91²Ö¿â

author

 
Menu
Search
 
June 27, 2026
 

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

Meta

Adam Minter
Folarin Balogun of the U.S. challenges Australia's Jacob Italiano during a Group D match at the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Seattle on June 19.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 26, 2026
FIFA World Cup thrives on diaspora players
The tournament expanded from 32 to 48 teams this year, creating space for more countries and for the transnational communities that define many of them.
Shohei Ohtani lacks the advantages that made NBA legend Michael Jordan a global icon: a unified mass media landscape, broad commercial appeal and a sport built to show off individuality.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 24, 2025
Why can¡¯t Shohei Ohtani truly be like Michael Jordan?
The challenge begins with baseball itself. The game is played at a high level throughout the Americas and parts of Asia-Pacific, but remains a niche sport elsewhere.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes warms up before Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans last February. Flag football is set to debut at the 2028 Olympics ¡ª but if the NFL wants the sport to thrive globally, it should resist overshadowing it with high-profile pro players.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 8, 2025
NFL stars don¡¯t belong on the Olympics¡¯ flag football field
If the NFL is really serious about growing football¡¯s global footprint, it and its players should sit the Olympics out.
Next year¡¯s FIFA World Cup, co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the U.S., will test whether America ¡ª with President Donald Trump pushing tariffs and tough immigration policies ¡ª can draw global fans or drive them away.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 21, 2025
The White House just kicked a World Cup own-goal
Next year¡¯s FIFA World Cup will test whether the U.S. ¡ª with President Donald Trump pushing tariffs and tough immigration policies ¡ª can draw global fans or drive them away.
Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid (97) and Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider (53) battle along the boards for a loose puck during a game in Edmonton, Alberta, on Jan. 30.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 16, 2025
The NHL could¡¯ve had a good year if not for tariffs
In 2016, the league denied an expansion franchise to Quebec, citing the ¡°state and volatility of the Canadian dollar.¡±
Rae Burrell (left) of the Vinyl battles for possession with Lexie Hull and Angel Reese of the Rose in an Unrivaled 3-on-3 basketball game in Miami on Friday.
BASKETBALL
Jan 21, 2025
Unrivaled could teach the NBA how to win back its fans
The new league plays a fast-paced, free-flowing version of basketball that empowers players to show off their skills.
Retired pro-boxer Mike Tyson and YouTuber/boxer Jake Paul fight during the heavyweight boxing bout in Arlington, Texas, on Nov. 15. The fight highlights the need for a national boxing commission to enforce uniform safety standards and prevent exploitative matchups.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 22, 2024
Mike Tyson and Jake Paul¡¯s fight should have been illegal
Among major American sports, boxing is unique for its decentralized structure. There¡¯s no annual schedule, season, commissioner or mandatory rulemaking body.
To preserve the integrity of the game in the legalized gambling era, Major League Baseball must double down and maintain its now posthumous ban on Pete Rose.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 4, 2024
Pete Rose fans are wrong: He¡¯s not worthy of the Hall of Fame
Backing down would undermine the league¡¯s zero-tolerance stance and signal that ¡°permanently ineligible¡± isn¡¯t always permanent.
Olympic rings are displayed on Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris ahead of the city hosting the 2024 Olympic Games. One way of reducing the carbon emissions of mega sporting events is to limit the attendance of spectators traveling by air.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 10, 2024
Only locals should be allowed to attend the Olympics
The single best way of reducing the carbon emissions of an Olympics? Limiting ticket sales to locals. Evidence from the Tokyo Games shows how far-reaching the impact is.
Japan¡¯s Coco Yoshizawa participates in a Paris 2024 Olympic qualifier. This summer¡¯s Olympics will be the first in which half of athletes are female.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 28, 2024
Paris Olympics¡¯ gender equality boast has an asterisk
Paris 2024 will be the first Olympics where half of all athletes are female. But the gender gap remains wide among the ranks of coaches and needs to be tackled.
Indian cricket is struggling against climate change-induced heat and rain and the last thing it needs is oil-rich Saudi Arabia buying into the league.
COMMENTARY / World
Nov 16, 2023
The last thing cricket needs is Saudi money
Indian cricket is struggling against climate change-induced heat and rain. A partnership with oil-rich Saudi Arabia would lead to a certain defeat.
