One thing I can respect about Japan is even they beat Germany, they thanked the Germans for giving Japanese players a chance to compete in their league. Japan credit football powerhouse teams for their success is one thing I will give my respect.

Japan basically developed football from structural grassroots. They built a massive network from schools to college and pro clubs. They also encouraged local sponsors to sponsor the teams while requiring clubs to be self-sufficient. This is basically contrast from the vast wealth of Saudi Arabia. But it proved that Japan has a far better vision than Saudi Arabia.

@jesterbeats2898

10 ай бұрын

basically it is the similar function to english sports so J-League might become the most popular league in the world, because their is a good foundation like the English and they have more room to grow but hopefully with this can be one of the saving graces of losing population to suicide

@themarimo3324

10 ай бұрын

Saudi may have the oil right now But their way of thinking is far from sustainable in the future

@maciejbala477

10 ай бұрын

yeah but it's different goals than Saudi. Saudi specifically signs big names for sportswashing purposes, not really to develop a good national team. But I agree long term Japan will still have a better league than Saudi no matter who Saudis splash the cash on

@scottrobinson4611

10 ай бұрын

What I admire most about the early vision for japanese football is the "Win the World Cup within the next 100 years". It's rare to see such long-term and relatively modest goals in any national endeavour. Most of the west is so driven by short-term gains/goals. We buy our way to these goals in a way that's clearly unsustainable. A 100-year goal, and an intelligent approach to reaching that goal, is just refreshing to see.

@isaacfung622

10 ай бұрын

Japan>$audi

In their last six games against European opposition, Japan has won five (Serbia, Spain, Turkey and Germany twice) and had a draw with Croatia (lost on PKs). The last European team to beat them in regulation time was Belgium, in that 3-2 heartbreaker in 2018. People who still view Japan as an "underdog" are kidding themselves.

@moonknight2865

10 ай бұрын

If anything, Japan just needs a decent defense. They learn to play defense and I can genuinely see them getting to the semi finals in 2026.

@jin12345678

10 ай бұрын

​@@moonknight2865 imagine somebody like kim min jae in the japanese team, they will become genuine world cup contenders.

@Missdeadcity

10 ай бұрын

@@moonknight2865 You are talking about Japan NT in 2010s. They now have Endo, Tomiyasu, Itakura, Sugawara Ito and so on. Someone actually watches their games would laugh at you if you say "they need to learn how to defend!"

@user-ej1dg5pd3q

10 ай бұрын

@@jin12345678彼がいたらドイツに4点献上して負けてました😂

@tommyl.dayandtherunaways820

6 ай бұрын

I don’t think there’s much doubt that Japan is the best in Asia at this point. They’ve been very close to reaching a quarter-final in 3 of the last 4 tournaments. It has to happen for them soon, surely. I hope they can do it in 2026.

Crazy!! A few years ago, I thought Japan might never have someone like Kagawa and Honda again until the next 20 years, and all of a sudden they have stars in every position!

@tommyl.dayandtherunaways820

6 ай бұрын

It’s sad that Nakata, Nakamura, Honda and Kagawa never got to play with a team this well-rounded in their prime, but I’m sure they must be so proud of how far their nation has come.

I am from Argentina, I visited Kyoto and Osaka back in 2011. I was immediately amazed at the amount of public, state-made football fields I saw while on the train from Osaka to Kyoto. Thinking of the "potrero" that made my country so big in football, I immediately tought to myself: "if kids from the neighborhood actually play here as kids, Japan will be a tough rival in a matter of years". I was not entirely wrong. Japan did good.

@atmtm8431

10 ай бұрын

ARIGATO❤🎉

@dash-2112

8 ай бұрын

Despite enormous investment and football infrastructure, the reality is that the level of Japanese soccer falls far short of Argentina. China is similar to Japan, but isn't that surprising?

I am from Colombia but always support Japan. Always will remember us playing Japan 2014 World Cup . Very respectful but also hardworking people with detection which has obviously paid off with there national team and players like Mitoma.

@atmtm8431

10 ай бұрын

ARIGATO❤🎉

As Japanese, let me say , thank you to great german coach Dettmar Cramer. In Japan ,he is called father of Japanese soccer .

The story of Zico is incredibly wholesome. We need more stories like that in football.

I lived in Japan for 4 months this year and the fan culture is seriously growing, particularly in Kyoto where across the city and main train station there is Kyoto Sanga flags everywhere

@halyup

10 ай бұрын

Kyoto Sanga FC , isnt taht Park Ji Sungs former club

@IHSpark7325

10 ай бұрын

​@@halyupyes and partially owned by Nintendo.

@willstw

10 ай бұрын

We’ll it’s not owned by nintendo,but head sponser

@rae_48

10 ай бұрын

try watch some urawa games and see their urawa boys ultras are so incredible

Their women's team is quite impressive too, would be cool to see the younger generations of both the men and women's teams do great.

@Alfie_1

10 ай бұрын

They have even won the World Cup

@StraightcheD

10 ай бұрын

I noticed. They almost play the same way as well, it's their thing.

@ThreeRunHomer

10 ай бұрын

The Japanese women were very impressive at the latest World Cup. Thrashed Spain 4-0.

@akumamatata1820

10 ай бұрын

I believe they won the Women's World Cup in 2011

@gj1234567899999

10 ай бұрын

In don’t think the women’s team has any influence on the men’s team or popularity in Japan. No Japanese or American man looks at Europe or Brazil and says, we are already equal to you because our women’s teams have won several world cups.

