*This content was translated by AI.
There seems to be no match in Asia. Even host Australia is praising Japan's performance and acknowledging that it is the strongest player in Asia.
Japan beat Australia 1-0 in the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Asian Cup final at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Australia, at 6 p.m. on the 21st (Korea time).
As a result, Japan regained the top spot for the first time in eight years since the 2018 tournament, building its third career championship.
After the game, local Australian media and officials were tongue-in-cheek at Japan's high-quality performance. Australian media 'ABC News' praised "Japan's incredible shot and said, "Hamano Micah's first goal is beyond imagination."
Legendary Australian striker Sam Kerr (Chelsea Women) also told "Paramount" that "Japan beat us with just one moment. We had more chances, but Japan scored an amazing goal in that one moment," he said, admitting his defeat.
Australia coach Joe Montemuro also said, "Japan is the world's sixth-largest strong team. They scored a fantastic goal and we didn't," he said, praising his opponent's performance.
According to the Japanese media 'Soccer Digest', the Australian media 'Herald Sun' went even further and said, "There is no need to be ashamed of losing to Japan. It should be evaluated that Australia was the only team that faced Japan head-on in this tournament."
In fact, Japan showed off its near-perfect performance throughout this tournament. He scored as many as 29 goals as he showed an iron wall defense that allowed only one run in 540 minutes until the final.
Even the South Korean women's national team, led by Shin Sang-woo, lost to Japan 1-4 in the semifinals. At that time, South Korea was overwhelmed in ball possession and number of shots (6-21) and fell to its knees. It has not been able to break the Korea-Japan match of victory that has been going on for 11 years.
On this day, Japan operated the same player composition and formation as the semifinal against South Korea / vs. Korea. Starting with Riko Ueki, Yui Hasegawa, Hamano, and Fuka Nagano led the organic build-up.
The winning goal was also scored early. Hamano's right footed shot from outside the penalty box, which received Hasegawa's pass in the 17th minute of the first half, was inserted into the lower right of the Australian goal.
After the first loss, Australia went on a general offensive with Caitlin Ford and Sam Kerr, but Japan kept a one-point lead until the end with an iron wall defense centered on Saki Kumagai and Ayaka Yamashita.
Japan's upward trend continues. Last year, Japan surprised the world by winning all three games by beating the U.S., which had been ranked first in the FIFA rankings, 2-1 at the 2025 Schibylives Cup held in the U.S. According to the BBC and others at the time, Emma Hayes, head coach of the U.S. national team, said, "Japan played at a higher level than the U.S. from beginning to end."
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*This content was translated by AI.