Gamers play during the first day of Europe's leading digital games fair, Gamescom, in Cologne, Germany, in August 2019
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 2, 2023
Video game competitions should be in the Olympics
Esports is already among the world¡¯s most popular competitive activities. Last year, the global audience totaled more than 500 million people.
NASA and the Department of Defense are collaborating with Lockheed Martin to build and test a nuclear rocket engine by 2027.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2023
NASA¡¯s $500 million rocket gamble is worth it
Nuclear rockets are worth pursuing, but only with careful safeguards and international cooperation.
Surging populations of plant-eating insects are disrupting farms and the food supply chain, causing problems far more serious than sticky windshields from bug excrement.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 20, 2023
The insect apocalypse is coming to your neighborhood
Polar bears and sea turtles get most of the attention as victims of climate change, but when the bugs invade we¡¯re all going to feel it personally.
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Jul 20, 2023
Women¡¯s sports experiencing steady growth in popularity and value
Women¡¯s sports are growing in popularity and value. Better yet, that growth is no longer dependent upon quadrennial events like the Olympics or World Cups.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 12, 2023
Will AI in baseball become the next ¡®Moneyball¡¯?
Artificial intelligence could complicate the business of baseball, making the game homogenized and less dynamic.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 29, 2023
Saving the Hubble telescope is worth spending the money
NASA¡¯s plan to recruit unpaid volunteers to rescue the Hubble telescope fails to appreciate the ongoing value of this scientific treasure.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 30, 2023
The world¡¯s space junk problem just got an affordable solution
We¡¯re getting better at spotting and dodging debris in orbit ¡ª a much more cost-effective option than spending billions on cosmic robot cleaners.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 17, 2023
Satellite-saving robots can turn killer, too
Orbiting machines used to repair other spacecraft can just as easily be used to destroy them and will require new international rules to keep the peace.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 7, 2022
NASA¡¯s Artemis rocket is a gigantic waste of money
NASA¡¯s lunar mission is already years late and billions over budget. Meanwhile, private companies have been pushing boundaries in space travel for more than a decade.
Magnitude 7.2 quake hits northern Japan
A screenshot of the Japan Meteorological Agency website shows the seismic intensity of Thursday morning's earthquake.
Two storms approach Japan, with possible convergence complicating forecasts
A map depicting the paths of Tropical Storm Mekkhala and Tropical Storm Higos
Ghosn says calls for his Nissan return show investor anger over results
Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn at an event in Beirut in May 2024
Double barrage of storms to hit Japan this week
A map depicting the paths of Typhoon Mekkhala and Tropical Storm Higos
Masayoshi Son dismisses Musk¡¯s idea for orbital data centers
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son dismissed the idea of space-based data centers, arguing that the AI race will be won by computing power on Earth.
Takaichi¡¯s social media strategy tests old political norms
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has, in addition to traditional media appearances, focused more on direct communication through social media, official messaging and rapid online rebuttals since taking office.
U.S. missile moves in Japan send China clear message: A new era has arrived
Soldiers conduct the first Typhon midrange capability live-fire exercise outside of the continental United States, firing an SM-6 missile in July last year in Australia's Northern Territory during Exercise Talisman Sabre.
Takaichi¡¯s blueprint of women¡¯s policies focuses on menopause, education and housekeepers
A female technician maintaining and inspecting machinery
Fans take over iconic Shibuya Crossing as Japan reaches World Cup knockout round
Fans celebrate at the Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo on Friday as Japan advanced to the knockout round in the World Cup.
¡®All the Lovers in the Night¡¯ film adaptation brings ¡®unstable beauty¡¯ to the screen
Director Yukiko Sode (center) poses with her lead actors Tadanobu Asano (left) and Yukino Kichii (right) at the 79th Cannes Film Festival.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Social camouflaging can help neurodivergent people navigate social situations, but researchers say the effort often comes with significant emotional and mental strain.
The challenge of being neurodivergent in Japan¡¯s culture of conformity
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER