TOKYO - The threat of a typhoon affecting World Cup games in Japan receded Tuesday as Typhoon Noguri is expected to weaken and become a tropical depression by evening.

Rainy weather is expected during many of the upcoming games as the annual rainy season began. Noguri (Korean for racoon), had been moving along the southern Japanese coast facing the Pacific Ocean. As of 11:00 am (0200 GMT), it was near Muroto, 570 kilometers (356 miles) southwest of Tokyo, moving northeast at 60 kilometers (37.5 miles) per hour.

The typhoon was packing winds of up to 64.8 kph (40.5 mph) near its center and sustained winds of more than 54 kph (33.75 mph) within a 60-kilometer (37.5-mile) radius.

Noguri is expected to be downgraded to a tropical depression by 9:00 pm (1200 GMT), when it reaches the Kanto area,

said a spokesman for the Japanese Meteorolgy Agency. Kanto is the central Japanese region encompassing Tokyo and surrounding prefectures. Even so, World Cup venues in Japan were expected to see some rainfall during coming games, the spokesman said.

As of today (Tuesday), the annual rainy season started in all parts of Japan, except for Hokkaido

the spokesman said. With temperate summers, Japan's northernmost island does not have a rainy season. Sapporo, the prefectural capital of Hokkaido, has already hosted the three World Cup games scheduled to be played there. For the rest of the month, most World Cup venues in Japan are likely to experience rain or see heavy cloud cover, the spokesman said.

On Tuesday evening, Germany and Cameroon meet in Shizuoka some 150 kilometers (90 miles) west of Tokyo, while Saudi Arabia play Ireland in Yokohama, west of the capital. On Wednesday, the western Japanese city of Osaka will be the stage for the match between Nigeria and England, and Miyagi in northern Japan will host a Sweden-Argentina match, all of which could potentially see some rain.

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