Ibrahimovic: "Don't call Japan a failure — they leave the World Cup 2026 with their heads high"
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has defended Japan after their 2-1 loss to Brazil in the 2026 World Cup 32nd round, saying it should not be called a failure.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic bravely defended Japan after the painful exit from the World Cup 2026. In his commentary for Fox Sports, where he was joined by analyst Thierry Henry, Ibrahimovic emphasized that Japan's loss, 2-1, to Brazil in the 32nd round of the tournament should not be called a failure.
"Football can be very brutal. Japan left the World Cup, but they did it with pride," said the former main striker who is now Milan's senior adviser. "They pushed Brazil to the limit, they made it difficult and forced one of the greatest sporting nations in history to fight to the end. Nobody can take that away from them."
<figure style="margin:2rem 0;overflow:hidden;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;background:#f9f9f9"><img src="https://tmw-storage-auto.tcccdn.com/storage/tuttomercatoweb.com/img_notizie/thumb3/b3/b3a502b3086746a438fc7f426508f171-01609-oooz0000.jpeg" alt="Image" style="width:100%;height:auto;object-fit:contain" loading="lazy" /></figure>Ibrahimovic added, the Japanese campaign should not be considered a failure. "I don't want to hear it's a failure. Failure is not giving everything. These players gave it their all. They ran, fought, believed, and represented the country with unforgivable pride. Sometimes football rewards you, sometimes it hurts you. Today, it hurt Japan."
He also narrated what was seen after the last seven. "I saw the tears, and they say it all — it was important to them. They believed they could make history and, for long stretches of the match, it looked like they could. The result was painful, but their performance deserves the respect of the entire football world."
Ibrahimovic is confident that Japan's future is bright if such a mindset is maintained. "If Japan continues to produce players with this mentality, this won't be the last time they shock the big nations. They have shown courage, discipline and personality throughout the tournament. Now they are losing the match, but they have won the respect of millions of fans around the world."
