Premier League clubs have reportedly held talks over forward-thinking plans to help deal with the lack of atmosphere in stadiums when matches are played behind closed doors.
Fans are unlikely to be attending fixtures for the foreseeable future due to the safety issues with regards to coronavirus.
One concern for both clubs and the league itself is how the lack of supporters and noise inside the stadiums translates to television, which could put fans off.
Matches behind closed doors tend not to be the greatest spectacle, but clubs are considering a bold idea to combat the issue.
The Mail report that Liverpool, Man City and Arsenal have all held discussions with German technology company hack-CARE, whose app enables fans to contribute to crowd noise.
The myapplause app offers users four choices of interaction - cheer, clap, sing, and whistle.
Clubs can then set up the app at their end to then play the noise generated inside their stadiums, and can modify the volumes of both home and away support.
In addition, clubs can even play the noise in different areas of the ground, with potential to simulate home and away ends, if matches were to be kept out of neutral venues.
It takes just 0.1 seconds for the noise to transmit from the user's app in their own homes to the stadiums, making it possible to celebrate a goal almost in real time.
The faster and more often a fan clicks on each option also produces a louder sound, and up to 1million fans can use the app at any one time.
Two Bundesliga clubs have already trialled the technology with a view to using it at their own matches when football action eventually returns to Germany.
Premier League clubs would not be charged to use the app, while fans would have to pay just a one-off cost of £1 for its initial download.
There could also be a share of revenue from hack-CARE, who are determined to boost their profile by getting the rest of the Premier League on board.
The company can offer a package to the whole division, or create individual agreements with interested clubs.
Sky Sports have already suggested they plan to offer viewers the option of having background crowd noise, but the myapplause app could provide fans a way to still be involved in the match through virtual means.
