Once again Japanese fans are earning praise for their behavior at the World Cup.

Through the three group stage matches, Japanese fans have stayed late to help stadium workers pick up trash in the stadium, as USA Today reported — and the show of respect continued even after Japan’s Round 16 loss to Belgium on Monday.

When Belgium’s Nacer Chadli halted the Japan Red Devils’ comeback, resulting in a 3-2 win, heartbroken Japanese fans at Rostov Arena grabbed trash bags and cleaned the stadium, some in tears.

This respectful display also happened after Japan’s 2-1 win over Colombia on June 19, during the Group H match.

“This is my favorite moment of the World Cup so far; Japan fans picking up litter after their victory vs. Colombia. The lessons in life we can take from the game. Why I support Japan,” a social media user tweeted at the time.

Japan-based soccer writer Scott McIntyre told the BBC that cleaning up following a sporting event was “not just part of the football but part of Japanese culture,” as Fox News reported in June.

“You often hear people say that football is a reflection of culture. An important aspect of Japanese society is making sure that everything is absolutely clean, and that’s the case in all sporting events and certainly also in football,” McIntyre said.

A professor at Japan’s Osaka University noted that Japanese citizens are taught from a young age to always clean up after themselves.

“Cleaning up after football matches is an extension of basic behaviors that are taught in school, where the children clean their school classrooms and hallways,” Scott North told the BBC.

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North also said the fans take pride in showing others that they are respectful outside their country.

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“What better place to make a statement about the need to care responsibly for the planet than the World Cup?” he asked.

Deirdre Reilly is a senior editor with LifeZette. Follow her on Twitter.

(photo credit, homepage and article images: YouTube)