Japan national football team

Pre-war Era (1910s–1930s)

Japan's earliest international matches were at the 1917 Far Eastern Championship Games in Tokyo, where it was represented by a team from the Tokyo Higher Normal School. Although Japan made strong showings in swimming, baseball, and track and field, its football team suffered resounding defeats to the Republic of China and the Philippines.^[6] Nevertheless, the game was promoted in Japanese schools in the 1920s.^[7] The Japan Football Association was formed in 1921,^[8] and Japan joined FIFA in May 1929.^[7]

Japan's first "true" national team (as opposed to a university team chosen to represent the country) was fielded at the 1930 Far Eastern Championship Games, and drew with China for the championship title.^[7] Shigeyoshi Suzuki coached the national team to its first Olympic appearance at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.^[8] Japan was an entrant for the 1938 FIFA World Cup qualification, but withdrew before its scheduled qualifying match against the Dutch East Indies.^[9]

After World War II began in earnest, Japan did not play in international competition, except for a handful of matches against Manchuria and other colonies.^[7] Its last prewar match for purposes of Elo ratings was a friendly against the Philippines in June 1940.^[10]

While Korea was under Japanese rule, several Koreans played in international competition for Japan, including Kim Yong-sik (1936–40), Kim Sung-gan (1940) and Lee Yoo-hyung (1940).

Post-war Era (1950s–1980s)

Japan's postwar debut was in the 1951 Asian Games in India.^[10] Japan re-joined FIFA in 1950 and played in qualifiers for the 1954 FIFA World Cup, but lost the AFC qualifying berth to South Korea after two matches, beginning an intense rivalry.^[8] Japan also joined the Asian Football Confederation in 1954.^[7]

Dettmar Cramer joined the Japan national team as coach in 1960, and helped lead the team to the round of eight at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.^[11] Japan's first major achievement in international football came in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, where the team won the bronze medal. Although this result earned the sport increased recognition in Japan, the absence of a professional domestic league hindered its growth and Japan would not qualify for the FIFA World Cup until 30 years later.^[12]

Japan made its first appearance in the Asian Cup in 1988, where they were eliminated in the group stage following a draw with Iran and losses to South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

The late 1980s saw concrete moves to professionalize the sport in Japan. JFA introduced a Special Licensed Player system in 1986, allowing a limited number of professional players to compete in the domestic semi-professional league. Action committees were held in 1988 and 1989 to discuss the introduction of a full professional league in Japan.^[11]

1990s

In 1991, the owners of the semi-professional Japan Soccer League agreed to disband the league and re-form as the professional J. League, partly to raise the sport's profile and to strengthen the national team program. The following year Japan hosted and won the Asian Cup in their second appearance, defeating Saudi Arabia 1–0 in the final. The J. League was officially launched in 1993, causing interest in football and the national team to grow.

However, in its first attempt to qualify with professional players, Japan narrowly missed a ticket to the 1994 World Cup after drawing with Iraq in the final match of the qualification round, remembered by fans as the "Agony of Doha". Japan's next tournament was a defence of their continental title at the 1996 Asian Cup. The team won all their games in the group stage but were eliminated in the quarter-finals after a 2–0 loss to Kuwait.

The nation's first ever World Cup appearance was in 1998, where Japan lost all their games. The first two fixtures went 1–0 in favour of Argentina and Croatia, despite playing well in both matches. Their campaign ended with a 2–1 defeat to Jamaica.

2000s

In the 2000 Asian Cup, Japan managed to reclaim their title after defeating Saudi Arabia in the final, becoming Asian Champions for the second time.

Two years later, Japan co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with South Korea. After a 2–2 draw with Belgium in their opening match, the Japanese team advanced to the second round with a 1–0 win over Russia and a 2–0 victory against Tunisia. However, they subsequently exited the tournament during the round of 16, after losing 1–0 to eventual third-place finishers Turkey.

On 8 June 2005, Japan qualified for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, its third consecutive World Cup, by beating North Korea 2–0 on neutral ground. However, Japan failed to advance to the Round of 16, losing to Australia 1–3, drawing Croatia 0–0 and losing to Brazil 1–4.

2010s

During the 2010 World Cup qualification, in the fourth round of the Asian Qualifiers, Japan became the first team other than the host South Africa to qualify after defeating Uzbekistan 1–0 away. Japan was put in Group E along with the Netherlands, Denmark and Cameroon.^[13] Japan won its opening match of the 2010 World Cup 1–0 against Cameroon, but subsequently lost to the Netherlands 0–1 before defeating Denmark 3–1 to advance to the next round against Paraguay. In the first knockout round, Japan were eliminated from the competition following penalties after a 0–0 draw against Paraguay.

After the World Cup, head coach Takeshi Okada resigned. He was replaced by former Juventus and Milan coach Alberto Zaccheroni. In his first few matches, Japan recorded victories over Guatemala (2–1) and Paraguay (1–0), as well as one of their best ever results, a 1–0 victory over Argentina.

At the start of 2011, Japan participated in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. On 29 January, they beat Australia 1–0 in the final after extra time, their fourth Asian Cup triumph and allowing them to qualify for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup.^[14]

Japan then started their road to 2014 World Cup in Brazil with numerous qualifiers. Throughout, they suffered only two losses to Uzbekistan and Jordan, and drawing against Australia. Afterwards, on 12 October, Japan earned a historic 1–0 victory over France, a team they had never before defeated. After a 1–1 draw with Australia they qualified for the 2014 World Cup, becoming the first nation (outside of Brazil, who hosted the tournament and qualified automatically) to qualify.

Japan started their 2013 Confederations Cup campaign with a 3–0 loss to Brazil. They were then eliminated from the competition after losing to Italy 3–4 in a hard-fought match but received praise for their style of play in the match. They lost their final match 1–2 against Mexico and finished in fourth place in Group A. One month later, in the EAFF East Asian Cup, they started out with a 3–3 draw to China. They then beat Australia 3–2 and beat South Korea 2–1 in the third and final match in the 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup to claim the title. The road to Brazil looked bright as Japan managed a 2–2 draw with the Netherlands and a 2–3 victory over Belgium. This was followed by three straight wins against Cyprus, Costa Rica and Zambia.

Japan was placed into Group C at the 2014 World Cup alongside the Ivory Coast, Greece and Colombia. They fell in their first match to Ivory Coast 2–1 despite initially taking the lead, allowing two goals in a two-minute span. They drew their second game to Greece 0–0. To qualify for the second round, they needed a victory against Colombia and needed Greece to beat Ivory Coast. Greece beat Ivory Coast 2–1, but Japan could not perform well against Colombia and were beaten 4–1, eliminating them from the World Cup. Alberto Zaccheroni resigned as head coach after the World Cup. In July 2014, former Mexico and Espanyol manager Javier Aguirre took over and Japan lost 0–2 to Uruguay in the first game he managed.

Aguirre would begin a strong revamp of the team, switching out Zaccheroni's long-used 4–2–3–1 formation for his own 4–3–3 and applied this with a roster of the J.League's finest, dropping many regulars. A 2–2 draw against Venezuela was followed by a 1–0 victory over Jamaica. However, they lost their following match to Brazil 4–0, with Neymar scoring all four goals. Japan's sights turned to January and their title defense at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.

Japan national team vs Paraguay 2008

Japan won its opening match at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup in Group D against Asian Cup debutantes Palestine 4–0, with goals from Yasuhito Endō, Shinji Okazaki, Keisuke Honda via a penalty and Maya Yoshida. Okazaki was named man of the match. They then faced Iraq and Jordan in their next group matches, which they won 1–0 and 2–0 respectively. They qualified to knockout stage as Group D winner with nine points, seven goals scored and no goals conceded. In the quarter-finals, Japan lost to the United Arab Emirates in a penalty shootout after a 1–1 draw, as Honda and Shinji Kagawa missed their penalty kicks. Japan's elimination marked their worst performance in the tournament in 19 years.

After the Asian Cup, Aguirre was sacked following allegations of corruption during a prior tenure. He was replaced by Vahid Halilhodžić in March 2015. Japan started on a rough note during qualification, losing to the UAE 1-2 at home. They then picked up the pace in their other qualifier games against Iraq, Australia, and Thailand, picking up 5 wins and 2 draws. Then, on 31 August 2017, Japan defeated Australia 2–0 at home thus qualifying them for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, making it their sixth successive World Cup. However, the Japan Football Association decided to sack Halilhodžić on 9 April 2018, only ten weeks before the World Cup finals, citing reasons of a breakdown in relationship between coach and player, and poor recent friendly results, and appoint the Technical Director, Japanese coach Akira Nishino, who had managed the Japanese Under-23 team at the 1996 Olympics, as the new manager.^[15]

