J-League strongly disciplines Urawa Reds over racist banner

[femibyte]

Kudos to the J-League officials.
Now if only more clubs in continental Europe did the same....

http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/espnfcuni ... 80?cc=5901

An example made of Urawa
Posted by John Duerden
RECOMMEND3TWEET11EMAIL
Urawa Reds
GettyImages
Urawa Reds played their match against Shimizu S-Pulse in front of an empty stadium.
Urawa Reds are Japan’s best supported club, and throughout Asia, the best-known. The memories of 60,000 fans and flags that seemed almost as numerous during the team's march to the 2007 Asian Champions League title will never fade. Such iconic sights and nights helped put a visit to the magnificent Saitama Stadium high on the bucket list of many an Asian football fan, an experience made all the better if you stood with the ultras, the hardcore supporters behind the goal.

If you could have somehow attended Urawa's March 23 game at home to Shimizu S-Pulse in the J-League, you really would have experienced something unique as all 63,700 seats were empty. Bayern Munich may have a section of their stadium closed for a banner that was seen as political, but Urawa had their entire arena sealed off over a banner displayed on March 8 that caused authorities to act with unprecedented swiftness and severity.

"Japanese only" it said in English. Hanging above the entrance to one of the main supporting sections, it was about the desired make-up of the most vociferous and active of the home fans.

Sections of Urawa's hardcore support like to style themselves as edgy, though it's all relative. What they are, however, is organised, passionate, energetic and, at times, intolerant of foreign tourists sitting in the hardcore section and not bouncing, performing the correct movements and singing non-stop from before the game starts right until the final whistle.

The supporters group responsible claimed that the banner was not racist, but it didn't matter. It had gone viral, at home and abroad, drawing a swift response from J-League chairman Mitsura Murai. "There are various interpretations of what constitutes discrimination, but the important thing is not the intention, but the way it is perceived by the victim," Murai said. "With that in mind, this case can be considered nothing other than discrimination."

The club, which failed to remove the banner until after the game despite complaints that were almost immediate, has also instigated a ban on banners and flags for an indefinite period. That seems a little over the top, though many disagree with Reds fans -- they're not the most popular around the league. The club was fined in 2010 after Vegalta Sendai's foreign contingent were subjected to abuse. It should also be remembered that pretty much all of their fellow followers don't approve of such acts and have been deprived of the chance to watch their team.

The punishment was understandable. J-League officials have become concerned, overly so, say some, at a small downward trend in top-tier attendances. The J-League is no longer the most-watched league in Asia. That accolade now belongs to China. In 2013, plans were announced to return to the old two-stage league format in a bid to increase interest and excitement. Ideas are still swapped around the office in Tokyo as fast as a national team exchange between Shinji Kagawa and Keisuke Honda. Finding a balance between satisfying the ultras who provide the unique atmosphere while trying to expand the leagues appeal to families is not always easy.

A bigger concern, however, was the growing international reporting of the banner. The J-League came into being in 1993 and spent its adolescence as something of an outsider in the international football family, and contact with the outside world was short and awkward. The Japanese media was, and is, mostly mild and meek, and dealings with the less malleable international press sometimes happened at a club level but, based on over 20 years of experience covering it, the league as a whole was not keen.

This attitude started to change a few years ago and now, the J-League has an ambition to become the premier Asian league not only by reputation but by popularity. Already six partnerships have been signed with southeast Asian countries and more are expected further west. Hundreds of millions of potential fans in nations such as Indonesia and Vietnam can now watch the J-League live, and Japanese clubs are starting to look to that region for talent. With big Tokyo business also targeting such markets, the soft power of football was a welcome addition.


Urawa Reds
GettyImages
An Urawa Reds security guard stops fans from entering the stadium.
So at the very moment when the J-League throws open its doors to invite Asia in, a banner at the Japanese club with the biggest overseas reputation that is seen as racist was a major embarrassment (and well-noted in neighbouring China and Korea where it was seen as further evidence of the country’s rightward drift). Thousands of man hours and millions of air miles have been invested in the past three years or so trying to bring the J-League closer to the giant continent. There was no way that authorities were not going to act quickly and severely. While there is never a right time or place for that kind of banner, the fans responsible could not have chosen a more inopportune moment.

It is a little ironic. The international reputation of Urawa Reds stems largely from their success in the Asian Champions League when the fans, the stadium, and the atmosphere starred and remained in the memory more than the players ever did. Such scenes helped to make Urawa the team of choice for overseas fans and tourists alike, contributing to the sentiments expressed on that banner.

But going through Asia is the only way for any league with global ambitions and Japan is no different, not any longer. Urawa have been made an example of for a domestic and especially international audience. But that's no consolation to thousands of fans who had to find an alternative way to spend the afternoon of March 23.

Editor's note: This article has been amended since publication to correct an inaccurate detail.