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September 03, 2025
 

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SAMURAI BLUE

SOCCER / World cup
Mar 29, 2017
Goalkeeper Kawashima comes in from the cold to boost Japan's World Cup bid
Goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima believes he has repaid his manager's faith after returning from the international wilderness to steer Japan closer to a sixth straight World Cup appearance with two clean sheets in two qualifying wins.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Mar 22, 2017
Japan playing for high stakes in World Cup double-header
Only one point separates the top four teams at the halfway stage of Japan's final qualifying group for the 2018 World Cup, and the coming week could make or break the Samurai Blue's bid to reach a sixth successive tournament.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Nov 16, 2016
Halilhodzic sends warning to frozen-out stars after Japan's win over Saudis
National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic has warned his Europe-based stars to play regularly for their clubs or face a spell in the international wilderness after dropping Keisuke Honda, Shinji Kagawa and Shinji Okazaki for Tuesday night's 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Saudi Arabia.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Nov 9, 2016
Japan looking to build on recovery in crucial Saudi clash
Vahid Halilhodzic appears to have weathered the storm that threatened to cut short his tenure as national team manager last month. But the Bosnian will be anxious not to slip back into the danger zone when Japan takes on Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier in Saitama next Tuesday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Oct 7, 2016
Halilhodzic toasts Japan after dramatic win over Iraq
National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic believes his players "deserve two glasses of champagne" after Thursday's dramatic 2-1 World Cup-qualifying win over Iraq, but warned they will have to sharpen up at set pieces before they take on Australia on Tuesday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Oct 5, 2016
Match-rusty Japan left with little margin for error in qualifiers
National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic last week bridled at suggestions that he is making excuses for Japan's underwhelming start to the final round of 2018 World Cup qualifiers. But there will be no place to hide if the Samurai Blue slip further off the pace after games against Iraq and Australia over...
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 2, 2016
Honda slams referee after 'ghost goal' haunts Japan's loss to UAE
Japan forward Keisuke Honda once again issued a damning verdict on the standard of Asia's referees after the Samurai Blue were denied a seemingly legitimate goal in Thursday's 2-1 World Cup-qualifying loss to the United Arab Emirates.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Aug 31, 2016
Little margin for error as Japan aims for 2018 World Cup spot
After a year and a half of shadow boxing, national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic finally gets to taste some meaningful action when Japan begins the final round of Asian qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup against the United Arab Emirates on Thursday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Mar 30, 2016
Centurion Okazaki looking for balance after win over Syria
National team striker Shinji Okazaki thanked his teammates for helping him reach 100 caps but warned the hard work is still to come after Japan topped its 2018 World Cup second-round qualifying group with a 5-0 win over Syria on Tuesday.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Mar 23, 2016
Halilhodzic looking to stoke competition in World Cup qualifiers
Japan should have little trouble clinching its place in the final round of 2018 World Cup qualifiers when it faces Afghanistan and Syria over the coming week, but manager Vahid Halilhodzic will nonetheless be looking to lay down a marker for the year ahead.
SOCCER / J. League
Feb 23, 2016
Olympic hopefuls aim to shine in J. League
The Rio Olympics are just over five months away, but with the new J. League season about to begin, Japan's soccer medal hopefuls have no time to sit back and dream of glory in Brazil.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Nov 11, 2015
Japan keen to work off frustration in World Cup qualifiers
Japan heads into this week's World Cup qualifiers only in second place in Group E, but Vahid Halilhodzic's side will be hungry to set the record straight against opponents Singapore and Cambodia.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 4, 2015
Japan took past lessons to heart in win over Cambodia
National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic believes Japan owes Singapore a debt of gratitude for providing the wake-up call that fueled Thursday's World Cup qualifying win over Cambodia.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 3, 2015
Japan overcomes slow start to put away Cambodia
Japan got its 2018 World Cup qualification campaign up and running with a 3-0 win over Cambodia on Thursday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Aug 12, 2015
Mood turns against Halilhodzic after East Asian Cup debacle
If a scoreless draw with Singapore in Japan's opening World Cup qualifier in May marked the end of manager Vahid Halilhodzic's honeymoon period, last week's East Asian Cup has had critics wishing for a divorce already.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 17, 2015
Japan takes booing on chin after Singapore stalemate
Keisuke Honda believes fans were right to boo him and his Japan teammates after Tuesday's shock World Cup qualifying 0-0 draw with Singapore, and insists he would have had no complaints had they voiced their displeasure louder.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 10, 2015
Halilhodzic looking to build on strong start as qualifiers begin
It would be unthinkable for Japan to begin its 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign with anything other than a win at home to Singapore next Tuesday, but manager Vahid Halilhodzic will be looking for more from his team than just three points.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Apr 1, 2015
Halilhodzic warns against complacency after Uzbekistan rout
New national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic hailed his players' efforts after Tuesday's 5-1 thrashing of Uzbekistan, but warned they will have to prove themselves all over again when he picks his next squad.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Mar 25, 2015
Halilhodzic gets to work as Japan starts from scratch again
The short, unhappy reign of former national team manager Javier Aguirre has cast a long shadow over Japanese soccer, but replacement Vahid Halilhodzic will care for nothing but the future when he leads the team out for the first time on Friday.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 19, 2015
Halilhodzic passes over Endo for national team
New national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic called up Kensuke Nagai and Takashi Usami, but appeared to bring the curtain down on record cap-holder Yasuhito Endo's Japan career as he named his first squad on Thursday.
More sweltering days forecast for September after hottest summer on record
By the end of August, 8,341 people had been transported by ambulance for heatstroke in Tokyo alone.
‘Mount Fuji Lawson’ becomes a symbol of Japan’s overtourism problem
A couple poses for a wedding photo in front of a Lawson in the town of Kawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, on Aug. 25.
Surrounded by Chinese bases, a tiny Philippine island stands firm
A Philippine Navy sailor looks at a China Coast Guard vessel just off the coast of Pag-asa Island in the disputed South China Sea last month.
Woman dies after possible knife attack in Setagaya
Police investigate the scene where a woman was found bleeding on a street in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward on Monday.
Suntory CEO Takeshi Niinami resigns over alleged possession of illegal drugs
Takeshi Niinami, then-chief executive officer of Suntory Holdings, in May 2024
Why Stalin didn’t invade Hokkaido still largely unknown, 80 years after WWII
During a survey to collect the remains of victims from the Taito Maru, one of the vessels involved in the Three Ships Incident, a metal helmet was found near the stern of the vessel on Aug. 5, 1984, at Rumoi Port. No human remains were discovered.
More sweltering days forecast for September after hottest summer on record
By the end of August, 8,341 people had been transported by ambulance for heatstroke in Tokyo alone.
Surrounded by Chinese bases, a tiny Philippine island stands firm
A Philippine Navy sailor looks at a China Coast Guard vessel just off the coast of Pag-asa Island in the disputed South China Sea last month.
‘Mount Fuji Lawson’ becomes a symbol of Japan’s overtourism problem
A couple poses for a wedding photo in front of a Lawson in the town of Kawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, on Aug. 25.
‘Cool’ Patagonia wants to take used items into the mainstream
"It's not just about sales. It's about system change," said Marty Pomphrey, general manager of Patagonia Japan, on Aug. 6.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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