Fox announcer says Japan players ‘think they’re taller’ before header goal
· Yahoo Sports
The first group stage match between Japan and the Netherlands was an instant classic in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, but Japan’s equalizer in the 88th minute came right after Fox Sports broadcasters questioned Japan’s ability to tie the game.
Darren Fletcher and Owen Hargreaves were on the call of the match on Fox in the United States.
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Just a minute before Japan tied the match, Fletcher said, “The Japanese players think they’re taller than they actually are, because they persist on crossing it straight onto the heads of the Dutch defenders.”
After a clearance resulted in a throw-in in Netherlands territory seconds later, Fletcher suggested they should “go short” instead of another throw-in into the penalty area.
Fletcher had one more thing to say: “You watch; they’ll score from this one now that I have said that.”
Japan, of course, did just that.
Here is the full video of the moment.
Fletcher is not wrong about the height of the Japanese team compared to most World Cup teams, to be fair.
According to an analysis by James Stroud at GiveMeSport, Japan is tied as the 36th-tallest World Cup team with Cape Verde, with an average height of 5 feet 11 inches. Saudi Arabia is the shortest team, or the 48th-tallest depending on how you look at it, with an average height of 5 feet 10 inches. The Netherlands is tied for eighth-tallest with an average height of 6 feet 1 inch.
Height isn’t everything, though; defending champion Argentina is the sixth-shortest team in the tournament.
A classic commentator mistake is overgeneralizing. Just because Japan is shorter than the average World Cup team does not mean it lacks elite athletes.
Fletcher is a pro’s pro, and he recognized his mistake, saying on the broadcast, “Can I just apologize to every Japanese player down there, because that’s why they were crossing it into the Dutch box— because eventually they were going to get a goal out of it.”
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