Battersea rescue dogs stage 'cutest pitch invasion ever' in front of thousands of fans

Daily Mirror

29-04-2025

The pet pitch invaders are waiting to find new homes after they unleashed themselves onto the screens of football fans tuned in to an online video game stream
Gamers were met with the "cutest pitch invasion ever" after dogs raced onto the field during a live game. While the pooch pitch invasion was a rare sight, it was made all the more bizarre as it happened during an online football match.
The eight computer-generated dogs were all avatars of real dogs in need of a new home. The pitch invasion was part of a campaign from Pedigree and Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, designed to give rescues a second chance at finding a forever family. Viewers and gamers watched as the flash mob stopped the game of EA Sports FC 25 during a stream on the video platform Twitch.
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The Battersea furry crew was led by generated Billy, Larry and Teddy. All of the squad have real-life counterparts that are searching for a new home. The move was part of a concentrated effort to get more dogs into forever homes.
Twitch gamer Bateson87, real name Jamie Bateson, said: "I've always backed an underdog's comeback—whether it's bringing a player back into the team, supporting them to achieve epic wins in FC, or seeing a rescue dog get a second chance. The underDOGS campaign is such an amazing idea because it reminds us that comebacks are possible for anyone—or any dog—with love, time, and effort."
According to new research from Pedigree, younger people are taking a serious step up to adopt pets in need. Gen Z gamers aged between 18 and 30 were found to be unexpected pet owners with 32 per cent adopting a canine companion and 85 per cent saying they would consider it, compared to 70 per cent of non-gaming peers.
The survey debunked outdated ideas about who rescue dogs are "right" for with gaming traits like responsibility (59 per cent), patience (55 per cent), commitment (53 per cent), strategy (31 per cent) and problem-solving (25 per cent) also being great for dog ownership.
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Battersea Dogs & Cats Rehoming Manager Sofia Papaloizou, said: "Owning a dog can be incredibly rewarding but does require a lot of commitment, training and patience – all things that are needed for gaming too. Rescue dogs are incredibly special and it's great to hear that so many gamers are already enjoying the wonderful companionship of a rescue pet.
"We hope that this campaign will not only help find a home for the dogs involved but also showcase how unique every rescue dog is and inspire more people to consider adoption when looking to get a pet in the future."
Despite the enthusiasm for pet ownership, about 48 per cent of surveyed Gen Zers have adopted a dog with misconceptions about breeds and ages still being prevalent. Both Pedigree and Battersea said they hope to challenge this and hope to show rescue dogs can be as loyal as any pedigree puppy.
Pedigree's -Brand Director, Ed Owen, added: 'Everyone loves a comeback story! And we love telling the stories of these 15 dogs looking for a new home. At Pedigree, championing rescue dogs is part of our purpose and our DNA, we've broken new ground with this campaign by creating canine avatars to reach new potential pet parents. Whilst this campaign has a fun side, there is a serious purpose behind it all – we want as many rescue dogs to be rehomed as possible to the right home and to challenge the misconceptions young people have of the sorts of dogs in rescue centres like Battersea."
If you are interested in meeting the dogs featured in the campaign who are still looking for a home, click here. Those wanting to see all the incredible pets awaiting homes at Battersea, here. Not a position to adopt right now? To view the donation page for Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, visit the link here.