Japanese impress with show of manners

The Japanese team swept the fans off their feet by pulling off a 2-1 win against Colombia, earning them 3 points in group H.

The fans, in turn, decided to do a bit of sweeping themselves. Equipped with trash bags, they cleaned up their rows and seats until they found that the stadium was just as neat as they met it.

Scott North, professor of sociology at Osaka University gave BBC sports an insight as to the cause for such behaviour:

“In addition to their heightened consciousness of the need to be clean and to recycle, cleaning up at events like the World Cup is a way Japanese fans demonstrate pride in their way of life and share it with the rest of us,” he says adding “What better place to make a statement about the need to care responsibly for the planet than the World Cup?”.

The Senegalese were also seen cleaning up after themselves, after football matches but Japan pioneered it and are more popular for doing it.

Japan-based football journalist Scott McIntyre also had some things to say as to how some others may consider such behaviour boring or bland but calls it the reality of a country built on respect and politeness.

“I know it may sound bland and boring, but this is the reality of a country that’s built on respect and politeness,” he laughs. “And this simply extends to doing respectful things in football.”

“I think it’s a wonderful thing that the World Cup brings so many nations and people together and get to learn and exchange these kinds of things. That’s the beauty of football.”