CELTIC, THE J-LEAGUE AND SCOTTISH FOOTBALL: LESSONS ON TREATING FANS PROPERLY
- BY LIAM CARRIGAN
- Apr 1
- 3 min read
My Japanese friend was slightly bemused the other day, when I explained to them why Celtic fans were protesting against Police Scotland last weekend.
“Is that really necessary?” they asked. “I mean do you really need to have so many police at a football game?”
The more we talked, the more I realized how ridiculous the whole episode must sound to any football fan who doesn’t go to games in Scotland.
Celtic and Scottish Football in General Could Learn a Lot from The J-League
I won’t bore you by repeating any of the over-quoted superlatives people use to describe how polite, how respectful and how nice the people of Japan are. It’s mostly accurate, though like any country, Japan has its fair share of muppets too.
However, going to the Emperor’s Cup Final (basically the Japanese equivalent of the Scottish Cup Final) late last year really was an eye-opener. It was a derby game, between two of the league's biggest clubs, so I expected it might be a bit more fiery than what I've become used to.
A crowd of more than 50,000 watched a Vissel Kobe team, that included former Celt Yosuke Ideguchi among their starting eleven, edge out Gamba Osaka by one goal to nil.
Across the entire day, going to and from the stadium, I encountered a grand total of 3 police officers, and 2 of those were traffic cops, redirecting cars away from the crowd as we left at full time.
There were warning signs telling supporters which ends they should go to, but regular stewards in high-vis clothes were all that was needed to keep the crowd in line. For their part, the crowd also followed these instructions, and there was no trouble at all.
Perhaps it was all the food and beverage trucks outside the stadium serving, among other things, hot dogs and cold beer, that kept the fans happy. Or maybe they just appreciated being treated like human beings and not herded like cattle.
Concourse areas within the stadium were wide allowing easy movement, kiosks were well-stocked and, more importantly, well-staffed. Toilets were clean and well maintained, with cleaning staff on duty throughout the event.
Though I personally didn’t feel the need to have more than one beer, alcoholic drinks were freely available before and during the match.
In many ways it reminded me of going to a concert rather than a football match.
This is how it should be; this is how normal football matches are in most civilized countries. No overcrowded facilities, no understaffed food stalls, if you want to have a beer, it’s there, and best of all no angry wee men in police hats stomping around as if they’re Robocop.
Japan isn’t some mystical land of milk and honey. There have been issues with hooliganism here in the past. The difference is it was dealt with swiftly and decisively.
One team, Urawa Reds, basically the Rangers of the J-League, had a small minority (and unlike Ibrox, this genuinely was a small minority) who shouted insults and threats, mostly at players from China and Korea. Initially it was ignored.
But, in 2014, when they unfurled a banner proclaiming “Japanese Only”, a clearly racist statement, The JFA took a zero-tolerance approach. The club was fined a 6-figure sum, ordered to play their next game behind closed doors, and the fans in question were banned for life.
To their credit Urawa took their medicine and didn’t challenge the ruling. However, 70 of their fans did try to start a riot after losing a cup tie in 2023.
Like I said, they’re the Rangers of the J-League.
The team was banned from the following year’s competition.
Again, punishment was swift and severe. Thanks to positive engagement with the majority of decent fans, Urawa were able to quickly find and ban the culprits.
I wonder, would the Ibrox hoard change their songbook if the team actually got kicked out the Scottish Cup for it?
Probably not, but a man can dream.
Like I said Japan is not perfect, and it does have its issues with football violence, and there are plenty of issues with the Police in this country too. However, I can honestly say that in 18 years of watching J-League games, I’ve never had a single issue, nor have I seen anyone else have an issue.
If the authorities want football fans to behave, start by treating them like people. If clubs want ultra groups to change their behavior, start talking with them, and stop talking at them.
Celtic and Scottish Football could learn so much from the J-League. All we have to do is listen.
