Japan younger generation prefer football to other sports

Sports such as baseball, volleyball and wrestling were once popular in Japan. However in recent times, as these sports have become more popular around the world, Japanese athletes have been unable to keep up with athletes from other countries in terms of physique, power and speed.

Some neutral observers have actually pointed out that Japanese sportsmen might actually be more suited to playing football.

Football requires skills to control a ball with one’s feet, quick movement, ability to make decisions quickly and teamwork. These are more important attributes on the pitch in comparison to a player’s size. In fact most famous football players such as Pele, Maradona and Ronaldinho are of average height and size. But give them a football and they will perform wonders with it.

The introduction of the J-League and an ever increasing number of Japanese players moving abroad has encouraged the young Japanese generation to take an interest in the sport. There are already more high school kids playing football compared to baseball; and the Under-20 Japanese Football team were runners-up in the 1999 World Youth Football Championships in Nigeria.

Japan will continue to produce talented football players like Hidetoshi Nakata, Shinji Ono and Junichi Inamoto if the academy system set up by the J-League encourages young kids to receive adequate training.