I went to a Vissel Kobe match this year. It was hugely enjoyable with a great stadium, great fans and a family atmosphere. Even the stadium food was top class. It makes it easy for the league to be successful. Both teams waved to all the stands after the match. Very little diving or theatrics on the field, just good, skilled, fast and exciting action. Japan deserve success in their approach.

@Darmani2MB

8 ай бұрын

Please tell me you managed to see Iniesta playing

I’m not surprised as an American who’s is also a baseball fan. They took to baseball like ducks to water in the 30’s. They have a wonderful and vibrant sports culture over there!

Been supporting Japan on the international stage since 2010 World Cup. Keisuke Honda & Shinji Kagawa🇯🇵🇯🇵🇯🇵

@MrSimmer17

10 ай бұрын

I’ll always remember Honda. He got me to really love Japan.

@quinyboties

10 ай бұрын

Same here! It was keisuke honda that really got me into supporting japan

@samwrought5650

6 ай бұрын

Keisuke Honda ended up on a coaching position for a bit for the Cambodian National Team 🇰🇭 FFC Football Federation Cambodia

European Clubs have realized that Japanese players aren’t only marketing machines but also fantastic footballers. Just look what Celtic is doing 🍀

@jazzoj5

10 ай бұрын

Honestly, the J-league is a significantly higher standard of football than the SPL

@franohmsford7548

10 ай бұрын

@@jazzoj5 So why is it ranked 3 places below the SPL in the Global Football Rankings list brought up in this very video then? It may be more competitive than the SPL because there's no Super Team {Kashima Antlers only having won one title in the 2010s and 2020s so far} but the standard of football is definitely not higher YET. - The SPL's problem is that there's too few teams in the SPL and the also-rans have to play 3 or even 4 games a season against both Celtic and Rangers - This means that a great performance/fluke win against either of these two teams is much much less significant than if they only played 2 games a season against each. But the Scottish can't understand that 3 divisions of 16 teams each {which would actually increase the participation from 42 to 48 teams total} is far better than 4 divisions of 12 teams, 10, 10 and 10 teams. I've been following the Scottish Lowland and Highland Leagues {the 5th tier in Scotland} in recent seasons and the Lowland League especially is to my mind significantly stronger than the Scottish League Two {the 4th tier} right now whilst the Highland League isn't far behind. There's easily 10 teams in the Highland and Lowland Leagues who would not embarass the Scottish Football League if increased from 42 to 48 teams. And that's not even counting the Celtic, Rangers and Hearts B-Teams that play or have played in recent seasons in the Lowland League.

@jazzoj5

10 ай бұрын

@franohmsford7548 I'm not bothered about the global football ranking list, as I can think for myself without having to consult some arbitrary list to form an opinion. I'm basing it on what I see having watched both leagues for years, J-league has a general higher standard of football imo and the increased physicality of the SPL doesn't bridge the gap in technique.

As a resident of Japan with children, there is one significant point you missed. The free tickets to games for school children was an annual invitation from Osaka Cerezo, I assume all teams has that community outreach. The outreach was presented as a lottery, which we applied for and gained tickets every time. I suspect that everyone won the lottery. Among my students in university football is #2 with baseball as #1, but the difference is closing in recent years. And rugby has been rising for the same reasons you raised.

@alternatehistorysports

10 ай бұрын

I may be wrong, but I always thought cricket suited the Japanese culture more than baseball does, as it's more humble, less combative (outside of normal play). Although I'm not a cricket fan, I'd love to see if cricket takes hold in Japan in a similar way that baseball has. Although of course baseball has too much history in Japan to ever really see cricket overtake it in popularity.

@indiekiddrugpatrol3117

10 ай бұрын

​​@@alternatehistorysportsBaseball is popular as it was introduced by the USA who's sphere of influence Japan became part of during the 20th century. Cricket is mainly popular in countries that were in the British empire or sphere of influence and its not surprising its struggled to take off elsewhere as it can be very tedious to watch if you're a spectator with little prior knowledge if the sport.

@alternatehistorysports

10 ай бұрын

@@indiekiddrugpatrol3117 Yeah but baseball is also tedious to watch if you're not brought up with it. But maybe in some alternate universe Japan is a cricket powerhouse and India is obsessed with baseball.

@wilkesmcdermid7906

10 ай бұрын

@alternatehistorysports any sport is tedious to watch if your not brought up with it except MMA. That's why it's the ultimate sport. It's more global than soccer. Look at the countries weight classes are represented in the UFC. Not to mention UFC is way more entertaining. Even CR7 said MMA is more entertaining than soccer.

@alternatehistorysports

10 ай бұрын

@@wilkesmcdermid7906I don't like MMA that much. I think if there's any objectively interesting sport it's probably something really fast and skillful like Ice Hockey, F1 racing, and at the other end of that scale is cricket, golf and baseball. But everyone has their own tastes. I don't find F1 that interesting, even though in theory it's the pinnacle of motorsports and I love Rally.

