On a Sunday afternoon in April, I went to Ajinomoto Stadium to cover the much-anticipated match between FC Tokyo and Machida Zelvia.

The nearest station to the stadium is Tobitakyu on the Keio Line, where only local trains normally stop, but the limited express trains specially stop on match days to facilitate access. However, as this was a match between two popular teams, the limited express train that I boarded was quite crowded. I moved into the middle of the car and grabbed an available strap.

It was then that a young woman sitting in front of me stood up and offered me her seat. I was momentarily surprised but decided to accept her kindness.

I said, “Arigato (Thank you)” and sat down, and the elderly woman next to me said in English with a proud smile, “She is my daughter.” When I asked her where they were from, she replied, “We are from Taiwan. My daughter likes football, so we are going to watch a match together.” It was then that I noticed that her daughter, looking down at her mobile phone, was wearing the home team's jersey.

I asked the mother about the earthquake occurred in Taiwan a short while earlier and she mentioned that their house is in Taipei City and although it shook a lot, there was no damage, so they were able to come to Japan for sightseeing as planned.

As we talked, we arrived at the next station, where an elderly woman got on and came in front of me. I immediately got up to offer her my seat, and when she thanked me, I introduced her to the young woman standing next to me, an FC Tokyo fan from Taiwan, and told her that she had given up her seat to me. As the elderly woman sat down, the “Taiwanese mother” winked at me and gave me a thumbs up before saying to the Japanese woman, “She is my daughter.” When I told her they were visiting from Taiwan, the Japanese woman said in a surprised tone, “Oh wow!” and began to speak in English. When I took a closer look, I noticed that the Japanese woman was wearing the jersey of the visiting team.

In less than ten minutes, the train arrived at Tobitakyu station. Weaving our way through the waves of FC Tokyo’s “blue-red” and Machida’s “blue” fans, we got off the train and walked the few hundred metres to the stadium together,

I thought it was quite impressive that an elderly woman was not only going to a football match alone, but also wearing the visitors' jersey. However, she said that she was going to meet her son and his wife at the stadium, before telling me in a happy tone, “It was my first time going to an away game by myself, so I was a bit uneasy, but I am very happy to meet nice people on the train and make friends with people from Taiwan.”

The Taiwanese mother then said with a smile, “I was also a little worried when my daughter said she was going to watch a football match, but I was relieved to find out that there is nothing to worry about when visiting football stadiums in Japan. I really enjoyed talking to a rival fan and making new friends.”

On this day, Ajinomoto Stadium was packed with over 30,000 fans. The sun, which had shown itself in the morning, was obscured by clouds in the afternoon, but the lack of wind made the weather perfect for watching football. The match was so intense and fast-paced that it was hard to take your eyes off the action.

Machida, who has been in spectacular form despite only being promoted to the J1 this season, took the lead with a superb shot from a corner kick, and FC Tokyo soon levelled from the penalty spot before Machida scored again with a dazzling breakaway. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric. The sheer brilliance of both teams made me wish the match would last forever, but perhaps it was the three lovely ladies I met on the train to the stadium that made me feel that way.

The “circle of kindness,” initiated by a young woman from Taiwan, fostered a connection between people who had never met before, even if it was a once-in-a-lifetime encounter. That made me happy and my feeling of happiness may have influenced my perception of the match.

Written by OSUMI Yoshiyuki (Football Journalist)

*This article was originally posted on the Japan Football Association Newsletter, “JFAnews,” April 2024 edition.

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