Cheers and laughter echoed Sunday morning around Waseda University's soccer field in Nishitokyo as an estimated 150 people seeking asylum, lawyers, Japanese volunteers and friends gathered for an annual futsal tournament to mark World Refugee Day.
"One Ball, No Border" was launched last year by young officials in the Japan International Cooperation Agency, an affiliate of the Foreign Ministry.
Nine teams took part in the five-a-side tournament, including some made up of Turkish Kurds, Afghans, Iranians, Myanmarese and Chinese seeking asylum.