Student Network

Contribute

Search

Things Japanese - "World Cup Fever" - Part 1, Part 2

It's been a long time coming - 6 years since the announcement that Japan would co-host the 2002 World Cup together with its pre-war colony and present economic rival South Korea but only recently has World Cup Fever begun to take hold. Blame baseball, worries about hooliganism, or the poor showing in recent friendlies by the Japanese national side but the enthusiasm and support that normally comes with the world's biggest sporting event has take its time to surface.

As teams like Italy, Argentina, England, Cameroon, Tunisia and so on arrive in Japan, the country has finally got in to the swing of things. You can't escape from the media blitz - radio, television and advertising all playing its part. Many of the small towns where the national teams are based are rolling out the red carpet for teams. Children in Kanagawa in eastern Japan are sampling Nigerian cuisine while residents of the remote village of Nakatsue in the south can now find Cameroon on the map, and are learning how to speak French to welcome the team. Children at one school are learning the Cameroon national anthem to play when the team arrives!

But even Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who showed off his soccer skills (or lack of them) by booting a ball ahead of a recent friendly match, admitted this week that World Cup fever had yet to take hold in Japan. "In Japan, people are much more interested in the Olympics than the World Cup," he said.

It seems that a true "soccer culture" has yet to put down deep roots in a land where baseball ranks first in fans hearts and soccer falls third behind traditional sumo wrestling. Although there are large contingents of foreign fans in the major cities, many residents of these cities are not awash with enthusiam.

Apart from the apathy from many Japanese there is also a worry amongst a large majority of the population about hooligans. The worries have been fuelled by domestic media and police with regular clips on television programs and news of fans, mainly from Europe, rioting. Many foreign embassies have been on charm offensive in the cities where their teams will be playing by promoting the good side of their country's people and culture. But many foreigners in Japan have been disappointed by the negative coverage about an event that needs to be promoted in a positive way in order to be successful.

In Sapporo, where the most eagerly awaited, and potentially most explosive, game of the Group stages will be held, the residents around the Sapporo Dome are, according to officials, 50% excited and 50% worried about the prospect of the match. Argentina and England meet again in a game which may decide the group. Many people fear the trouble that has marked many of England's games abroad and the hooligan element which is strongly associated with English fans will rear its ugly head.

Security will be a top issue in both Japan and Korea. Japanese police have been showing off a number of hi-tech anti-hooligan gadgets during security drills in the run up to the tournament. These include a "Spiderman" net gun and "polite" water cannons which warn rioters in six languages that they are about to get drenched.

Meanwhile, the Japanese government is also set to establish no-fly zones over stadiums after co-hosts Korea announced in December that it would restrict air traffic during the finals. Safety measures were increased in both countries after the September 11 attacks on the U.S. but Japanese organizers insist the emphasis will be on "security with a smile" this summer.

Visiting fans, though, may not see the funny side of having to queue for two hours before being subjected to airport-style checks at the entrances to stadiums. Organizers are advising fans to turn up three hours before kickoff. On top of this, umbrellas, confetti and even frozen food were included on a list of objects that will be banned from World Cup venues. How much damage can actually be done by an angry fan with a handfull of confetti and a chocolate ice cream is another matter........

There have been other problems with only 6 days until France kick off the tournament on May 31st. Disgruntled workers in co-host Korea launched nationwide strikes and both Korea and Japan fretted over ticketing problems. Not even a morale-boosting draw with England could stop workers in Korea from defying government warnings of a clampdown on labour unrest to prevent tarnishing the image of the World Cup host. Coupled with this is the problem of unsold tickets. As of the end of April, 250,000 tickets remained unsold in South Korea for less attractive games involving African, Central American and European teams.

Co-host Japan also faces ticketing woes and admitted that it might be forced to ask thousands of fans to pick up their tickets on match days. In the worst-case scenario, around 20,000 tickets may be handed out on the day on the game for matches to be played in early June, which could create a chaotic scramble.

There is not only pressure on the two hosts to make sure the tournament runs smoothly but also on the individuals involved. The pressure has already claimed one victim - the Japanese official in charge of liaison for Senegal's World Cup soccer team at its training ground in central Japan committed suicide last week, leaving a note saying the job was too much for him.

The economic effects of hosting the World Cup:

Both Japan and Korea anticipate a huge increase in spending shortly before, during, and after the World Cup, with an estimated $13 billion being spent, giving the economy a timely boost. The problem will come after the World Cup has finished when the stadiums, which have been especially built for the World Cup (many of which can only be used to host soccer matches), become too expensive to run.

Korea says it has learned from the errors it made in hosting the Olympics in 1988 when Seoul's Olympic stadium was built for a cost of $128 million and has now run into disrepair. Instead of using the stadium for the World Cup, organizers in Korea built a new stadium at the cost of $167 million, claiming the cost of renovation of the Olympic stadium would be too much. They also claim that the new stadiums will be used to develop the game and will be utilized mainly as tourist attractions. How much these stadiums will be used by residents and tourists after the World Cup is finished remains in doubt.

Some of the 10 stadiums in Japan that will host World Cup games may see the same fate as their Korean counterparts and turn into huge 'White Elephants'. The future of Saitama stadium, north of Tokyo, the second largest "soccer only" stadium in Asia with a capacity of 63,700, is quite uncertain. With support for the local soccer side not enough to fill the stadium at league games, the costs of the running the stadium will far exceed the revenue taken from matches played there after the World Cup. Even Kauo Morita of Saitama prefectural government's World Cup promotion division admits that they have not come up with any concrete measures concerning how the stadium will pay for itself in the future.

The venues:

10 stadiums in Japan will host 50% of the World Cup games: