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Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Oct 13, 2002

Sports Day: the spirit of '64

"Have Japanese people already forgotten about soccer?" asks a recent advertisement for a satellite-TV station. The ad continues: "To all the Japanese people who were swept up in the soccer frenzy of the World Cup -- have you forgotten about soccer?"
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 5, 2002

Zico open to taking Japan job

Former Brazil international and Kashima Antlers technical director Zico is very receptive to the Japan Football Association's offer to become the next Japan national team coach, saying he "would like to take it if the two sides can settle the matter in details."
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 5, 2002

It may be the world's most popular sport, but not here in Japan

If there was any defining moment for Japanese sports last month, it surely came right after Turkey eliminated the lads in blue from the World Cup on June 18.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Jun 14, 2002

Moscow's bloody Sunday

MOSCOW -- The Bloody Sunday of June 9 took Moscow by surprise. Nobody expected a mob of soccer fans, upset by the performance of the national team, to launch a drunken rampage barely 100 meters away from President Vladimir Putin's Kremlin residence. The outburst of violence lasted for several hours,...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CUP COUNTDOWN
May 30, 2002

Volunteers welcome Cup-goers

In and around the host cities of the World Cup soccer games, volunteers have been preparing in earnest to welcome spectators from abroad.
LIFE / Digital
May 23, 2002

Net making inroads on World Cup

South Korea has already won the World Cup, virtually.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 22, 2002

The beautiful game becomes art

Soccer commentators, in their hyperbolic struggle to convey the excitement of the sport, sometimes refer to it as an art. This analogy isn't totally offside, as there's no denying the aesthetic element of a sport requiring so much strength, speed and coordination. But what happens when the kinetic art...
SOCCER / World cup / COHOSTING
May 19, 2002

Taming the 'bulldog'

As the deadline for deciding who would host the 2002 World Cup approached, FIFA boss Joao Havelange was approaching his 80th birthday and had been head of FIFA for over 20 years. Many thought he was getting past his sell-by date. He was a man who oozed power and in truth he had done a lot for the game....
SOCCER / World cup / EXCERPTS FROM PHILIPPE TROUSSIER'S BOOK
May 15, 2002

Japan team has bright future

"Passion" is the story of Japan soccer team coach Philippe Troussier, his struggle to make it as a player and manager and his travels around France, Africa and Japan. In the book, Troussier also details his philosophy and thinking as he prepares for the World Cup in June.In this, the last of 10 exclusive...
JAPAN
Apr 28, 2002

UNICEF urges child focus at Cup

Nane Annan, wife of United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, said Saturday that the well-being of children throughout the world should be a focus during the World Cup 2002.
JAPAN
Feb 19, 2002

Kansai kids plan to kick off World Cup runup in May

OSAKA -- Japanese and foreign children from the Kansai region will take part in their own version of the World Cup soccer finals here in May as part of festivities leading up to the actual event, according to organizers.
SOCCER / J. League
Jan 21, 2002

Dutch double act reunited at Urawa

SAITAMA -- Former Japan and Jubilo Iwata manager Hans Ooft and former Celtic and Sanfrecce Hiroshima manager Wim Jansen have formed a coaching tag team at the Urawa Reds in an attempt to rebuild the struggling J. League Division One club into a successful outfit.
SOCCER / J. League / ON THE BALL
Dec 18, 2001

Japan aiming to boost E. Asia

What can Japan do for Asia? Does Japan want to be part of Asia's soccer fraternity? It's a long-standing question, but now maybe some answers are emerging.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Nov 29, 2001

Japanese fans headed for a World Cup headache

The crosstown trip from my office in central Tokyo to National Stadium is a breeze. On Tuesday night it took 35 minutes, and I arrived in time to see the Toyota Cup kick off.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 4, 2001

