Japanese Worry Soccer Lottery Not the Ticket

Japan’s soccer moms and teachers were in a tizzy this week after parliament legalized gambling on the nation’s fledgling professional soccer league--a measure that they fear could corrupt the nation’s youth.

The government-run “soccer lottery,” as it is being called here--aimed at raising funds for community sports facilities--could lead to betting by teenagers, who are among the biggest fans of the soccer league, opponents charged.

The new lottery’s rules prohibit those younger than 19 from participating, but the 75-cent tickets nevertheless will probably be easily procured from convenience stores, gas stations and friends, critics said.

“This kind of thing damages human beings,” said Yuko Kawato, whose 12-year-old son, Hidemi, plays on a local youth team. “It will be a very serious problem if kids start using the lottery as a way to make money for immoral activities.”

The lottery, which is expected to begin in two years, will be administered by the Education Ministry. Winnings will be determined by the percentage of correct guesses for each J-League game among the 18 member teams. Similar soccer lotteries exist in Europe and South America.

Proponents of the lottery--including the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, the Japan Olympic Committee and the Japan Professional Football (Soccer) Assn., known as the J-League--contend that Japan needs better community sports facilities. They envision the lottery raising revenue of about $1.34 billion annually, about a third of which would go toward sports groups and facilities, with the remainder covering prizes and administrative expenses.

“It is urgent and necessary to create better facilities, instructors and players and improve the environment to make sports a part of the culture like in Europe,” J-League Chairman Saburo Kawabuchi said in a statement.

National and state lotteries like the one in California already are popular in Japan, as is betting on horse and bicycle racing. But some doubt that a soccer lottery will be popular, because interest in the J-League is relatively limited and far overshadowed by Japan’s enthusiasm for baseball--which has no lottery.

Although soccer’s popularity shot up a few years ago, J-League attendance has been dwindling. As a result, Kosho Yamada, chief researcher at the government’s Leisure Development Center, said he is skeptical of the soccer lottery’s appeal.

“If you don’t know what’s going on in soccer, you can’t really buy the tickets,” he said. “It’s illogical for me that a soccer lottery is legal but not baseball, because more people know about baseball.”

Japan’s lower House of Representatives voted 346 to 114 to pass the legislation Tuesday after approval by the upper House of Councilors in March. The upper house had amended the original bill to include a provision that the “education minister can halt the implementation of the lottery in case an adverse effect is found on children.”

Despite the overwhelmingly favorable vote, the lottery bill did spark some political drama.

The Liberal Democrats--who had backed the measure--reprimanded party member Makiko Tanaka for speaking out against it in a meeting. The LDP is heavily backed by construction firms, which stand to benefit if more sports facilities are to be built.

Tanaka claimed that the proposal was being railroaded through with few details. She also contended that it clashed with goals of trimming the government.

Many women’s groups, such as the Housewives Assn., and educators agree. “Nowadays, there are so many problematic issues that relate to youngsters, and the lottery could make the environment even worse,” said Kanei Okabe, chairman of the National Congress of Parent Teacher Assns. of Japan.

Kaneo Watabe, a former chairman of the Tokyo Elementary Schools PTA, said the Education Ministry should not be encouraging gambling.

“This shows how vulnerable and corrupt politics is. Society’s priority is money and materialism,” Watabe said. “This is not a lottery; this is gambling. They forced the bill through, and they cheated the public.”

Etsuko Kawase and Makiko Inoue of The Times’ Tokyo Bureau contributed to this report.