One of the most intriguing games of the World Cup group stage as the Netherlands face Japan in Dallas.
Ronald Koeman’s Oranje are fancied to make a run into the latter stages but their opening assignment is not straightforward by any means.
Japan arrive at this tournament not as underdogs, but as a side that has earned the right to be taken seriously.
Hajime Moriyasu’s squad beat Germany and Spain at the last World Cup. In the March international window they beat Scotland 1-0 and then won 1-0 at Wembley, becoming the first Asian nation ever to defeat England.
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Where to watch Netherlands v Japan
Netherlands versus Japan kicks off at 9pm UK time. You can watch it on ITV 1 and stream via ITVX.
Click HERE for a full World Cup TV guide
Stats for Netherlands v Japan
- This will be the Netherlands’ 12th World Cup appearance. No other team has finished runner-up as often as the Dutch without ever winning the trophy (three times – 1974, 1978, 2010).
- The Netherlands have won 54.5% of their matches at the World Cup (30 out of 55, shoot-outs excluded) and only Brazil (66.7%) and Germany (60.7%) have a higher win rate in the history of the tournament. The Dutch are also only four away from reaching 100 goals at the World Cup.
- Excluding penalty shootouts, the Netherlands have lost only one of their last 19 World Cup matches (W14 D4). That sole defeat came in the 2010 final against Spain (0-1 after extra time). Meanwhile, their last loss in a group stage match dates back to 1994, a 0-1 defeat to Belgium.
- This will be Japan’s eighth consecutive World Cup appearance – a run stretching back to 1998. It’s the second-longest run of consecutive participations by an Asian nation behind Korea
Republic’s current run of 11 consecutive World Cup tournaments. - Japan have never advanced beyond the round of 16 at the World Cup. In fact, they hold the record for the most matches played without ever reaching the quarter-finals at the tournament (25).
- Japan scored more goals than any other team in the AFC qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup –
they found the net 54 times, which included a 3-0 forfeit victory against North Korea. Outside of the
hosts, Japan were the first nation to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
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