Irrespective of what a Japanese person does, he does with utmost sincerity and dedication. That makes Japan collectively a nation that far exceeds in any field. ❤

@y79iu28

10 ай бұрын

yeah they do exceed in committing war crimes fr

@kimmieutsunomiya1457

10 ай бұрын

@@y79iu28that was 80 years ago dude, you need to wake up, stop being so bitter, and join us in the present 😊✌🏻

@kimmieutsunomiya1457

10 ай бұрын

@Chris Heartimagine copy pasting the same comment on every video to do with Japan to try and upset ppl 😂

@y79iu28

10 ай бұрын

@@kimmieutsunomiya1457 maybe if your government actually acknowledges it then people can move on dont ya think instead of denying it

@julesbrunton1728

10 ай бұрын

@@y79iu28 really? You need a governments words to help you grow up? What did "sorry day" do for the indigenous people of Australia?

I think another unique factor that made Japan so successful is because of football being not a popular sport for a long time. So when Japan developed, they developed their own way rather than being influenced by other factors outside. The first Japanese superstar, Hidetoshi Nakata, is a rebel. He inspired other Japanese players to move on with a similar rebellious footballing style.

@k-matsu

10 ай бұрын

Hidetoshi Nakata is a rebel in his own mind. And nowhere else. Otherwise I agree with your comment 100%. Japan has pursued a very "Japanese" path as it develops its football culture. I doubt there is any league in the world that attracts as large a fanbase from (1)families with children (2) young women and (3) both men and women over 75. In Japan, football is for everyone. Even behind goal, there are only a handful of teams where I would feel reluctant to take my young children. The style of play is also very home-grown, and as Japanese coaches become more confident to develop their own strategies rather than copy Europeans, the National Team becomes even more competitive But Hide Nakata is nothing but a marketing genius who managed to get lots of press, but has no real devotion to anything except his own financial benefit. He did have a rare gift in his ability to read the run of play,. But he never used it to benefit anyone but himself, and always liked to snark about how he didnt really like football. Take it from a resident of Yamanashi, who knows people who went to high school with Nakata - He is NOT the sort of player, or PERSON, to adopt as a role model.

@maxgonzalez214

10 ай бұрын

I remember Hidetoshi from that great Roma team that won the scudetto in the early 2000s. A fine player with a great shot, he played alongside my countryman Gabriel Batistuta.

@user-gx9xf2zb6o

10 ай бұрын

The first Japanese superstar is Miura Kazu. He is 56 years old now, but still active. Moreover, he moved to an overseas club last year.

@jeremywu1477

10 ай бұрын

My fav player hide .. what he lacked in pace and size , he made it up with impeccable vision and he is one of those players that knew what he can and cannot do .. focuses on his strengths but at the same time embracing his weakness . This generation of Japanese players however are far more technical and physically better than nakata.. which is why they are making the world sit up and notice …

@julesbrunton1728

10 ай бұрын

@@k-matsu what you say about football in japan seems to be true also for rock shred guitar! Old people tapping their feet to face melting whammy bar solos..so cool :)

It's very interesting because this is basically exactly what is happening in Japanese rugby 🏉 now. It's transitioning from the corporate owned team model to a fully professional league these past two years. It's called the Japanese Top League. And it's already attracted many of the best rugby players in the world to play on their teams. And Japan has started to get quite solid at Rugby 🏉 now. They have already beaten several tier one rugby nations (South Africa, Ireland, Scotland) at the Rugby World Cup 🏆.

@StaySqueezy12

10 ай бұрын

Japan are also world champions in baseball too

@Sabundy

10 ай бұрын

@@StaySqueezy12 True. But it does have to be pointed out that very few countries (as in literally just a handful) actually play baseball at a professional level. And it's not watched or played much globally. Not when compared to football ⚽, Cricket 🏏, Basketball 🏀, Rugby 🏉, and Volleyball 🏐. Baseball is not even in the top ten of team sports. So it's a far bigger challenge to become one of the best teams in football ⚽, Cricket 🏏, Basketball 🏀, or Rugby 🏉 because you will simply be competing against a lot more countries and top tier national teams than you would in baseball.

@wilkesmcdermid7906

10 ай бұрын

@allanlmb37 cricket is less global than baseball. WBC has more nations than the cricket world cup. It's only played more because two nations with huge populations, Pakistan and India. Nations that have won zero olympic medals. Take out the Currys out of the equation cricket drops way below most sports. Cricket and baseball are not global but international, same goes for rugby.

@wilkesmcdermid7906

10 ай бұрын

@allanlmb37 Japan is quite good at basketball for a country where its not that big. Minus the Serbs, Lithuanians and the Greeks Japan is better than Europe. 10 years ago American football was bigger than basketball in Japan. Now they are best in Asia in basketball better than Australia, New Zealand, China, Philippines. Also, China and Philippines basketball is the most popular team sport.

@wilkesmcdermid7906

10 ай бұрын

@allanlmb37 only global team sports are soccer and basketball and arguably volleyball. Rugby, baseball, cricket are international. Despite cricket being more played its less diverse than baseball and rugby.

not just football, Japan is catching up with the world in a lot of sports. I follow Baseball, Horse Racing, and Bantam Boxing. I also heard they also get good at curling, Ice Skating, and rugby.

I developed a soft spot for Japan during World Cup 2002, which they and South Korea so brilliantly co-hosted. This was helped by goalkeeper Yoshi Kawaguchi playing for my club, Portsmouth at the time. I'm really happy to see the team's progress over the years and even have a couple of replica Japan shirts.

@theerrantwanderer

10 ай бұрын

A lot of people still say that World Cup was somewhat rigged, but still, it brought Japan to the World stage, and I don't think Japan would be as good of a team as they are now if it were not for that

@All-Outta-Bubblegum

10 ай бұрын

​@@theerrantwandererdefinitely wasn't rigged in Japan's favour but with South Korea it was very suspicious

@atmtm8431

10 ай бұрын

ARIGATO🎉🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇯🇵

@JabbarTV1

10 ай бұрын

it was a splendid world cup indeed, very memorable

@gonzalez239

10 ай бұрын

the GK kit with the flames is just next level

I hope that one day Japan reaches the quarter-finals of the World Cup. I love the way they play and their spirit. They have the quality to go beyond the Round of 16, but lack a bit of edge and finishing

@gerjerry99

10 ай бұрын

I hope so too. Also a reminder that Japan's football team are more competitive among the elite teams, but still aren't on their level.

@AW-zk5qb

10 ай бұрын

I mean it's not like reaching the QF is this massive over achievement for Japan. Japan were penalty kicks away from the QF in 2010 and 2022 World Cups, and if they hadn't;t choked a 2-0 lead vs Belgium, could have made the QF in 2018 as well

@lucaslonchampt613

10 ай бұрын

@@AW-zk5qb It would not be an overachievement, but it would be an achievement to finally reach that stage for them

@1990Thunderbolt

10 ай бұрын

@@AW-zk5qbJapan pretty much pulled the Atlanta falcons there

@oliverallen2565

10 ай бұрын

@@AW-zk5qbdidn’t choke. Was bound to happen

Regarding the popularity of football vs. baseball, there's a factor to consider: from the beginning the football league wanted to differentiate themselves by also focusing on the cities outside the big metro areas, unlike the baseball league which the teams from Tokyo and Osaka outnumber the rest. This means that, for a lot of people, there's a local football club but not a baseball one.

As a half Japanese, I am so happy we are doing very well. Tbh I don't really like Moriyasu's brand of football but he gets the job done so I'm ok with it. Through a strong foundation in the schooling system, and academies in countries like Germany, we developed a great team. My uncle was once an analyst for Bremen in the 2000s and he once said, if we do what the Germans do, we will beat them eventually. Mad to think his vision became true.

@michaelsalovaara567

10 ай бұрын

I remember 15 years ago that the Japanese team had good technical skills but couldn’t finish. That’s not true these days. It is ironic that many players went to play in Germany and have beaten them twice.

@Cancun771

10 ай бұрын

Well it worked for Japan's car and motorcycle industries, so hey.

@ekzxty

10 ай бұрын

Do you like Celtic?

@danb1618

10 ай бұрын

@@Cancun771The Japanese are experts at it for sure 👍🏽

@JKribbit

10 ай бұрын

@@michaelsalovaara567 I still think we still lack clinical finishers and all-out number 9s, but that's down partly to Japanese culture. We have a saying, a nail that sticks out, gets hammered down, so that hinders us a bit but also because of that aspect, we have many great midfielders and passers haha

Its really easy to root for Japan when their fans are consistently so respectful of the venues they visit. I wish them nothing but success. Behind only my Mexico and US, they are the team I root for!

@larrygerry985

10 ай бұрын

100%, there fans are amazing compared to the Europeans and South Americans.

@atmtm8431

10 ай бұрын

ARIGATO❤🎉

A big part of me becoming a football fan was because of the Inazuma Eleven anime and DS games. Thank you Japan.

THIS JAPAN NATIONAL TEAM WILL BE THE CATALYST FOR CHANGE IN THE WAY WE SEE ASIAN FOOTBALL!!! I feel like us westerners do not truly understand/realise how much talent is walking around on the pitches in East-Asia. Having played Football both in Europe and Japan, lemme tell you that, generally, on a local level, the technique of Japanese players is FAR SUPERIOR to the level we see in Europe. When I first joined my local club in Japan I thought I could easily adapt given the high level I played in Europe. But I swear to god my mind was bLOWn......Everyone was two footed, could do endless juggling, and curve free kicks like they were prime Payet at West Ham...........It was only with my physique that I could keep myself afoot in matches. Currently, I think Japanese and other East-Asian players have a mentality, that many people in Europe/South America sometimes seem to be lacking nowadays. the HUNGER to manifest yourself among the world's best is what's gonna take them all the way For me, as Japanese players start to increasingly become confidence about their abilities on the world stage, its only a matter of time before there will be many Asian players among the world's best

@frankiesroompimp5164

10 ай бұрын

Agreed!!!!! Another example would be Japan's national volleyball team. There are currently ranked 3rd in the world, having come from out of almost nowhere a few years ago. They progress they made in a few years is insane and it all has to do with the tight bond of all the team members. I think we will see something similar happen for their football team

@wilkesmcdermid7906

10 ай бұрын

​@frankiesroompimp5164 Basketball is not a huge sport in Japan but they are better than the Europeans minus Serbia. Only US and a few others are better.

Some of the best football fans in the world the amount of respect the fans show to others is unmatched plus they have some of the coolest kits out there.

@Rebelass74

10 ай бұрын

And they clean up the stadium after the game too. 👍🏽

@tonijelecevic9238

10 ай бұрын

And awesome nickname

Captain Tsubasa was a cultural phenomenon, but Japan now has a new very popular football manga in Blue Lock. Although its vision of football is somewhat... controversial. It basically states that the most important part of success for any team is a world class striker, and all of the main characters are strikers, with little focus on any other position.

