Japanese left with an empty feeling

Japanese taxpayers have been warned that their new World Cup stadiums will continue to cost them billions of yen. Jonathan Watts reports froM Tokyo

Many municipalities admit the stadiums will be under-used. They have begun considering everything from wedding ceremonies to theme parks as a means of utilising the $3 billion facilities, many of which will rarely ever be filled for football again.

"We have a big worry about the 10 stadiums," said Seishi Yoda, a finance director of the Japanese Football Association.

Insiders fear that the three football-only venues - in Saitama, Kobe and Ibaraki - may have to be converted to other purposes to generate revenue.

"There are calls to modify the football-only stadiums so that they can stage events such as the National Sports Meet," Yoda admitted.

"But once the facilities are modified, there is a danger that they will no longer be international standard for football. Then what do we do?"

In Miyagi, officials say that the stadium will stage only one J-League game in the rest of the year.

The only other major event planned is a concert by the boy band SMAP in September. Income is expected to cover only about a fifth of the stadium's $2.3 million annual running cost.

"With the World Cup over, we are putting all our effort into promotion of the stadium," said Kazue Oizumi of the Miyagi city office.

"We will make a loss, but profit isn't a priority. This is a public resource. But we would like it to be used and loved more."

Guardian Service