At the men's Rugby World Cup in France, Japan lost to England in the Brave Blossoms' second Pool D fixture.

The game on Sunday night in Nice finished 34-12 to England.

Japan has never beaten England. A meeting last November ended 52-13 to England.

The Japanese players had said they wanted to make history with their first victory over England.

But Japan trailed by four points at the break, with England gradually taking control in the second half.

The last two World Cups both saw giant-slaying victories for Japan, but this time the team fell to its first loss of the 2023 tournament.
Japan can still make the knockout stages, depending on results in its remaining games against Argentina and Samoa and results elsewhere.

Japan takes on Samoa in its next group match, a team it narrowly lost to in July.