Football is one of the more popular sports in Japan. Its nation wide organization, Japan Football Association administers the professional football league, J. League which is the most successful football league in Asia.

Foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government introduced Football during Meiji period. The first Japanese football club is considered to be Tokyo Shukyu-dan, founded in 1917, which is now competing in the Tokyo Prefectural amateur league.

By the 1920s, football associations were established and regional tournaments began in universities and high schools especially in Tokyo.

In 1930, the Japan national football team was organized and had a 3-3 tie with China for their first title at the Far Eastern Championship Games. Japan national team also participated in the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, the team had a first victory in an Olympic game with a 3-2 win over powerful Sweden.

Aside from the national cup, the Emperor's Cup established in 1921, there had been several attempts at creating a senior-level national championship. The first was the All Japan Works Football Championship, established in 1948 and open only to company teams. The second was the All Japan Inter-City Football Championship, established in 1955 and separating clubs by cities (any club, works, university or autonomous, could represent their home city and qualify) but the Emperor's Cup remained dominated by universities until the late 1950's. All these tournaments were cups following single-elimination formulas, similar to Serie A in Italy before 1929.

Betting on Football

There are three types of betting options when betting on soccer. The bettor can bet on a money line for his team to win, a money line for the draw, or he can bet on the total score of the game.

When betting on the money line, the bettor is betting that the team will win straight up in order to win his bet. Betting on the Japan -600 means he must risk $600 to win $100. It does not matter when or how the Japan wins, just that they are declared the official winner. Betting on Argentina, the bettor stakes $100 to win $550. Again, in this case, it does not matter when or how Argentina wins, just that they are the official winner.

When betting on the outcome of a game to be a draw, the game must be declared a Draw for the bettor's wager to be a winner. If a game goes to Penalty shots, Golden Goals, or there is a disqualification, the official winner will be declared and all Draw bets would be considered losing bets.

A total listed on a game represents the total number of goals scored. When betting on the total goals that a game will have, the bettor must take the OVER or the UNDER. Regardless of the outcome, the combined score of the two teams will determine if he wins or loses his bet. Remember, overtime will always count for the total of the game, but penalty shots will not. Using the above example, if the bettor wagers that the game to go OVER 2½, and the final score is 2-1, the bet is a winner.

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