It was the image that sold a thousand newspapers: Japanese fans, after a World Cup loss, staying behind to pick up litter. A beautiful moment of cultural respect. Or so we were told.
Now a group of British women, organised under the banner "Clean Up Your Own Back Yard," have issued an unprecedented plea: stop cleaning our stadiums.
Start cleaning your own homes. The group, led by a former MP and a professor of social anthropology, has written an open letter to Japanese football supporters, urging them to redirect their efforts. We are humbled by your actions,"
the letter reads. But we are also embarrassed. Our own streets are a disgrace.
Your stadium cleanliness highlights our national filth." It is a curious plea. And one that reveals an uncomfortable truth about British pride.
We love to see others tidy our mess. But we hate to be told to do it ourselves. The letter continues: "
Please, replicate this at home. In your own country. Not ours."
Sources confirm the group has even offered to fund a social media campaign to spread the message. The irony is thick enough to chew on. A nation that once built an empire on extracting resources now begs visitors to export their cleaning habits.
The Japanese fans, for their part, seem confused. What is the problem? They might ask.
The problem, the British women would reply, is that you are making us look bad. And in the pantheon of British anxieties, looking bad is the greatest sin. We can tolerate corruption.
We can endure poverty. But do not show us up with a clean floor. It is a small scandal, perhaps.
But it speaks to a larger sickness. A nation that cannot clean its own streets now begs others to stop showing us how.
