Viral Video of the Day: Japanese Forward Imitates Mario Balotelli's Celebration

Forget Spain and dynasties. Forget Andrea Pirlo and the Panenka.

Mario Balotelli's flexing, scowling, shirtless goal celebration will henceforth serve as the reverberating image of Euro 2012.

Less than a week into its existence, the celebration has already spread around the globe, picking up imitators in the ranks of fans and apparently the White House.

One notable example provides the basis for today's B/R Viral Video of the Day. In today's video, we see forward Ken Tokura of Japanese club Vissel Kobe doing "The Balotelli" following his recent goal against Kawasaki Frontale in J-League action.

After driving a left-footed rocket past the keeper, Tokura tears off his shirt, scowls and flexes for the cameras in clear homage to the Italian master.

Tokura's celebration is cool, even if it doesn't work quite as well with a farmer's tan. Like Balotelli, Tokura received a yellow card for his actions, but even the referee seems to have enjoyed his antics.

So what's next for this budding fad? The European club season is still more than a month away, and that means there's a chance the trend could die out.

More likely, though, we'll see anyone and everyone imitating Balotelli for a while until the man himself comes out with a new celebration.

Hey, this could even turn into a new thing, like end-zone dances in the NFL. The goal could be a prop with infinite possibilities, if you ask me.

Quick, anybody have Terrell Owens' number? It's not like he's doing anything these days.

(H/T Metro)