Japan was hoping to use participation in this summer's Copa America as a learning experience, but the saga that led to Monday's withdrawal should hopefully provide a lesson in itself.
After much to-ing and fro-ing, Japan Football Association president Junji Ogura finally admitted defeat in his organization's attempts to send a competitive team to Argentina for the July 1-24 South American championship, turning down the invitation after failing to secure enough players from European clubs to compensate for the J. League's earthquake-affected fixture logjam.
The withdrawal was Japan's second, coming six weeks after Ogura had flown to South America to deliver the original message, only to agree to reconsider at the request of tournament organizers a day later. That U-turn set the tone for the 1½ months of meetings, negotiations and compromises that followed, but no one should blame the JFA for trying.