Hooligan precaution big in Japan

Japan's citizens are absolutely paranoid about the hooligan threat and Takayoshi Konno, a member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, stoked these fears when he said: "We must brace ourselves against unwanted babies being conceived by foreigners who rape our women."
One ex-pat entrepreneur has tried to cash in on the paranoia by producing T-shirts with the simple slogan, "I am not a hooligan."

Japan is a country where the gimmick really is king and some bizarre World Cup spinoffs have come to the fore.
A giant TV screen near to the huge Takashimaya department store by Shinjuku station in the heart of Tokyo beams advertisements and music videos.
Locals stop and laugh as rows of cartoon Chihuahuas appear dancing, arms waving acrobatically in perfect time to the hyper-accelerated, techno-pop music called Para-Para.
The dogs perform immaculate keepy-uppies in their massed ranks but one dog is not as blessed with footballing skills and is shunned by the girl he loves. Vowing to win her over he rushes off to train like a canine Rocky and arrives back in time to execute a bicycle kick Ronaldo himself would have been proud of. Suffice to say he wins the girl.
Just as the watching shoppers get their breath back the screen shows a huge picture of the "Oyaji" or Dirty Old Man, who stares numbly down. This balding, fat, sweating, animated old lech has been the star of a number of clips all with the favourite Para-Para music moving him into a shuffling rhythm.
He is joined by rows of similar Oyajis, who begin heading footballs in time with the beat. We are treated to a long-range view of the scene and watching passersby who step back in disgust as the camera hones in on close-ups of a greasy, stringy-haired man heading the ball up into the sky once more.

Tokyo offers constant surprises for tourists, whether it is the strange sight of the homeless, who live in finelyconstructed blue tents with slippers arranged neatly outside, or the people who are employed to wave Star Wars-type blue light-sabres which guide pedestrians past the conspicuous road works.
There is one bar, near Ebisu station, which caters solely for football fans. It is called Footnik and the owner, Yuji Ima, is a passionate Liverpool fan.
Pride of place goes to pictures of former Anfield great Ian Callaghan, who visited the bar. Customers can get chicken pie with a freshly poured pint of Guinness and look at print-outs of the latest European leagues as they watch matches on big screens.

Heart and Seoul is not in Tokyo