@frequentlyoffline3917

10 ай бұрын

Aoashi in my opinion is far better than Blue Lock. It came out within the same year as the latter, but since Blue Lock was released near the World Cup, the latter exploded in popularity. I still hope for season 2 of Aoashi

@OnesieBanette

10 ай бұрын

I think the vision of strikers mellowed a bit as the series went on, giving a bit of manga spoilers here so apologies if you haven’t caught up but: Basically it’s been revealed that the idea behind the Bluelock system wasn’t fully to create a world class striker, it was to create a team that is capable of scoring from every position on the pitch. Hence players like Isagi and nagi playing midfield and chigiri becoming a winger. Even Gagamaru becoming a goalkeeper lol It’s still controversial for sure but I can kinda get behind it 😂

@astraweiss

10 ай бұрын

Isn't blue lock striker critic targeted only towards the japanese national team? To say the japanese national team failure in the 2018 world cup is a lack of world class striker is kinda fair tbh.

@Maqso

10 ай бұрын

ao ashi and giant killing are much better to show club competition and youth development. but blue lock is cool too

@AlbirexNiigataSupport

10 ай бұрын

Ao Ashi and Giant Killing has clear depiction of the progress of the Japanese football pyramid through recent years

We’ve got a few Japanese players at Celtic and they are absolutely sublime. Especially Kyogo, he’s as deadly a striker you’ll find anywhere in the world. We also got Reo Hatate, a midfielder who will undoubtedly move for a fortune when richer clubs in a top league come calling. The J League will be teeming with more Mitomas, Kyogos, Endos etc, I suspect their league is now awash with European scouts

@lordjustinian2913

10 ай бұрын

The thing is partly that is also due to Ange Postecoglou coming from Japan and signing Japanese players for Celtic because he trusts them.

@JohnBoyBeattie

10 ай бұрын

@@lordjustinian2913no doubt we got those boys because of Ange’s knowledge of the Japanese game, but we’ve also had a couple of Japaense players previously, most notably Shunsuke Nakamura, one of the greatest ever free kick takers

@augustopoliche8908

10 ай бұрын

I remember when you had Nakamura. The Japanese Riquelme.

@eugenemcelhinney2738

10 ай бұрын

@user-wb5oj5gr7l Did you say the same about Virgil Van Dijk, Andy Robertson etc etc etc. Players tend to move upwardly more than sideways. Downward as they age. Judging by your criteria nobody would be good enough to move to a higher level.

@KyraWS

10 ай бұрын

@@JohnBoyBeattie I like playing Celtic on playstation when your team have Shunsuke Nakamura. Great player, his left foot was a beast.

The present Japan football team is the golden generation of the country.Their incredible performance against top football team is unbelievable.

As someone from the little island of Singapore (who, honestly, are hopeless at football), I am very proud of the marked progress of Japan's national football team as seen in the last two World Cups! I remember watching them defeat Germany last year in Qatar and it was incredibly thrilling! I hope to see not only Japan but other Asian nations progress further in their national football and be more competitive among the historically elite football nations of Europe and South America (and even Africa to a lesser extent)

@WastedBananas

10 ай бұрын

In order for a nation to succeed at football they need infrastructure (which is often dependent on money), a large population and a football culture. The sad truth is that not many countries in the AFC fit that criteria. Japan, Korea, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and after that you really don't have anybody. Maybe Iran, Thailand and Malaysia but their infrastructure is lacking.

@benrasjid

10 ай бұрын

Singapore has quite a lot of young players right now (The Fandis comes to mind among others), hopefully they can develop into good players to challenge in Asia. Much love from your neighbor, Indonesia bro.

@AVietnameseWanderingAround

10 ай бұрын

@@benrasjidbro their U23s drawn against Guam

@benrasjid

10 ай бұрын

@@AVietnameseWanderingAround i mean they could still turn out to be pretty good in the future

@animevsirl

10 ай бұрын

Looking forward to seeing how albirex niigata will fare next season when they convert into a "local" team

As a Paraguayan, I remember watching my country played Japan in South Africa 2010. At the time, we were expected to steamroll Japan. Eventually, we won, but only after penalties. It was such a tough game, we never expected so much resistance and discipline among Japanese players and Tata Martino didn't know how to break that kind of Japanese defence either, they simply assisted and organised so orderly that we couldn't break it. Fast forward to 2023 now, we have a national team in crisis, a group of players that can't score, clubs that even managed to lose to Bolivian teams, whereas Japan has developed so rapid now and can even challenge the likes of Germany, Spain and France. Oh what a time.

@volkte37

10 ай бұрын

As a Japan fan I was gutted when Paraguay won that day but that Paraguay team was really really good. Shame what has happened since.

@duxedeuver

10 ай бұрын

atleast paraguay still has quality players in almiron and my favorite club brighton’s julio enciso, absolute ballers

@davidbowie5023

10 ай бұрын

@@duxedeuver There is a problem. You have to look at the recent qualification of Paraguay for World Cup 2026. The first game against Peru, they dominated and even had numerical advantage when a red card for Peru, yet they were held goalless. Against Venezuela, an opponent previously beaten so easily by Paraguay away, they ended up this time around lost 0-1. I think this explains much of the current crisis of the Paraguayan team.

@RoxyArietis

10 ай бұрын

I'm sad about Paraguay, I'm Colombian, and grew up never trusting my country and expecting to lose against everyone, Paraguay always terrified me, now, you have good players but I can't help but think of Paraguay alongside Venezuela and Bolivia as the weakest teams. I really hope you guys can get to the next world cup and start rebuilding that team, you definitely have the potential.

