Japanese fans turned Harwood Park in downtown Dallas into a sea of blue for a pre-game rally ahead of their team’s match against Sweden in the FIFA World Cup.
Japan is currently in a strong position — the team only needs a draw against Sweden to advance to the Round of 32.
That excitement was palpable Wednesday at the Paint It Blue event hosted by Japan “Ultras” — soccer-culture slang for organized, fanatical club supporters.
"They are quite strong, but we are just excited to finish as a top in the league,” said Daisuke Umemoto, who lives in Tokyo. “We only focus on winning.”
Sweden and Japan have never played each other in the World Cup.
"I think technically Japan is probably the better team," Eric Alvarado told KERA. "I think Sweden's going to be pretty physical and be strong, so I think it's gonna be interesting to see how Japan kind of deals with that."
Japan has a slightly better record so far in the Group Stage with one win, one draw and four points scored. Sweden has one win, one loss and three points scored.
“It's tough, but we are beating Sweden," Yuki Tomita, who's visiting from Japan, said while wearing a blue cowboy-style hat.
The World Cup matches have drawn tens of thousands of people through Dallas, which many international travelers still associate with cowboys and gunslingers.
“I thought it's more like a cow, like a countryside," Tomita said. "But I was surprised it's very, very downtown — no cow."
And, yes, every Japanese visitor who spoke with KERA said they love Texas barbeque.
"It was very awesome," Tomita said.
When do Sweden and Japan play against each other?
Sweden and Japan face off at Dallas Stadium in Arlington at 6 p.m.
Dylan Duke is KERA's Breaking News Reporter. Got a tip? Email Dylan Duke at dduke@kera.org.
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