i found many japanese here are not ethnically japanese. it's interesting considering that japan's one of the most homogeneous country in the world.
it's obvious many non-japanese posters post here because they are either jealous or die-hard supporter of japanese football. it's always sad to be too strong
I am a full-blooded Japanese girl who has never lived in Japan. I regretfully admit that I haven't been following the Japanese national team. So would that make me a "non-Japanese user"? I unfortunately don't get their matches on TV but I won't use that as an excuse. I will be going to the friendly game against the USMNT in San Francisco and you can count on me supporting the team of my roots. Although it will be a challenge for the team, I seriously think that Japan will do great this round in the World Cup and will move on to the next one along with Brazil.
im German and im a japanese football freak my favourite teams are Urawa Reds and Gamba Osaka but im more into Urawa Reds ~We are Diamonds, all together...~ GO URAWA!
Can't say I visit all that regularly. Or support Japan at all, for that matter. But I'm interested in Japanese football, in part because it has so many parallels with the United States.
I'm Asian and on the board of a Nepali 1st division club Machhindra FC (www.mfcnepal.com), thus I try to follow all the Asian leagues closely. The J-League is one of the easier leagues to follow as there is so much information on the internet and regular highlights on TV.
I came to Japan about 17 months ago, liked soccer but didn't really follow it seriously..........all the students I was teaching were big Urawa fans so I started following the Reds, but I realized I couldn't stand the team because most of the fans that would come to Saitama 2002 were really rude (not saying all Urawa fans ) and they looked like Man U. Omiya got promoted the same year as my arrival, not many people like them and tickets were easy to get. I went to a Nabisco cup game against Vissel Kobe (when they still had the king) and Omiya won 3-0. I went to 11 games this year (including the Emperors cup semifinal) I started a mediocre blog about Tokyo Verdy 1969 last month so I have a team to follow in J2. I watch MLS on the net too.
I am an 'American' university teacher of English and I have lived in Osaka since 1989. I took some interest in J-League when it started, went to a few Gamba games, but switched support to Cerezo when they arrived because I live on the Southside of the city. This was a sub-layer to my interest in the World Cup and the improving forturnes of the USA (I went to WC 98 and 2002) A few of my Brit friends started showing up at Cerezo games and that was that, I was hooked. Cerezo Osaka have to be the most dysfunctional team in Asian football and this year they proved it.
I'm a J>E translator who has lived in Japan off-and-on since 1966. As far as Japanese clubs that I support are concerned, and despite my screen name, I would say that I prefer Tokyo Verdy (I'll give second to Urawa). That was my favorite J-League team when the league started in 1991 (they were Kawasaki, then), and despite their poor performance last year I will continue supporting them. My all-time favorite team, however, is the San Jose Earthquakes, and I consider myself part of the effort to get that team back in San Jose.
I am a Bangladeshi who moved to Tokyo when I was three (1990). I was there for 12 years and moved to the US in 2002. In Japan, I went through three years of Japanese kindergarten, six years of Japanese elementary school, and three years of Japanese middle school. In the US, I did go to American high school but at the same time I attended Saturday Japanese Language School at a high school level. I currently a freshman at Penn State and even thought I am not Japanese, I act like Japanese in every way, so my friends call me I am a Japanese. I been following J.LEAGUE since 1993, hated the Verdy because they were the strongest club back then. In stead, I been following Kashima and F.C. Tokyo. However, if you ask me which club do I follow now, currently I am more of a fan of the league itself then a specific club. I have a soccer blog at this site: http://ameblo.jp/shuvy87/ I also follow the New England Revolution (MLS club), but I really hate MLS because of playoff formats, single entry, etc. My dad was a huge Liverpool fan, so I been also big fan of them since birth.
Where is the option for "I come here to see if Hama has said something outrageous again lately"? Seriously I did spend some time traveling in Japan but not really living there and I am not Japanese and I don't like the category of "other" so I guess I'll settle for option #3.
I chose #1 though I am not actually in Japan yet (still waiting for the stupid certificate of eligibility for my visa). I support Kyoto because I studied there for a year, and will be living in Osaka, probably closer to Cerezo so I guess I will support them. I'm not really fond of purple or pink, but I guess I can't avoid those colors..
My wife, who I met while she was finishing college in NYC, is originally from Yokohama, and we were married in Japan during the '02 World Cup. Since then I've followed F-Marinos, and I've even been able to attend a couple of home games, including last years season opener. Brrrrrr. Now we have two young boys. Whichever national team they someday decide to play for will be fine with us.