Japan participated in qualifying for a FIFA World Cup for the 13th time, having reached the finals just twice (1998 and 2002). For a long time, Japanese football struggled to break through, despite an Olympic bronze medal.

Japan is playing in Group F along with Brazil, Croatia and Australia. They are the first team after host Germany to qualify for the World Cup. It is believed that the team has Asia's most formidable midfield line-up with Hidetoshi Nakata, Shunsuke Nakamura and Shinji Ono. Nakata has been awarded the player of the year award twice.