Japan made history in the 2018 FIFA World Cup by defeating Colombia 2–1, their first ever victory by any AFC team against a CONMEBOL team in an official tournament,^[16] as well as Japan's first ever victory at the FIFA World Cup finals in UEFA nations. Their second match ended in a draw against Senegal, with one goal scored by Takashi Inui and the other by Keisuke Honda.^[17] Japan were defeated in their last group game in the Group H against Poland 0–1,^[18] leaving Japan and Senegal tied for second with an identical record, however, as Japan had received two fewer yellow cards, Japan advanced to the knockout stage on the Fair Play Points tiebreaker, the first team to do so.^[19] The match with Poland caused controversy; as Japan were made aware of their advantage over Senegal with ten minutes left and decided to play an extremely conservative game, passing the ball around to one another and keeping it in their own box, seeking to avoid any bookings and didn't attempt to take any serious shots on goal, despite losing 0–1, with some fans booing the players.^[20][21][22] The match received comparison to the 1982 World Cup Disgrace of Gijón, in which a similar game was played.^[23] Japan were the only AFC team to have qualified to the knockout stage.^[24] In the Round of 16 against Belgium, Japan took a surprising 2–0 lead with a goal in the 48th minute by Genki Haraguchi and another in the 52nd by Takashi Inui, but yielded 3 goals afterwards, including the winner by Nacer Chadli on the counter attack in the 94th minute. This was Japan's third time having reached the quarter-finals, equaling their best result at a World Cup.^[25] Japan's defeat to eventual third-place finishers Belgium was the first time a nation had lost a knockout match at the World Cup after taking a two-goal advantage since England lost to West Germany 2–3 in extra-time in the quarter-final of the 1970 edition.^[26][27] However, Japan's impressive performance was praised by fans, pundits and medias for their fighting spirits, as demonstrated by Japan's win over Colombia, a draw to Senegal and a strong counter offensive against heavyweight Belgium.^[28]

South Korea

Japan maintains a strong football rivalry with South Korea. Japan has played 78 matches against the South Korean football team with 14 victories, 22 draws, and 41 losses. The football rivalry is long-seated and is often seen as an extension of an overall historic rivalry between the two nations.

Australia

Japan began to develop a fierce rivalry with fellow Asian powerhouse Australia, shortly after the latter joined the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).^[29] The rivalry is regarded as one of Asia's biggest football rivalries.^[30] The rivalry is a relatively recent one, born from a number of highly competitive matches between the two teams since Australia joined the AFC in 2006.^[31] The rivalry began at the 2006 World Cup where the two countries were grouped together, and continued with the two countries meeting regularly in various AFC competitions, such as the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, the 2011 AFC Asian Cup Final and the 2013 EAFF East Asian Cup.^[32]

China

Japan also has a long standing rivalry with China, because of historical tensions between two countries in the past. China is leading the series with 16 wins, with Japan only has 14 wins; however Japan has achieved more successes than China.

Names

The Japanese team is commonly known by the fans and media as Sakkā Nippon Daihyō (サッカー日本代表), Nippon Daihyō (日本代表), or Daihyō (代表) as abbreviated expressions. Although the team does not have an official nickname as such, it is often known by the name of the manager. For example, under Takeshi Okada, the team was known as Okada Japan (岡田ジャパン, Okada Japan).^[33] Recently, the team has been known or nicknamed as the "Samurai Blue", while Japanese news media during the 2018 FIFA World Cup still referred it to by the recently departed manager's (Akira Nishino) last name, as "Nishino Japan" (西野ジャパン, Nishino Japan).^[34][35]

Fan chanting

Fans waving flags in support of the Japanese national team.

Japanese national team supporters are known for chanting "Nippon Ole" (Nippon is the Japanese word for Japan) at home matches.^[36]

Kits

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Japan national football team kits.

The national team kit design has gone through several alterations in the past. In the early 1980s, the kit was white with blue trim. The kits worn for the 1992 Asian Cup consisted of white stripes (stylized to form a wing) with red diamonds. During Japan's first World Cup appearance in 1996 Asian Cup and in 1998, the national team kits were blue jerseys with red and white flame designs on the sleeves, and were designed by JFA (with the sponsor alternating each year between Asics, Puma, and Adidas). The 1996 design was reproduced in a special kit used against Syria on 7 June 2017.

Japan uses blue and white rather than red and white due to a superstition. Japan used blue shirts in a 3–2 victory over Sweden in the first game of its maiden major international competition, the 1936 Summer Olympics.^[37] When Japan was coached by Kenzo Yokoyama (1988–1992) the kits were red and white, matching the colors of Japan's national flag. After failures at 1990 FIFA World Cup and 1992 Summer Olympics qualifications, the red shirt was scrapped.

In the 2013 Confederations Cup and the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, Japan temporarily switched the colour of the numbers from white to gold.

