Japan Leaves A Legacy Of Leadership On And Off The Pitch
When team USA was beaten 3-1 by the Netherlands in Saturday morning’s knockout round, my favorite team was out of the World Cup. Immediately, I adopted a new favorite team—a backup favorite— Japan.
Like the US, they, too, have transformed themselves into a stronger international side, beating both Germany and Spain; but it’s off the pitch that they set themselves apart from the sport’s other powers. I’m referring, of course, to the Japanese team’s tradition of cleaning up after themselves at venues, a tradition that is followed by their fans as well. After beating Germany 2-1 in an historic match at the Khalifa National Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, the Japanese supporters who been deliriously cheering on their team moments earlier, distributed garbage bags among themselves and made their way row by row picking up plastic bottles, paper cups and food packages that had been discarded.
They did so not only in their own section of the stands but also the opposing nation’s sections.
When asked why they were going through such pains to clean up, one remarked, “We are Japanese, and we do not leave rubbish behind us, and we respect the place.” The fans also picked up flags tossed by the Qatari and Ecuadorian fans to the ground, saying the two symbols “command respect.” Apparently, the Japanese contingent has picked up after everyone on several occasions in the 2022 Cup.
In the meantime, the Japanese team, itself, performed a similar, but even more dramatic, act of courtesy in their locker room. The photo of the locker room that appeared on Twitter was stunning in detail: Team Japan didn’t just pick up after themselves, they left their locker room looking brand-spanking new, complete with a small flock of origami cranes and a note thanking their Arab hosts!
These examples, especially the quote from the Japanese fan, are packed with meaning for leadership. Note the prominence of “respect” in the reply. Respect is aimed at both the Japanese, themselves, but also at their opponents or, simply, at other people and every people. Respect also belongs to the place shared by all the competing nations. It’s not my place or your place or their place, it’s our place, so we owe it ourselves to take care of it.
This is no mere virtue signaling. It represents a much deeper belief and value system that centers around personal and collective dignity. Years ago, this author was fortunate to spend some time with the legendary All Blacks, New Zealand’s national men’s rugby team. The All Blacks have held the world’s top ranking in their sports longer than any other, but what attracted me to study the team and write about them wasn’t just their success on the field but their culture—its close connection to the Maori community from which they drew their inspiration and values.
One of those values identified excellence with leaving the world better than they found it. In the abstract, the phrase sounds grandiose and perhaps even unattainable. What can a group of burly rugby players hope to do to change the world for the better? But when we look more closely at the level of individual players and coaches, as well as their supporters, we can begin to see exactly how such a thing can be accomplished: through respect. The All Blacks refer to what they do when they clean the locker room after a match as “sweeping the shed.”
What the Japanese national team and All Blacks have in common is respect for the place where they live and work and for the people who occupy that space. The specific challenges the teams face will change—sometimes they’ll be successful, sometimes they won’t. From time to time, they will have to change their tactics and even their objectives when old methods fail them. But they will always commit themselves to leaving the stage on which they play in better shape than they found it. Win or lose, there is no slacking or quiet quitting where the All Blacks or Japanese soccer team are concerned.
In other words, they play for victory today but build for the long game—for their legacy.
And when their competing days conclude, they leave it to others to celebrate their good deeds as a call to action for others, which is what we’re doing right here and now.
As of this writing, the “Samurai Blue” have joined the US on the losing sidelines, falling to Croatia in penalty kicks. Frankly, I’m in no rush to adopt a third team. Japan is a hard act to follow. But would it be too much to root for other teams to follow Japan’s example? To make everyone, not just themselves, better off for having worked with them, regardless of what the rest of the world was doing?