Cerezo's loss means relegation

Brazilian striker Amaral scored a hat trick in FC Tokyo's 5-2 triumph over Cerezo Osaka on Saturday condemning the visitors to J. League Division Two soccer next season.
SOCCER / J. League / ON THE BALL
Jul 3, 2001

Time for Japan to take a lesson from Seoul

"Are you from Japan?"
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Mar 29, 2001

The ABCs of Japanese sportsu

As I'll be heading back to Canada next month, this will be my last Sports Scope. I thought I'd write some sort of reflection on what covering sports in Japan has meant to me, but all I kept coming up with were buzzwords and catchphrases.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 18, 2001

Sports arenas upgrade to draw fans

KOBE -- With the weather gradually warming, outdoor sports fans are again starting to rejoice. J. League soccer teams kicked off a new soccer season last week and professional baseball games will get under way later this month. And this year, fans living in or near Kobe should be more motivated than...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 31, 2000

Slithering on through the year of the snake

It's almost 2001, the year of the snake. I've done a little research using the Chinese "koyomi" calendar for the 13th year of Heisei, the year of the snake, in order to let you know what kind of year you're about to have.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 14, 2000

World Cup 2002 tickets to sell Oct. 2

Tickets reserved for residents of Japan for the 2002 World Cup will start selling Oct. 2 after a computer draw selects who can buy them, the Japanese World Cup Organizing Committee (JAWOC) announced Wednesday.
MULTIMEDIA / SPORTS SCOPE
Aug 24, 2000

Shooting the breeze with affable Eddie

Sanfrecce Hiroshima manager Eddie Thomson HIROSHIMA -- Former Australian national team coach Eddie Thomson is the longest-serving manager in the J. League, but two weeks ago he announced that he would be leaving Sanfrecce Hiroshima at the end of the current season. However, the affable, 53-year-old...
MULTIMEDIA / SPORTS SCOPE
Aug 1, 2000

Part 1: The most hated man in football

So the South Africans want to sue after failing to win the 2006 World Cup. Sue who? Well, they haven't quite figured that one out yet, but they know the World Cup was theirs by right. Right?
SOCCER / World cup
Jul 21, 2000

Loyal fans organize protest over World Cup tickets

You may be a loyal Japan national team fan that belongs to an official fan club and has attended every single friendly in Japan, but you still might end up watching the 2002 World Cup on television.
MULTIMEDIA / SPORTS SCOPE
May 2, 2000

Stop this madness!

I'm currently reading Ichiro Ozawa's "Blueprint for a New Japan," his manifesto for giving the government and politicians of this country the kick up the backside they badly need.
JAPAN
May 22, 1998

J. League contender Tokyo Gas bent on survival

As dwindling attendance figures raise concerns over the future of Japan's only professional soccer league, one local Tokyo team busily preparing to join the new second division of the J. League next year is hoping that careful management will ensure its success.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jun 22, 2023

Lionel Messi, Saudi Arabia and a deal that paid off for both sides

Messi's deal offers an inside glimpse of the oil-rich kingdom’s use of its wealth to enlist marquee athletes in its effort to burnish its global image.
SOCCER / Women's World Cup
Jul 21, 2023

Nadeshiko Japan's Women's World Cup glory now distant memory as nation lags far behind rivals

Japan begins its latest World Cup campaign against Zambia on Saturday, but is ranked 11th now and no longer among the favorites.
Fans pose for photos outside of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium prior to the game between the Vikings and Jets on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS
Oct 7, 2024

Vikings beat Jets in London as NFL continues to build momentum in England

The games in London have grown in significance over the past 17 years.
Amit Chhetri opened Yeti Roastery Coffee in Tokyo's Todoroki neighborhood in 2020 as a way to promote Nepalese coffee in Japan.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 27, 2024

Yeti Roastery Coffee is elevating Nepalese java in Japan

“Nepal has rich soil and a huge potential for growing coffee in its mountains, which are also unbelievably gorgeous,” says Yeti Coffee Roastery's Amit Chhetri.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight