The Day My Son, Who Was Always Playing Games, Changed After Watching a J.League Match: How Going to the Stadium Together Transformed Our Family Time
My son, consumed by games and unable to stop his frustration
My son (then in 3rd grade) would only play online games on weekends.
It's fine to be passionate about something, but
he would fight with friends, get excluded from groups,
and get yelled at when his gameplay didn't go well...
His frustration gradually built up,
and he started feeling down at school too.
Eventually, he even started saying, 'I don't want to go to school...'
A mother's decision: 'Something has to change!'
Games, school—nothing was going well.
He had so little energy that it made me worry just watching him.
Then one day,
'I have to change his environment, or this is going to be bad...'
I thought, and I decided to make a bold suggestion.
'Why don't we go see a J.League match?'
The reply I got was,
'Ugh, why? That's such a hassle...'
He was reluctant at first. But... the moment he heard the chants, my son changed!
That day, we went to
J2 Chiba vs. Tokushima at Fukuda Denshi Arena.
On the way to the stadium,
'Can we go home if it's boring?' he asked,
still grumbling.
Even though he was walking along looking annoyed,
the moment the stadium came into view,
'Oh, let's go! (Boom-boom! Boom-boom-boom!)'
the chants and clapping started!!
The moment he heard that, his facelit up!
'Whoa, I want to go inside the stadium!'
he said with his eyes sparkling.
Thrilled by the real match right in front of him!
The inside of the stadium was a completely different world from a game screen.
The players' movements,
the sense of unity among the supporters,
the power of the chants and clapping.
The match ended in a draw, but
'I want to watch here again!' he said, full of excitement.
After returning home... a surprising change in behavior
After we got home, my son, who used to only watch game streams on YouTube,
started searching for JEF Chiba-related videos on his own!
In no time at all,
• He learned the chants
• He learned the players
• He even started checking stadium events
Before I knew it,
'When can we go watch again?'
he started asking, and
he even started playing soccer outside!!
Watching sports as a parent and child is so great!
My son isn't the type who is good at sports, and
he doesn't take any special lessons.
However,
after watching soccer, he became more energetic and his expressions changed.
Taking this as an opportunity, our family decided to go to the stadium regularly that year.
And then...
At the stadium, there are:
✅ Pre-match kids' events
✅ Social contribution activities themed around SDGs
✅ Booths where you can learn about local culture and specialties
...there are so many places to enjoy and learn things beyond just the match!
I want children who aren't good at sports to try going to the stadium!
“My child isn't good at sports...”
“I'm worried because they only play online games...”
For those people, I really want you to try watching sports as a parent and child just once!
If you have a team you can support as a family,
conversations will naturally increase,
and you'll have one more thing to look forward to on the weekend😊
About future posts
It has been two years since my son first watched a J.League match,
and now we have season tickets for JEF United Ichihara Chiba
and enjoy the days we watch matches as a family⚽✨
From now on, I would like to post about:
📢 Tips for enjoying stadium matches as a parent and child
📢 J.League match information, mainly for beginners
📢 Ways to create opportunities for more family conversation
...I hope to share content like that.
(It will probably be mostly information about JEF United Ichihara Chiba)
I have also started posting reel videos on Instagram.
For those who are already enjoying stadium matches!
Please tell me your match-watching episodes too😊
Finally
Thank you for reading until the end!
I started this note with the wish that more people would feel free to enjoy watching sports!
I hope this reaches those who feel their outing spots have become monotonous...
Thank you for your support!
(On May 6th of this year, Chiba vs. Omiya will be held at the National Stadium.
My immediate goal is to get as many people as possible to gather at the big stadium!)