@tarik6990

10 ай бұрын

I don't know why you were expecting to steamroll Japan, that 2010 team especially was quite good.

They always try to play slick, rapid football with combinations of passes and tricky players. It's a joy to watch and every World Cup the Japanese appear to raise the bar. The main blocks are the lack of a clinical finisher - like many nations - and inability to hold their nerve in tight knockout games. Belgium in 2018 and Croatia in 2022 are teams they should have beaten. Really want to see them clear those blocks and enjoy a deep run in the next few World Cups.

@offsetsface2135

10 ай бұрын

They could also do with a better centre backs and a goalkeeper too

i don't think it's a hot take nowadays, but i think Japan now has the highest chance of being the first country to win the world cup outside of europe and south america.

still remember their amazing game against Belgium in 2018

I'm in UK. but originally from Japan. Thanks for this video! glad to see there is an English football youtuber who noticed Japan national team's recent success! yes our current national team is the best team we ever had. it's very exiting and i'm looking forward to next Asian cup. There are still a lot of issues for our national team but overall it's going to a right direction. The nation hasn't recovered from the excitement of beating Germany for the 2nd time! also many thanks for mentioning our national baseball team. the history of our football can't be told without our baseball as there is a fierce competition between them. but hey, we have the best national baseball team in the world, better than US!

Keep in mind that the contribution of STVV to Japan has been also remarkable. Tomiyasu, Endo, Kamada, all stepped out from there for their next career in Europe.

@Futsal-wn8rt

10 ай бұрын

And that team is owned by a Japanese porn website lol

And that Saudi Arabia is how you develop your league the right way. Been waiting so long for Alfie to do this video. This is what happens when you use your resources to conduct effective research on how the biggest leagues work and developing academies, infrastructure etc. Great video 👏

@yazmo5564

10 ай бұрын

JAPAN won asian cup 4 times ( the highest ) Saudi won it 3 times ( 2nd highest) , for club football al Hilal has won the most asian champions league trophies ( 4 times) get your facts straight , alfie just doesn't like rich Arabs

@indiekiddrugpatrol3117

10 ай бұрын

​@@yazmo5564aye because trophies tell the entire story don't they. Saudi have painted over all of the cracks in their football pyramid by spending extortionate amounts on ageing players whilst Japan have invested into grassroots and seen greater reward.

@davidbowie5023

10 ай бұрын

@@yazmo5564 When Saudi Arabia first won Asian Cup, Japan was still weak at the time. Today it is not the same like 1980s. Even today, the stark contrast in World Cup performance is seen. While Saudi Arabia was the first to advance past the group stage of a World Cup, this remains Saudi Arabia's sole triumph. Whereas Japan has advanced four times. Mexico butchered Saudi Arabia in the last game to deny Saudi Arabia whereas Japan overcame Spain in style. Clown.

The Japanese national anthem is very very beautiful my name is Mustafa from Iraq 🇮🇶 I love the respectable ❤ Japanese people And I encourage the champion Japanese Samurai team, the King of the 👑 Asian continent 🇯🇵🤝🇮🇶♥️❤️👑

Been watching your channel for years now and this video is right up there with the best. Being a 90s kid growing up with so much Japanese culture in movies, video games, cartoons as well as football... Japan were always my second team in the World Cup 😂 great to see them doing so well. Kaisuke Honda was an absolute beast as well... always hoped Newcastle would sign him back in the day. Japan has always been my ultimate bucketlist destination, so maybe I'll get over there to see a football game at some point!

@attaccante-9799

10 ай бұрын

You should see Urawa Reds game at their Home stadium if you are visiting Japan. and also Kyoto Sanga along with your sightseeing!

I'm Portuguese and captain Tsubasa were my favorite cartoons growing up. I remember running from school to my grandma's house to arrive in time to watch the daily episode and trying to do their football tricks with my mates. Good times 😌

Great insite and analysis

This is an amazing breakdown, Ollie. Huge kudos always, but this one's a gem.

The very first professional football match I saw as a teenager was in Hawaii in 1977. It was the Japanese national team against the old NY Cosmos of the old NASL (with Pele and Franz Beckenbauer). The Cosmos thrashed the Japanese 6-0 and Pele had a hat trick. A friend of mine from high school now lives and teaches in Japan and has told me in the past that football is now challenging baseball as their national past time. We visited Japan last winter. Football season would not start in Japan for another couple of months at the time but there was a buzz around the local clubs in the towns we visited. In Nagano there were posters for Boaluz Nagano downtown and I can't even find the club on Wikipedia. In Osaka near the Osaka Expo there are posters and memorabilia posted in the train stations and local restaurants for Gamba Osaka. Great video. It seems to jive with what I saw when I was there for the month. Japan is a fun country to visit and next time we go, I'd like to go during their football season to catch a match or two.

@attaccante-9799

10 ай бұрын

Boaluz Nagano is a Futsal club pal. They are in division 2.

@clubeyxander5132

10 ай бұрын

No big deal, but back in 1977, the national team of Japan was an all amateur squad. But in any case, I too, have fond memories of the NASL. Pele, Beckenbauer, Cruyff, Gerd Muller, George Best, Bobby Moore, Eusebio, etc. I could go on. I lived in LA, so I was so excited to see Johan Cruyff live. I also rooted for Fort Lauderdale because of George Best. It sucks that the league didn't succeed after all.

