The National Team

For a few weeks, the Japanese national football (soccer) team were playing games around the country. Some of these were international friendlies, and some matches were part of an event called the Kirin Cup. One of the friendly matches was played at the end of September in Hiroshima. It was Japan vs Venezuela. I managed to get some tickets to the game, and as it was in Hiroshima, it was easy to go to.  

My main experience with Japanese football is club football, so I was curious what the atmosphere for the national team would be like. I had watched World Cup games and other friendlies on TV, but I wanted to experience it in the stadium itself. The stadium in Hiroshima is new and was built for their club team. I was blown away by how nice it was and immediately became jealous. The supporters were already there many hours before the match, and most of them were wearing uniform shirts. There were lots of events and stores around the stadium, and several food shops as well. At the time it was raining pretty hard, but it did not stop everyone from gathering and enjoying the event.

Our tickets were in the non-designated area. We sat behind the home goal, up above the most serious fans. They spent the entire game waving flags, standing, jumping, chanting and singing. The energy of the supporters was intense. There was also a famous Youtuber sitting to our left. We did not know who he was but everyone around us was very excited and taking pictures of him.

The game itself was an interesting experience. I personally think club soccer is more exciting than international soccer, but the play style is different, so it is interesting to watch. The first half Japan played a young lineup. They did well on defense yet struggled to get goals on their offensive chances. The second half switched most of the team to the more famous and veteran players. Shockingly just as they started the second half, and while they were announcing the subs, Venezuela scored a goal. Japan luckily fought back and got a return goal soon after. It was not until the very end of the game that some controversial events happened. Venezuela received a penalty kick, but after a VAR check it turned out Japan would get a penalty kick instead. The Venezuelan players were extremely angry, and it looked like a fight would maybe break out on the pitch. Japan scored their PK and won the match. There were a lot of mixed feelings about how it ended. I enjoyed the experience though and would not mind going to see the national team again sometime.

The week after Japan played New Zealand. I watched the game at a local bar. It was a conflicting game as I wanted to cheer for my home country, but I am also a bigger fan of Japanese soccer. To be honest, I do not even know most of the NZ players. Japan ended up winning, though they are much higher rank. NZ scored a goal, and the keeper did a great job, so I cannot complain.