Kyodo News
Soccer fans nationwide threw early morning parties and celebrations Friday as Japan's national team qualified for the final 16 in the World Cup by defeating Denmark 3-1 in Thursday's match in South Africa.
At a sports bar in Osaka, hometown of star player Keisuke Honda, about 1,300 fans gathered for the game, which kicked off around 3 a.m. Friday, Japan time, and exploded when he and Yasuhito Endo, another star who plays for local club Gamba Osaka, scored from direct free kicks.
After the final whistle, which marked Japan's first foray into the final 16 on foreign soil, some 50 Blue Samurai fans ran through downtown Osaka and jumped into the locally renowned Dotombori River, right in front of patrolling police officers.
"Honda's goal gave me instant goose bumps. He is a treasure of Osaka," yelled Atsushi Yutani, a 28-year-old company employee who watched the game with other fans at the bar.
"Scoring goals were great but for me, goalie Eiji Kawashima's spirited play was the best," Miyako Imanishi, 30, said, jumping and exchanging high fives with friends.
Families and close friends of the players also celebrated the victory at the homes and former schools of team members.
According to Mamoru Kawasaki, Honda's 50-year-old former coach at Seiryo High School in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture, where the CSKA Moscow midfielder honed his skills before turning professional, Honda called him about nine hours before the kickoff and predicted a victory because team spirit was very strong.
"He played an excellent game on a big stage and I'm really proud of him," said Kawasaki, who watched the game with some 20 members of the school's soccer club at a dormitory, adding that Honda's strong play was part of the team's winning formula.
