TOKYO, June 19: World Cup football has gone to the heads of the Japanese public.

Since the start of the soccer World Cup at the end of May, hairdressers have been inundated with requests for copies of soccer players’ styles.

But rather than asking to look like bleach-blond Japanese goal scorer Junichi Inamoto, the icon most customers want to imitate is England’s David Beckham.

“Foreign hair is different, so it’s quite difficult to do,” said hairdresser Hidehito Shimizu, one of two stylists teasing customers’ locks into versions of the England captain’s spiky style free of charge at a promotional event on Tuesday.

“I’m a fan of Beckham, but I don’t think I look like him at all,” said office worker Kazuo Koyama, 39, after his makeover.

With their own team now out of the tournament after a 1-0 loss to Turkey on Tuesday, many local fans will be cheering for England, who have gained strong popular support during the competition.—Reuters