Football
Top Corner: London 2012 shows Asian football is next big thing
Reuters
It’s been a good Olympics for London, football and especially Asian football. The games will go down as a big success. From the opening ceremony to some stupendous displays of athleticism and no major problems organizationally, it has been exciting from start to finish.
In football too, there is much to be happy about, even for those who believe that the beautiful game should not be featured under the five rings. This is a view that I have a great deal of sympathy with. For football players, the ultimate competition is the World Cup. For most of them, even the continental championship takes precedence over a medal. To win gold, silver or bronze is certainly memorable but there are bigger prizes at stake for the big stars.
Personal feelings aside, the relationship between football and the Olympics is showing no signs of cracking and when games are averaging close to 50,000 spectators, you can see why.
This time especially has been a success partly because it is the first time in living memory that it has received wide coverage in the British media. This is important not because the British media is anything special but because when it comes to the international football media, the English press sets much of the agenda, especially outside Europe – not necessarily a good thing but, rightly or wrongly, it is the way it is.
With the profile of the Olympics getting a healthy boost in the football world, it has been a perfect time for Asia to occupy centre stage. What better to way to announce two years out from the last World Cup and two years away from the next one that the future is Asia?
As well as Japan’s success in the women’s tournament with the Nadeshiko narrowly losing to the United States in the final on Thursday evening, there were two male teams from the continent in the last four.
It has been a great couple of weeks for Asian football. Japan and South Korea both reached the semi-finals of the 2012 Olympics. What is even better is that they both did so deservedly. These were no lucky runs into the last four — the two neighbours and rivals did it all on merit.
Asian football is improving and becoming more consistent. Two teams in the last 16 of the World Cup in 2002 and 2010 and now two teams in the semi-finals of the Olympics, that they are the same two teams does not yet matter. It just matters that it can be done.
The success of Korea and Japan has made the world sit up and take notice. The reputation of Asian football has never been higher. Korea’s elimination of Great Britain was significant. It may have come with a penalty shootout but it was the right result after a fine performance from the Taeguk Warriors. Japan got just as far, outplaying and beating Spain in the opening match to make the watching world sit up and take notice of a talented and technically able team.
Asia has won respect for the way in which it no longer respects the big boys of world football too much. There is no reason for Asian teams to fall at the feet of European and South American giants. There is enough talent in the continent to compete with the best.
Korea lost to Brazil 3-0 but were denied two, one blatant and one fairly clear, penalties. Who knows what would have happened had the referee given them? Japan reached the last four without conceding a single goal before falling to a talented Mexican team. These were no lucky runs to the semifinals but good teams doing what good teams do.
Before the Olympics, there were all kinds of warnings from the media and the people in England that the games were going to be a nightmare. That everything was going to go wrong, the subway would seize up, it would rain all the time, the nation would go into meltdown.
It hasn’t happened. London, England and even Great Britain is feeling pretty good about itself and Asian football should be too.
John Duerden is a prolific football writer whose work has appeared in the Guardian, ESPN, the New York Times, and Sports Illustrated, among many other publications. His column, Top Corner, appears regularly on InterAKTV. Follow Johnny on Twitter for more football discussion.
