Let's talk about Japanese soccer before and after the "Doha Tragedy"! Tatsuhito Kaneko (KING GEAR founder) x Asahi Ueda (Doha 1993+ film director) Vol.1

KanekoAt that time, the Asahi Shimbun said, "We come from Munich."

UedaYeah, I was living in Berlin and I went to Lecce by train via Munich, it took 15-16 hours, and then the train stopped in Bali because of snow or something.

KanekoThe weather was pretty bad. It was cold. There weren't many reporters or fans around back then, so everyone, including the players, were pretty close to each other.

UedaYes, they were all close!



KanekoDuring my travels, I played Wizardry on my Game Boy nonstop, and when I was playing it in the hotel lobby, someone got mad at me and said, "Stop it, it's embarrassing!"

UedaI was also close to the photographers and writers, so when I walked around in shorts, I got a stern lecture from them saying, "That's poor taste. Don't come to the dining venue in shorts!!"

I remember thinking, "Why do I have to be told this?" as I was eating, and then the old men that person had been bowing to came over to eat in shorts and I was like, "Tell them a favor! Tell them something!" (laughs)

KanekoAmong the fans, Asahi was the youngest at that time, right? I was the youngest among the reporters, so I was just a rookie wherever I went.

UedaBut just like with Lecce, the soccer reporters at the time weren't soccer fans themselves. For example, they would write articles like, "This is XX from the women's division," or people from newspapers who just happened to be in charge of soccer.

Kaneko was the only reporter who said, "I played soccer and I love it!"

Kaneko was one of the few reporters who could talk about "the 1988 European Championship in the Netherlands," "the 1986 World Cup," and "the 1984 European Championship."

    
KanekoMaybe there wasn't any reporter covering the Japanese national team who was willing to talk about that.

UedaThere really were none. In fact, the newspapers would ask me to tell them about soccer. When I was in Doha, I didn't know many soccer journalists who liked soccer.

KanekoWhy is Doha the theme of this film in the first place?

UedaI'm probably the only one watching all the matches in Doha on site and keeping a constant eye on them.

To the question "Why Doha?", I'd say "If you watch the movie, you'll understand." I can't go into too much detail right now because it would be a spoiler.

   
I interviewed someone with experience in Doha, and I'd like to share some interesting stories with you.

When I asked Hashiratani Tetsuji, "It must have been difficult being caught between Coach Ooft and Ramos?" he replied, "It wasn't a feud between the two of them. Ramos was just selfish and childish."

After winning against South Korea, Ramos famously said, "There's still more to come. Nothing's decided yet! Don't get too excited." When I asked Tetsu if he was excited, he said, "Of course I was."

In fact, it was Ramos who got scared and stopped moving, got nervous and couldn't do anything. The myth that we had for the past 25 years has been shattered (laughs).

Also, when I think of the extra time scene in the Iraq match, the first thing that comes to mind is not the footage I saw at the stadium, but the footage I saw on TV. That scene was shown on TV so much.

I didn't like the fact that the pictures were the same as the ones I saw on TV in Japan, so I've treasured the pictures I saw there ever since.

By the way, when we asked the players which image came to mind first, the answers varied from player to player.

Continued in Vol.2
http://king-gear.com/articles/1016

For more details about the film and to read Asahi Ueda's thoughts about it, please see the following page.

"Doha 1993+" Crowdfunding
https://greenfunding.jp/lab/projects/2633 

Yokohama Football Film Festival
http://2019.yfff.org/  

Cover photo: Yanagawa Go!
Photos in the article: Kohei Kikuchi