Keeping Out Of Trouble

Stadium Etiquette

There are a lot of written and unwritten rules in the stadium. I have personal experience of falling foul, or seeing people falling foul of some of these rules.

Behind The Goal

The area behind the goal is known as "Goal Ura" and is occupied by the most serious fans. In most clubs, these seats are snapped up by ultra fans as soon as the stadium opens. Serious supporters will often queue up for hours before the match get them or even obey local rules for queuing, such as showing up the day before to get a place in the line or registering with a smartphone application to get a line number. If you arrive just before kickoff don't be surprised if all the free seats are gone. If standing is allowed in this area it may be OK to squeeze in but be aware of the trouble that the people around you may have gone to get the space. If you become a regular and follow the rules to get a seat, no one will complain but if you get a reputation for not following the rules then people might comment. Be certain to leave something on your seat if you leave the area. If not, someone might acquire it thinking it is free. As well as following the rules for gaining a seat, there may be a much higher expectation of what you should be doing when there. For example, if everyone around you is singing and jumping up and down for the duration of the match then you should do so too. If someone is waving a big flag obstructing your view then that is too bad. If everyone is standing for the whole match then you probably should do so too.

Fans behind the goal can be very serious and very spartan. Supporting for 90 minutes, rain or shine, winning or losing. Some ultra fans don't drink before the match and only drink if the team wins. Having a party behind the goal when the team is losing can lead to trouble. Arranging a group photo during the match is looked down upon and surrounding people will probably not be interesting in joining in.

Cleaning Up

Home and away, most fans leave the stadium spotlessly clean after the match. They take away and dispose of all of their own litter and will even collect garbage that they see other people have left or forgotten. So be sure to take everything away with you. If you don't you might find a picture of your left litter posted up on Twitter with derogatory comments and descriptions of the culprits. You may have seen photographs of Japanese fans lauded for doing this at the World Cup. It is not something special. It is considered normal and expected behaviour.

The Demon Drink

Most foreign fans enjoy a drink in the stadium and with alcohol allowed and for sale in the stadium, it may be easy to drink too much. One common problem that occurs is that beers tend to fall over or get knocked over in the excitement of a goal. The beer then runs down the steps and can wet other people's belongings on the floor who are seated in front of you. After a few beers, all of the above rules tend to go out of the window with more chance of trouble occurring. If you are too worse for wear you may be asked to leave if someone complains to the security guards.

Behaviour Outside The Stadium

Fans of both teams leave the stadium together and travel back on the same packed buses and trains or may find themselves in the same nearby stations, bars or restaurants. Supporting in Japan ends the stadium. Singing chants outside the stadium is a surefire way to get into trouble with fans and not only opposition fans. Your own fans might tell you to shut up to avoid things escalating.

Anti-supporting

Anti-supporting is not allowed under J-League. That means if you make provocative flags and banners or sing provocative songs against the opposition you can get an instant ban from all stadiums for life. The same for racism or other abuse. What's worse is that anyone around you indentified as being in a group with you can also get banned. If the incident results in the club getting sanctions then all the people in that section might have to attend "appropriate behaviour" lectures because they should have stopped you. Likewise posting anti-support on social media can get you noticed by the club as they monitor posts and respond to complaints directed at them. Some might say that this has taken some of the fun out of the banter involved with football but Japanese people can get pretty angry before they show it so all of the rules are intended to deflect trouble before it gets to the point of a pitched battle between opposing fans which have occurred a few times in the past.