Why Chinese fans are braving online abuse to back rivals Japan

IN a packed Shanghai sports bar, Chinese football fans erupted in frenzied delight as Japan's Ayase Ueda looped a header over Tunisia's goalkeeper to secure a 4-0 win in a Fifa World Cup 2026 group match.

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China is not the most obvious place for Japan fandom to thrive — the two countries’ historical animosity is never far from the surface and relations have been tense since hawkish Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office in Tokyo last year.

But for the dozens of blue-jerseyed Chinese supporters in the bar on Sunday afternoon glued to Japan's every move on massive screens, their love of the football team has a long personal history, completely detached from politics.

“For our generation — the '90s generation — most of us basically grew up watching a lot of Japanese anime, including Captain Tsubasa (a series about a football prodigy),’ said Fan, the group's main organiser, who gave only his surname.

“More importantly, since we are both part of Asia, you could say that Japan now represents the pride and glory of Asian football.”

China have only qualified once for the World Cup, in 2002, when they lost all three of their games without scoring a goal.

They are 91st in the Fifa world rankings, while Japan are the top Asian team at 16th.