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Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 1, 2022

The soccer world must protect Iran’s team

After losing to the United States in World Cup, Team Melli returns home to a hostile population and a vengeful regime.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional voices: Chubu
Jul 30, 2018

Nagoya school hires AC Milan coach to guide soccer team

A coach from AC Milan has been training members of the soccer team at Nagoya International Junior and Senior High School since April. Although the soccer club, which is part of the top Italian league Serie A, offers lessons to children in Japan and in 12 other countries, it is the first time for the...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 20, 2015

The secret to Lionel Messi's soccer success

Lionel Messi is widely considered to be one of the greatest soccer players of all time, but what is the secret to his success?
Japan Times
SOCCER
Apr 19, 2023

For Japan's aging soccer players, 80 is the new 50

After the Tokyo Senior Football Association launched an O-75 division in 2017, an O-80 competition was only a matter of time.
Japan Times
SPORTS
Aug 11, 2021

In Lionel Messi’s move, a dim portrait of modern soccer

With clubs backed by oligarchs, billionaires and nation states, meaningful change in the game looks unrealistic.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
May 7, 2020

Tsubasa Endoh overcomes obstacles to fulfill dream of playing soccer abroad

Attacking midfielder uses the myriad setbacks he has experienced in his career as motivation to succeed in life.
Japan Times
WORLD
Dec 3, 2016

Grieving Brazilian town receives bodies of soccer plane crash victims

The Brazilian town of Chapeco, its streets wet with drizzle and buildings draped in the green of its devastated soccer club, prepared Saturday to receive the bodies of victims of an air crash in Colombia that killed 71 people and wiped out the team.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Feb 28, 2023

Canada soccer chief resigns amid gender equity furor

Members of the team had protested against a lack of pay in 2022 and slammed budget cuts that they argued had compromised their preparations for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.
Japan Times
SOCCER / Women's World Cup / From the Spot
Jun 27, 2023

Broadcaster standoff shows fragile state of Japanese women's soccer

Failure to find a television home for the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup could all but cripple the sport's hopes of mainstream acceptance in the country.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 22, 2022

The magic of Lionel Messi

The 2022 FIFA World Cup confirmed it: Lionel Messi is one of the greatest soccer players of all time
Japan Times
SOCCER
Feb 28, 2021

U.S. Soccer scraps policy banning kneeling during anthem

The United States Soccer Federation on Saturday voted to end a ban on players kneeling during the national anthem, something they have done to protest racial inequality and police brutality.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 26, 2020

The god of soccer has departed this world

Maradona is often grouped with Pele and Messi as one of the three best soccer players of all time.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 17, 2018

Soccer makes its fans unhappy in the long run

The results are in: The pain of defeat may outweigh the joy of victory.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 2, 2016

Japan's soccer team to return to training camp used in Fukushima cleanup

The base for the cleanup of the Fukushima nuclear plant that suffered core meltdowns in 2011 will be returned by March to its original use: the training camp for the Japanese national soccer team.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Jun 6, 2014

PS3 game predicts success for Japan in early soccer stage

Right now, soccer fans across the globe are wondering how their nation will fare at the upcoming World Cup in Brazil. Usually some company finds a psychic animal to "predict" the results: Paul the Octopus for the 2010 World Cup, an Indian elephant for Euro 2012, and this time a panda.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Mar 2, 2023

Olympian Charmaine Crooks is first woman to lead Canada Soccer

Crooks was the first Canadian to compete in five Olympic Games and held the position of vice-president of Canada Soccer for the past two years.
A drone soccer match is demonstrated at CES in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
SPORTS
Jan 12, 2024

Buzz, bump, goal! Drone soccer aims high at CES

There was a loud whirring sound at CES in Las Vegas this week. It wasn't a swarm of insects, but instead a demonstration of drone soccer.
India supporters wave the country's flag before the start of the national soccer team's Asian Cup game against Uzbekistan on Thursday in Al-Rayyan, Qatar.
SOCCER
Jan 20, 2024

Not just cricket: Qatar's Indians cheer on soccer minnows

At the Asian Cup in Qatar, Indian fans have been showing the world that their passion for sports doesn't end with cricket.
Fans wave Chinese national flags during an international friendly match between China and Syria, in Chengdu, China, in 2023.
SOCCER
Mar 26, 2024

Former China soccer chief given life sentence for 'huge' bribery

Chen Xuyuan took advantage of his positions to accept sums totaling 81.03 million yuan, reports said.
Mauricio Pochettino will take over as the head coach of the U.S. men's national team after his abrupt departure from Chelsea earlier this year.
SOCCER
Sep 11, 2024

Mauricio Pochettino appointed as new coach of U.S. national soccer team

The former Chelsea coach replaces American Gregg Berhalter, who was fired in July after a disappointing Copa America campaign.
INAC Kobe's Megumi Takase (left) battles Hiroshima's Funa Yanase during a match in Hiroshima in 2022.
SOCCER
Oct 20, 2024

Struggling WE League seeks course correction as it aims close gap with world’s top leagues

The top women's soccer league in Japan has struggled to meet its ambitious targets. Officials hope a new vision can right the ship.
Since the Abu Dhabi takeover in 2008, Manchester City has gone from a middling team to winning six of the last seven Premier League titles, an unprecedented success in over 130 years of English soccer.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 21, 2024

Soccer needs to avoid a tyranny of the rich

A dispute between the Premier League and Manchester City has both sides claiming victory.
New Zealand's Football Ferns earned their first-ever Women's World Cup win in their Group A opener against Norway on July 20.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 9, 2023

Kiwi players hope World Cup leaves legacy in rugby-mad homeland

Half of the tournament's 32 teams were based in New Zealand, often sharing training facilities with local clubs.
Spain players celebrate with the trophy after winning the World Cup in Sydney on Sunday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 22, 2023

Success of Women's World Cup can't hide financial gap with men

The 2023 World Cup buoyed hopes that the women's game can start to bridge the yawning financial gap.
Persepolis soccer team fans at Azadi stadium in Tehran in August 2022
SOCCER
Mar 12, 2024

Tehran soccer derby ignites passions in Iran

The Azadi stadium, home to both teams, is one of the largest in the world, and will see its seats packed for the game.
Ben Binyamin attends a training session for the Israel amputee soccer team in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, on March 28.
SOCCER
Apr 3, 2024

Oct. 7 survivor is now a star of Israel's amputee soccer team

Six months after the attack, Ben Binyamin is the rock at the heart of the defense for Israel's national amputee soccer team.
Malaysia's Faisal Halim runs with the ball during an Asian Cup match against Bahrain in Doha on Jan. 20.
SOCCER
May 10, 2024

Malaysian soccer star 'responding well' to surgery following acid attack

A top Malaysian soccer player who was attacked with acid is "responding well" after undergoing a three-hour skin graft procedure.
Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring a goal during an Asian Champions League contest in Riyadh on Sept. 30.
SOCCER
Oct 9, 2024

From boom to budgeting as reality bites for Saudi soccer

After a jaw-dropping 2023, Saudi transfer spending slumped from $957 million to $431 million in the latest window.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
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