Japans first ever
World Cup appearance
was in 1998, where
they lost all three
matches. Japan's
first two fixtures
went 1–0 in favor of
Argentina and
Croatia, despite
playing well in both
games. Their
campaign ended with
an unexpected 2–1
defeat to rank
outsiders Jamaica.
Four years later,
Japan co-hosted the
2002 FIFA World Cup
with South Korea.
Despite being held
to a 2–2 draw by
Belgium in their
opening game, the
Japanese team
advanced to the
second round with a
1–0 win over Russia
and a 2–0 victory
against Tunisia.
However, they
subsequently exited
the tournament
during the Round of
16, after losing 1–0
to eventual
third-place
finishers Turkey.
i
English football