Read 4 minutes15 Jun 2026 09:13 PM IST
After Japan’s 2-2 draw against the Netherlands, a familiar sight unfolded at AT&T Stadium in Texas: Japanese fans cleaning up trash, putting it into the blue bags they brought with them. The football world first saw Samurai Blue supporters leave the stadium spotless at the France 1998 World Cup in Japan. This was no surprise to the people of Japan. Cleanliness is not a habit. It is infrastructure.
“In the Japanese system, children start cleaning in elementary school when they are six to seven years old. They will sweep and mop and clean the classrooms and lobbies. They will serve meals. Cleanliness is about discipline and responsibility. This culture continues when these children go to university. This is what you see at the World Cup. Randeep Du Ronval, Professor for Brain Cleaning,” said Dr. Ranfe. Tsukuba International Academy of Sport Studies, which traces its roots to Daryaganj Delhi and has lived in Japan for over three decades.
Tokyo University’s official curriculum includes cleaning activities that fall into the non-cognitive category, skills considered as important as academic ones.
Japan fans clean the stadium after every match. respect 🤝🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/o9qJUOLefY
— FIFA (@FIFAcom) 15 June 2026
Haruka Takeda, a social scientist who studies mental health among para-athletes, points to a philosophy that the Japanese hold on to even after they leave their shores. Kita toki yorimo kirei ni suru, or leave the place clean since you arrived. “Many Japanese know this idea from a young age. Children are taught to clean classrooms and public spaces themselves, so cleaning is not seen as someone’s responsibility but as everyone’s contribution. For many Japanese football fans, cleaning the stadium after a match is a way of showing respect for the venue, a way of showing appreciation.” TIAS.
Also read | How Kamada became Japan’s unlikely hero in a World Cup classic against the Netherlands
This practice extends beyond schools as well. In the community where Rakwal has lived in Yatabe for 25 years, the residents get together once every two months, soji shimasu, I’ll clean, alleys, overgrown grass, fallen leaves, the odd cigarette stub. Japan is an aging society, and neighbors clean on their behalf for elderly residents who can no longer participate. “If my wife says I have to join the cleaning if she is not there, I will plan my schedule and prioritize the cleaning of the community,” he said.
Cleanliness is not a habit for people in Japan. It is infrastructure. (AP)
It also extends to businesses. White and blue collar workers clean the exterior of their company. “Every shop, company, business will clean. I have a Toyota showroom in my area,” Rakwal said. “They will be in their official attire, cleaning the surroundings.”
Even the toffee wrapper is not carelessly thrown away. In railway stations, where compartments are rare, the wrapper goes back into the pocket and into the house. “It’s the same concept that has moved into the sports world,” Rakwal said.
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Rakwal traces the roots of this national discipline in a moment. When Tokyo became the first Asian city to host the Olympics in 1964, the capital was transformed into a symbol of postwar Japan: gleaming buildings, clear waterways, the first Shinkansen unveiled ten days before the opening ceremony. Omotenashi, the selfless hospitality, became unabashed.
“Cleanliness started with the 1964 Olympics,” he said. “There were instructions that foreigners were coming, so Japan had to be clean. Before the Olympics, Japan had a problem with garbage. Tokyo Bay was polluted. You can’t even kill a fish. Then they cleaned everything up.”
On Sunday night in Dallas, the blue bags were doing the same thing, in a different country, for the same cause.