Imagine the panic. You’re a dedicated Hawthorn fan, scrolling through your Facebook feed, and suddenly you see it: a fire, raging through Marvel Stadium, your team’s home ground! Smoke billows, alarms blare, fans are scrambling for the exits, and firefighters are rushing in. Your heart sinks. But then, you take a closer look. The images look a little…off. The text reads like a bad movie script. And in the corner of one image, there’s a small, familiar logo: Google’s Gemini AI. That sinking feeling in your stomach turns into a knot of frustration. Because what you’ve just seen isn’t real. It’s a carefully crafted lie, designed to exploit your passion for your team and lure you into clicking on a deceptive link. This is the insidious tactic of “Hawks United,” a Facebook page operating out of Vietnam, churning out a daily stream of fabricated stories and AI-generated imagery, all designed to profit from your curiosity and concern.
This Marvel Stadium fire, a dramatic “event” supposedly captured in two separate posts on May 13th and 15th, serves as a prime example of their deception. The first post sensationalizes the “blaze,” while the latter concocts a more elaborate narrative: a fire breaking out during a Hawks match, sending fans into a panic. But the truth is far less dramatic. Hawthorn’s primary home isn’t even Marvel Stadium; it’s the MCG. And while they did play two games at Marvel in 2026 – against Port Adelaide on April 18th and St Kilda on May 28th – there was not a single whisper, not a single report, of any fire incident. The images, with their tell-tale Google Gemini logo, are undeniable proof of their artificial origin. It’s a stark reminder that in the age of advanced AI, what you see isn’t always what’s real, and a healthy dose of skepticism is more crucial than ever, especially when emotions around beloved sports teams run high.
The web of deceit spun by “Hawks United” extends far beyond fake fires. They dive headfirst into creating entirely fabricated controversies, often targeting beloved players. Take the supposed backlash against Jai Newcombe, for instance. The Facebook page claimed he “spoke out against ‘LGBTQ themes’ in children’s cartoons,” generating a false controversy that aimed to ignite anger and division among fans. The statement attributed to Newcombe was entirely made up, a figment of the disinformation page’s imagination, with no basis in reality. In fact, identical quotes have been found attributed to other celebrities on similar disinformation pages, a clear sign of their cut-and-paste approach to generating fake news. This tactic isn’t about informed debate or genuine criticism; it’s about manufacturing outrage and triggering emotional responses to drive engagement and clicks, exploiting moral and social sensitivities for personal gain.
Another audacious fabrication involved a supposed Saudi billionaire, “Mohamed Al Saud,” openly declaring his intention to buy the AFL club. To lend a semblance of legitimacy, the post was accompanied by an image of Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman, a figure associated with vast wealth and global investment. However, just like the other claims, this was pure fiction. Neither Prince Mohammed nor any Saudi billionaire by that name has ever expressed an interest in acquiring the Hawks. This claim, too, mirrors those found on other disinformation pages that falsely link Saudi investment to various Australian and global sporting franchises. It’s a cynical attempt to tap into discussions around foreign investment and the changing landscape of global sports, playing on public perception and often generating speculative chatter that serves no purpose other than to spread misinformation and draw in unsuspecting users.
The “Hawks United” page also preys on genuine social issues and player identity. They concocted a story claiming player Josh Weddle refused to wear an “LGBT rainbow armband” for the rest of the season. This claim, like many others, is demonstrably false and has been debunked by AAP FactCheck in similar contexts, concerning other players in the league. The AFO does not even have an official LGBT armband, and there are no credible reports whatsoever of any player expressing such a refusal. These types of fabricated posts are designed to provoke strong reactions and debates, fueling division and misrepresenting players’ stances on important societal issues. The relentless creation of such falsehoods, touching upon sensitive social topics, highlights a cynical strategy to manipulate public opinion and create unnecessary discord within fan communities.
The ultimate goal of all these fabricated stories, from stadium fires to player controversies, is to lure you, the fan, into clicking on a link. These links lead to external websites, often packed with advertisements and even more false claims, designed to generate revenue for the orchestrators of “Hawks United.” It’s a sad reality that these sophisticated campaigns of misinformation are not born out of a love for the team or a desire to inform, but rather a cold, calculated pursuit of profit. The digital landscape, with its ease of content creation and dissemination, has become fertile ground for such deceptive practices. It’s a stark reminder that, as consumers of information, we must remain vigilant, question what we read, and remember that not everything that glitters in our social media feeds is gold, especially when it comes to the passionate world of sports fandom.