RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Good morning. I'm Rachel Martin. Sports stadiums without fans aren't much fun. But during the pandemic, silent games have become the norm in many countries, so a Japanese firm created a smartphone app that lets fans follow the match as they would on TV and then cheer or boo at players through their phones. Their voices are then played across the stadium in real time through the loudspeakers. Users still won't be able to yell at referees, but at least they'll feel more like part of the game. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.