News On Japan

Japan baseball fans dive off bridge to celebrate Hanshin Tigers victory

OSAKA - The Hanshin Tigers defeated the Giants at their home ground in Osaka on Thursday night, winning the Central League championship for the first time in 18 years.

After the victory, Hanshin fans were seen jumping off Ebisu Bridge in central Osaka, while the police were attempted to restrict access to the area to try and prevent more people diving into Dotonbori River.

While some of the jumpers managed to crawl back onto the shore by themselves, others were taken away by police after getting out of the river.

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Typhoon No. 7 is expected to keep affecting parts of Japan’s transport network into June 28, with travelers still facing possible delays, cancellations and suspensions on airport access routes, JR conventional lines in eastern Japan, coastal rail services and some expressways even after the main disruption around central Tokyo eased by evening.

According to updates at 5:30 p.m. on June 27, two typhoons and the seasonal rain front brought heavy rain, flooding and fallen trees across parts of Japan, with Typhoon No. 8 causing record June rainfall in Chiba before weakening into an extratropical system and Typhoon No. 7 moving close to Kanto from evening to late night.

Japan advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Sweden on June 25, finishing second in Group F and setting up a Round of 32 clash with Brazil in Houston.

A powerful earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of upper 6 struck off Iwate Prefecture at around 7:30 a.m. on June 25, shaking parts of Aomori Prefecture and leaving Hachinohe, which was hit by a similarly strong quake last December, facing fresh damage.

A powerful earthquake registering a maximum intensity of 6 upper on Japan’s seismic scale struck Aomori Prefecture at around 7:30 a.m. today. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the epicenter was off the coast of Iwate Prefecture, with a depth of about 50 kilometers. The earthquake’s magnitude was estimated at 6.9.

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Japan will face Brazil in the Round of 32 at Houston Stadium at 2:00 a.m. Japan time on June 30, with Hajime Moriyasu’s side seeking the first knockout-stage victory in the country’s World Cup history against the five-time champions and one of the tournament’s most dangerous attacking teams.

In 2006, these teams met for the first time at the world’s biggest football tournament. Back then, you could bet on Brazil to win at odds of 1.28 and hardly worry about the outcome.

Japan delivered their strongest performance of the World Cup so far with a 4-0 victory over Tunisia in Monterrey on June 21, moving to four points in Group F and putting themselves in a strong position to reach the knockout stage ahead of their final group match against Sweden.

Japan will face Tunisia in its second match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 on June 21 in Monterrey, a northern Mexican city known for its mountains, modern skyline and unexpectedly strong connections with Japan.

Japan's national soccer team arrived in Monterrey, Mexico, after holding a mostly closed training session near Nashville, Tennessee, on June 18 as it prepares for a key Group F match against Tunisia on June 20 local time, or June 21 in Japan, at Monterrey Stadium.

Japan's national team continued preparations on June 17 for its World Cup Group F match against Tunisia, holding a largely closed training session near Nashville, Tennessee, ahead of the June 20 fixture, which will be played on June 21 Japan time.

When Japan faces Tunisia at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, at 1 p.m. local time on June 20 (3 a.m. Japan time on June 21), the Samurai Blue will have an opportunity to take a major step toward the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

On June 21, the teams from Africa and Asia will face off on Matchday 2 of the group stage at Estadio BBVA in Monterrey, Mexico.