TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan is banking on sci-fi technology and the country's 'wow factor' to win the race to host the 2022 World Cup.
After all, only in Japan can you hire a cat for an hour and stroke it while you have a coffee -- or better still, while a robot boils your noodles for you.
Japan, successful co-hosts of the 2002 World Cup with Asian neighbors South Korea, is an outside bet to win the vote on December 2 when FIFA's executive committee meets in Zurich.
South Korea are also bidding again, along with the United States, Qatar and Australia.
Japan's credentials are second to none, with all but the main stadiums already in place and still in pristine condition, while the country's infrastructure ranks among the world's best.
Since the Japanese government unveiled the Bullet Train to mark the country's emergence as an economic power before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Japan has been at the forefront of technology.
The world's third largest economy, Japan still retains a great deal of its traditional charm, with shrines and quaint old shops tucked beside gleaming, new skyscrapers.
Modern Japan, with its crackling neon lights and crowded trains and shops, has turned convenience into an art with its automated wizardry.
Vending machines dispense everything from umbrellas to underwear. Japan boasts the highest number of machines per capita in the world and even has them at the top of Mount Fuji.
World Cup bidders plan to beam matches on to giant 3-D hologram-style screens in one of many hi-tech projects designed to amaze fans around the world during the 2022 tournament.
Translation earpieces will allow fans from different countries to interact, aided by devices to allow viewers to gather information by pointing to players on the pitch.
CAUTIOUS NOTE
"Japan has always been at the center of technological excellence," said bid director Yuichiro Nakajima. "Can we do it? Yes we can!"
Bold, presidential-style statements of intent come with the territory of bidding for major sporting events, but Japanese bid leaders have also struck a note of caution.
Watch Sci Fi Online
After all, only in Japan can you hire a cat for an hour and stroke it while you have a coffee -- or better still, while a robot boils your noodles for you.
Japan, successful co-hosts of the 2002 World Cup with Asian neighbors South Korea, is an outside bet to win the vote on December 2 when FIFA's executive committee meets in Zurich.
South Korea are also bidding again, along with the United States, Qatar and Australia.
Japan's credentials are second to none, with all but the main stadiums already in place and still in pristine condition, while the country's infrastructure ranks among the world's best.
Since the Japanese government unveiled the Bullet Train to mark the country's emergence as an economic power before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Japan has been at the forefront of technology.
The world's third largest economy, Japan still retains a great deal of its traditional charm, with shrines and quaint old shops tucked beside gleaming, new skyscrapers.
Modern Japan, with its crackling neon lights and crowded trains and shops, has turned convenience into an art with its automated wizardry.
Vending machines dispense everything from umbrellas to underwear. Japan boasts the highest number of machines per capita in the world and even has them at the top of Mount Fuji.
World Cup bidders plan to beam matches on to giant 3-D hologram-style screens in one of many hi-tech projects designed to amaze fans around the world during the 2022 tournament.
Translation earpieces will allow fans from different countries to interact, aided by devices to allow viewers to gather information by pointing to players on the pitch.
CAUTIOUS NOTE
"Japan has always been at the center of technological excellence," said bid director Yuichiro Nakajima. "Can we do it? Yes we can!"
Bold, presidential-style statements of intent come with the territory of bidding for major sporting events, but Japanese bid leaders have also struck a note of caution.
Watch Sci Fi Online
