The Netherlands national football team started its World Cup debut against Japan on Sunday evening. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima were present at Paleis Het Loo to follow the match. The royal couple received special visit from Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako of Japan. It was not the first time the Japanese imperial couple visited the palace, twenty years ago they were there too. King Willem-Alexander had already indicated that he would follow the match with the Japanese emperor. Queen Maxima added during a press moment: "Together, not with the whole family." The match was extra charged due to the visit of the two. In the first half, the Netherlands and Japan were evenly matched. After the break, the match opened up. Virgil van Dijk scored with a hard header for the Netherlands, but they couldn't hold on to the lead: Keito Nakamura equalized for Japan soon after. Then it seemed that Crysencio Summerville would be the matchwinner for the Netherlands with the 2-1. However, Japan struck again in the 88th minute through Koki Ogawa, resulting in both teams settling for a point. Sport and the Royal House have been hand in hand for years. At major tournaments, the Oranjes are always present on the tribunes to encourage Dutch athletes. They were present at the Olympics earlier this year and another sports trip is already on the agenda next week. In Texas, they will watch the match between the Netherlands and Sweden, followed by Curaçao against Ecuador.