the ALCS without a crowd.

 

no. i watch games for the crowd, regardless of who's winning.

 

I miss golf. Would definitely watch without if there were no crowds.

 

I watch most sports on mute so it wouldn't make a difference.

For those who miss crowd noise maybe the networks can pipe in crowd noise or a laugh track similar to Friends.

 

I have been a big advocate for laugh tracks and sound effects like D'OH! on turnovers, or the losing horn of course. This could be a revolution in how we watch and enjoy sports. It could also be like the Nav apps, where we pick our announcer voice and accent.

 

In a "completely quiet stadium" the coach only needs to whisper the plays. It's like in flag football. There is no way the defense is hearing us call our plays, despite standing 10 yards or less away.

That said, the fun part to see would be that blow-hard coaches -- who think yelling at their NBA professional players is a key to their ability to coach -- will have to watch out, because the other team will hear yelling.

 

I think the stadiums would probably pipe in crowd noise for the teams’ benefit if nothing else. I think the Colts got in trouble for doing it a few years ago.

 

Remember, commentators haven't died yet (somebody keep an eye on Bill please). It wouldn't be a huge difference because of that.