Complaints flooded with DAZN free streaming…Will the popularity of the Japanese national team be affected by the lack of terrestrial TV for the match against China? | Football Tribe Japan

The internet video distribution service “DAZN” will exclusively broadcast the Japan vs. Indonesia national team and the Japan vs. China national team in the FIFA World Cup North and Central America Asian Final Qualifiers to be held in November. As complaints about the free event have not stopped, there is concern that there will be no terrestrial broadcasting, and there is also concern that interest in the Japanese national team may decline.

Up until now, Japan national team games have been mainly broadcast on commercial broadcasters and NHK, but with DAZN signing a long-term contract with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) until 2028, many games, including away games in the final World Cup qualifiers, will be broadcast on NHK. Exclusively distributed on DAZN. It is still fresh in our minds that there was no terrestrial broadcast of the match against Australia, which decided to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, and the lack of excitement.

In the North and Central America World Cup Asia Final Qualifiers, home games will be broadcast on terrestrial TV, but away games will be exclusively distributed on DAZN. In the project “Let’s connect #1 million passes and let’s all watch the # (hashtag) national team match”, the total number of posts on X exceeded 1 million times, and the ” “Fan Zone” has been opened for free.

However, “Fan Zone” has no live commentary. Although former J.League player Ryohei Hayashi provided commentary on the development of the game and the characteristics of the players, the main focus was conversation between Hiroyuki Yabe and other entertainers and entertainers. Also, on the streaming screen, the performers will be wiped to the left corner and will continue to appear. As this is an unfamiliar streaming format for fans who don’t usually watch soccer broadcasts on DAZN, there has been a series of criticisms and complaints about DAZN during the Indonesia game.

While a similar reaction is expected for the match against China, people online are commenting on the content of “Fan Zone” by saying things like, “I want to hear proper live commentary and commentary on terrestrial broadcasting,” “Although it’s free on DAZN, it’s not related to celebrities.” I don’t need it,” and “I’m happy about DAZN’s free distribution, but with this kind of content, I think more people won’t watch the Japanese national team.” Since the game against China is scheduled to feature almost the same members as the game against Indonesia, some people are saying, “I don’t think I’ll watch the game against China because the celebrities are so loud.”

Regarding the Japan national team game to be held in November, there are few cases where it is featured on terrestrial news and information programs, due to conflicts with video usage rights. DAZN is required to consider measures to “increase the popularity of the Japanese national team” and “increase the exposure of the Japanese national team.” Will soccer broadcasts that focus on talks by talents and entertainers actually lead to an increase in the popularity of the Japanese national team?