Japanese fans' stadium cleaning habit may stem from 1985 Korea match: YouTubers

The widely observed practice of Japanese football fans cleaning up stadium litter after matches may have originated from a South Korean diaspora cheering squad, according to a Japanese YouTube couple. The couple, known as 'Parkgane' and running a channel with 660,000 subscribers, presented this theory in a recent video titled 'Why Japanese People Started Picking Up Trash at the World Cup Because of Korea.'

They argue that the custom began after the 1985 Mexico World Cup Asian final qualifying match between South Korea and Japan, held in Tokyo. Following South Korea's 2-1 victory, a cheering squad from the Mindan (Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Japan) reportedly cleaned the stadium. This act, they claim, inspired Japanese fans to adopt similar cleanup habits.

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The reason Japanese people started picking up trash at the World Cup was because of Korea.

Parkgane cited a 2014 article from a Mindan publication titled 'Trash Collection After World Cup Matches' and 'The Red Books,' a history of the Japanese professional football club Urawa Red Diamonds, published in 1994. The Mindan article states that about 5,000 Korean residents in Japan cleaned the stadium, and Japanese fans were motivated by this to start picking up trash. A testimony in 'The Red Books' recounts seeing Koreans clean the stadium after the match and feeling moved to keep the venue tidy.

The timing is significant, as South Korea qualified for the 1986 Mexico World Cup after that victory, while Japan had to wait another 12 years for their 1998 World Cup debut. The YouTubers suggest that the Korean cheering squad, comprising Korean residents in Japan knowledgeable about Japanese culture, not only won on the field but also set a precedent in sportsmanship and etiquette, leaving a lasting impression on Japanese fans. The claim adds an intriguing layer to the well-known Japanese fan behavior, suggesting a shared, albeit contested, origin.

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When Koreans picked up trash after the match on October 26, tears came to my eyes. The radical supporters vowed to keep the stadium clean from then on.