A 52-year-old homeless man who spent nine years on Osaka's streets after being fired from his job was in Italy in September as captain of Japan's soccer delegation to the Homeless World Cup.
A total of eight men from Tokyo and Osaka who lost their jobs due to corporate restructuring or saw their temporary work dry up were selected to represent Japan in the competition, which ran from Sept. 6 to 13 and brought together teams from 48 countries.
Members of the Japanese squad, called Nobushi (wandering samurai) Japan, took turns participating in the four-a-side games.