Japanese people really like to play mahjong. In the post-war period when resources were scarce, mahjong, as a kind of extremely low-cost and cheap entertainment, once swept across Japan and is still ranked second on the national entertainment ranking list—the first is playing marbles, and the second is playing mahjong.
In Japan, there are more than 4,000 "Mahjong parlors" in Tokyo alone, and the number of publicly operating Mahjong parlors across Japan ranges from about 9,000 to 15,000. There are also official Riichi Mahjong leagues, with approximately 11,000 professional players. The matches are broadcasted live or relayed on TV, and there are about 7.6 million fans of the professional league—in reality, the number is only higher.
