You know that feeling where you think that the Japanese have it all figured out? This scarf is more proof of that. Their editor-in-chief, Akashi Oda puts it better than any of us could:

“OFF THE BALL” is a term used to describe the situation in which a soccer player is not in possession of the ball. In the 90 minutes of a single match, the average player only holds the ball for about two minutes; they spend most of the match off the ball. The best parts of a soccer match is undoubtedly the dribbles, passes, and shots; however, when looking at the entirety of the game, those events only make up a very small portion of the match. The outcome of the match is ultimately up to the strategies and haggles that happen off the ball. 

This is true for soccer itself.

Without a doubt, the players in the game and the match itself are the center of attention. However, an actual match only makes up a small fraction within the “culture” of the sport. Functions of soccer that isn’t part of the sport − fashion, music, food, art, literature − their existence is absolutely necessary for soccer to be “soccer.”

OFF THE BALL is a football culture magazine that is made with the concept of a “soccer magazine without the soccer players.” This magazine will focus on everything else but soccer as a sport; we believe that the best part of the sport is “Off The Ball.”