Socceroos supporters at the Japan match in Kaiserslautern
The first match between the two teams was played 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, ending in a 2-0 win for the Australians.[3] Another nine matches were played between Australia and Japan until 2001, but the match only emerged as a rivalry after 2006, when Australia joined the AFC. The first match between the two sides after this was during the 2006 FIFA World Cup, a group stage game where Australia were still technically competing as Oceania representatives. With just six minutes left, Japan led by a single goal, only for Australia to score thrice in succession to secure their first ever win in a World Cup Finals match in what is regarded as one of the greatest moments in Australian sporting history.[4] A number of fierce qualifying matches over the next few years enhanced the rivalry, and Japan got revenge for their World Cup defeat by knocking the Socceroos out of the 2007 Asian Cup at the quarter-final stage. In 2011, Japan again beat the Socceroos in an Asian Cup, this time in the final. Thus far, Australia has been knocked out of every Asian Cup in which they have competed by Japan.