Great video. Japan has all the ingredients it needs to become a great footballing country. Looking forward to it!

The J-League is so fun to watch, and I remember there was an Asian football roundup type show on Fox Soccer and Fox Sports World a looong time ago that had highlights every week. Gamba Osaka was beating the hell out of everyone and making a statement in Asian competitions. Their rivalry with Urawa Red Diamonds was a huge spectacle and I was hooked on the drama.

@melzer1377

10 ай бұрын

I'm actually watching Japanese football matches on a weekly basis now ever since the J-League started showing free live matches on their official international KZread channel. On average, there's like 4k-7k viewers watching the livestream so I'd say there's an interest for Japanese football.

サムライブルーを取り上げて頂きありがとうございます。あらゆる角度から考察されていて、ワクワクしながら見ることができました。 また皆さんのコメントも素晴らしく、日本人として誇らしく感じました。

BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE

The Bundesliga is full of players from Japan. A bit like how the Belgium national team benefitted more from the English Premier League than the England men's team.

@johnferguson4869

10 ай бұрын

I don't say that because I think numbers of foreign players should be restricted: quite the opposite, but rather we need to ask why did Belgium and Japan get so good despite not having a strong local league.

Thank you for picking up about Japan team. I want to see them become a World Cup champion before I die🥺🙏

@user-xo1gq4qh1k

10 ай бұрын

2026に優勝するよ

I really love your introductions. Keep it up, legend.

I think the J-League system, along with the whole japanese sport philosophy, is actually one of the best in the world to be so underrated, and for a long time now. Arsene Wenger before, and Ange Postecoglou after, both "graduated" from J-League to do great things overseas, and I think the next will be Andres Iniesta, as I suspect for years now that his move to Vissel Kobe was from the start someway linked with the chance that he will take the team's managerial role for him to experiment with japanese football before having an influential role back at Barça in the same way Xavi did in Qatar, and also to have a role as an observer (as Samper or Bojan Krkic joining the team also, with them potentially forming the future Iniesta's staff, and also maybe Barça is investing in japanese football too as some transfers could prove), and it might be similar to what's happening in Inter Miami in MLS too. How Japan is silently dominating in a handful of sports is honestly impressive. The dedication to long term development is truly admirable, and uncommon for today's standards. Japanese football can only become better for now on.

@brutanedda3107

10 ай бұрын

@Chris Heart wtf are you talking about

@Eruma_27

10 ай бұрын

@@ChrisHeart-kr1uqBro seek help!

One of the biggest mysteries of J league that only HONDA doesn’t have their professionalized club unlike TOYOTA,NISSAN,MITSUBISHI,YAMAHA,and MAZDA.

High school soccer is not mentioned in this video. The high school soccer championship is old; the first championship was held in 1917. Many of the current national team players have come from the country and have developed excellent talents. In Japan, the process of becoming a professional soccer player is diverse and does not limit when a player's talent can flourish, as there are paths for players to become active in junior high and high school soccer clubs and then be scouted again by youth and club teams. In addition, in high school soccer, a player cannot show his abilities to many people unless his team wins. Hence, competition among players and dedication to the team become essential. It seems to me that the way to maximize the team's potential is to create such an environment.

Just want to drop in and give some love to Nakata, Nakamura, Honda and Kagawa for walking so the modern Japanese team could run. As an American who always roots for Japan in the World Cup, I’m so proud of them for coming this far. Also, it’s really cool how manga inspired some of the world’s greatest players.

Excellent overview. I learned a lot about Japan.

One of Japan's popular anime is Captain Tsubasa. It's been made twice...in 1983, and 2017. In 1983, in the first episode, Tsubasa is looking longingly at a football magazine and wondering when Japan would qualify for the world cup. That scene vanished in the 2017 remake..lol.

@user-dm8il9ew9t

10 ай бұрын

Captain Tsubasa had anime adaptations in 1994 and 2001 as well.

I don't know if you changed your writing style for this video, but my goodness the writing was amazing! It flows amazingly, poetic at times. Really amazing job Alfie! I've watched every video of yours since your video on the worker's exploitation at the Qatar WC. Every single one has been simultaneously entertaining and informative. I just recently became a football fan, following my nation at the world cup in 2020, and your content has done an incredible job and making me more interested in the details, different leagues, and the history of the sport. Thank you Alfie! >>>HITCH Football)

Holy crap what a great video! Thanks for the work you put in!

Nice vid, thank you!

Another aspect of the 100 year plan is to provide areas with a team to support. So with their baseball league all the teams are corporate owned and traditionally have been centred in the same urban clusters, despite the popularity there are a mere 12 teams in the league and only within the last 30 years or so have there been relocations to smaller areas, like there was no pro team north of the Tokyo region until the 21st century. With the J league now most of the country has a home team to support and often these teams in more underappreciated areas see incredible levels of support.

Started following them in 2008. In 2010 they played exiting football, with Endo, Honda, both Nakamuras, Okazaki, Nagatomo and Kagawa.

Great video! Very well prepared, researched and analyzed.

Big fan of most your videos This one is my absolute favourite. Thank you

seen a tweet the other day saying out of any team outside south america or europe that japan has the best chance of winning a world cup. as an american it’s kinda sad to see the development of japan vs usa. having a clear plan and not trying to skip steps has paid off for japan so much. great video!!

Still got my 2002 Japan kit with Nakata on. They’re balling now. Brilliant players coming through!

As always you do the best videos, thank you!!!!!!!

That was actually entertaining and informative

Japanese players always play with heart up until the very last second no matter what, which why I love to watch them play. I hope they will win a World Cup someday.

You may not know this, but until just before the Qatar World Cup, most of the Japanese public did not have high expectations for the national team. In a Yahoo Japan survey, more than 70% expected the team to fail to qualify. This was because the public had believed the intense negative campaign that had been waged against Coach Moriyasu for years by former players, commentators, and even KZreadrs who had never played for the national team, and whose track record was even less than that of the current players. The "miracle victories" against Germany and Spain dramatically changed public opinion and weakened the criticism toward Moriyasu, and the recent overwhelming victory in the friendly match against Germany raised expectations for the national team even higher. No one in Japan could have foreseen the current state of Japan before the World Cup. The Japanese are the most perplexed by the current state of the national team.

Great vid man! Excellent watch.

one helluva video, well done

You sure have to admire the way Japan sets an ambitious goal, does its homework, and stays committed to reaching it long-term. In such a relatively short number of years, they've become a national team that always makes me think "Ooh, don't sleep on Japan." They've got more and more quality all the time, are well-organized, and don't know the meaning of the word "quit." Hats off to them, and I look forward to seeing what they'll do next.

@Pitchered

10 ай бұрын

Soon everyone will go from "don't sleep on japan" to "oh no we're playing japan"

@aniketjha7833

10 ай бұрын

@Chris Heart stop spamming

They've looked good in their build up play for over 10 years, interchanging positional play and link up play. But they used to never take a shot at the goal, ever. Now they do. Many commentators said back then that they're one good striker away from making it. The funny thing is, they overcame it by scoring with their midfielders, although they took 10 years to figure that out.

Excellent analysis and presentation!

Brilliant video

You actually bring up a really good point on why germany seems to have so many problems with japan. With a lot of the players playing in the bundesliga they naturally are really comfortable playing against germans/germany, while germany probably underestimates japan. This plus germany not being in form results in those loses.

as a Croatia fan i was little disappointed we didn't finish them off before penalties, but they are proving to be very tough team.

Loved your video that was on point ☝️

Japan actually have a plan in place to win the World Cup by 2092. Crazy to think that back then they couldnt even qualify for the World Cup and now they breeze through the group stages

HITC SEVENS : How did Japan become so good? Me: BLUE LOCK

@siphemanana2551

10 ай бұрын

Me, a cultural man: Ao Ashi

Kashima Antlers second place in the 2016 Clubs World Cup is quite relevant to this, you should have mentioned it. They were as close to winning as the best South American teams in the last decade, having lost in extra time after being 1-2 up and all their starters against Real Madrid were Japanese!

soccer, baseball, basketball. japanese sport is really on the rise and having great showings on the world stage.

@akas224

10 ай бұрын

Their rugby and volleyball are even better than football and basketball.

I hope Japan becomes the first country outside Europe and South America to win the World Cup . The are classy and hardworking people.

They gained so much goodwill with their general attitude and cleaning the lockerroom etc. I rooted for them all the way😊

Great video

They've been steadily improving for the past couple of decades and continue to

Looking back now, one of the quaintest details about Captain Tsubasa is that, at the beginning of the series, people treat the main character like a weirdo for choosing to play football. Which probably wasn’t that far off from reality back in the early 80s in Japan, though it’s safe to say that that is no longer the case now.

It's relatively unrelated to the video, but thank you so much to the lovely Japanese folks for finally getting Hansi Flick ("was ist das?? ") fired. Kudos to you and the great progress you've made.

Great video.

Japan has always been a very competitive football nation

As a Mexican American and usa fan. I was also rooting for japan and sourh korea to make it far in the world cup. Im actually glad that there is more competition coming up other than European and south American teams being the only dominant teams. Hope J league and MLS start leaving a footprint in the world of soccer/football

Very good video.

incredible vid

It’s interesting to think that Japan in the last 2 world cups lost in the round of 16 both times to the team that got 3rd and only Lost to that world cup’s championship

Alfie if you take any interest in rugby (union), look out for the Japan team, they hosted the 2019 World Cup and surpassed all expectations, got amazing crowds and support, and it's early yet but they seem to have taken that momentum into the current 2023 rugby World cup.

Keep up the great work 👏

Very interesting & insightful. Can we please have a video about Maltese Football ⚽ Thank you

Leading up to the Qatar World Cup, Japan was consistently defeating teams like the USA in friendly matches. Many speculated that the opposing teams might have been in poor condition. However, recently, there’s a growing belief among the Japanese themselves that it’s not that the opponents are weak, but rather that Japan has become a stronger soccer nation.

@LeeGeorge08

9 ай бұрын

The USA is a weak team. A Japanese high school team could easily beat them.

American Tom Byer had a significant role in helping to help parents and kids get up to speed (technically, etc.). You cannot write the story without him and what he learned when he was working primarily in Japan during the 1980s and 1990s.

@jatex9421

10 ай бұрын

Yeah, was surprised by the omission. Do better.

@attaccante-9799

10 ай бұрын

I took my kids to take his lessons. He sure was a good football teacher for Japanese kids.

@LeeGeorge08

9 ай бұрын

To bad the US rejected his offers to help the US program. Repeatedly.