Japan's kit is provided by German company Adidas, the team's exclusive kit supplier since April 1999.^[38] Before that, Asics and Puma had been the team's official apparel sponsor alongside Adidas.

Crest

JFA logo used on the kits (2009–2017)

The current crest or emblem of the national team was adopted in late 2017 as part of a larger rebranding by the Japan Football Association.^[39] The crest features the Yatagarasu, a three-legged crow from Japanese mythology , holding a solid red football. The text "JFA" (for the Japan Football Association) is inscribed at the bottom of the crow. A red stripe is also present at the center of the shield behind the crow. The shield has a metallic gold trim and has a thicker black outline. The name of the country represented by the national team "Japan" is also inscribed within the black border.^[40][41]

The previous crest had a shield with a more complex shape. The ball held by the Yatagarasu had white details. The text "Japan" is absent and "JFA" is written in a different typeface.^[40]

Sponsorship

Japan has one of the highest sponsorship incomes for a national squad. In 2006 their sponsorship income amounted to over 16.5 million pounds.

Primary sponsors include Adidas, Kirin, Saison Card International, FamilyMart, JAL, MS&AD Insurance Group, Asahi Shinbun, Mizuho Financial, Daito Trust Construction and KDDI.

Mascot

The mascots are "Karappe" (カラッペ) and "Karara" (カララ), two Yatagarasu wearing the Japan national football team uniform. The mascots were designed by Japanese manga artist Susumu Matsushita. Each year when a new kit is launched, the mascots change uniforms.

For the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the Pokémon character Pikachu served as the mascot.^[42]

2018

Japan  v  Mali

23 March 2018 International Friendly	Japan	1–1	Mali	Liège, Belgium
13:20 (UTC+1)	Nakajima  90+4'	Report	Diaby  43' (pen.)	Stadium: Stade Maurice Dufrasne Attendance: 250 Referee: Erik Lambrechts (Belgium)

Japan  v  Ukraine

27 March 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018 in Europe	Japan	1–2	Ukraine	Liège, Belgium
14:20 (UTC+2)	Makino  41'	Report	Rakitskiy  21' Karavayev  69'	Stadium: Stade Maurice Dufrasne Attendance: 2,529 Referee: Bart Vertenten (Belgium)

Japan  v  Ghana

30 May 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	0–2	Ghana	Yokohama, Japan
19:25 (UTC+9)		Report	Partey  9' Boateng  51' (pen.)	Stadium: Nissan Stadium (Yokohama) Attendance: 64,520 Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)

Switzerland   v  Japan

8 June 2018 International Friendly	Switzerland	2–0	Japan	Lugano, Switzerland
19:00 (UTC+2)	Rodriguez  42' (pen.) Seferović  82'	Report		Stadium: Cornaredo Stadium Referee: Amaury Delerue (France)

Japan  v  Paraguay

12 June 2018 International Friendly	Japan	4–2	Paraguay	Innsbruck, Austria
15:05 (UTC+2)	Inui  51', 63' Santander  77' (o.g.) Kagawa  90+1'	Report	Romero  32' Ortiz  90'	Stadium: Tivoli-Neu Attendance: 1,200 Referee: Oliver Drachta (Austria)

Colombia  v  Japan

19 June 2018 2018 FIFA World Cup (Group H)	Colombia	1–2	Japan	Saransk, Russia
15:00 UTC+3	Quintero  39'	Report	Kagawa  6' (pen.) Osako  73'	Stadium: Mordovia Arena Attendance: 40,842 Referee: Damir Skomina (Slovenia)

Japan  v  Senegal

24 June 2018 2018 FIFA World Cup (Group H)	Japan	2–2	Senegal	Yekaterinburg, Russia
20:00 UTC+5	Inui  34' Honda  78'	Report	Mané  11' Wagué  71'	Stadium: Central Stadium Attendance: 32,572 Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (Italy)

Japan  v  Poland

28 June 2018 2018 FIFA World Cup (Group H)	Japan	0–1	Poland	Volgograd, Russia
17:00 UTC+3		Report	Bednarek  59'	Stadium: Volgograd Arena Attendance: 42,189 Referee: Janny Sikazwe (Zambia)

Belgium  v  Japan

2 July 2018 2018 FIFA World Cup (Round of 16)	Belgium	3–2	Japan	Rostov-on-Don, Russia
21:00 UTC+3	Vertonghen  69' Fellaini  74' Chadli  90+4'	Report	Haraguchi  48' Inui  52'	Stadium: Rostov Arena Attendance: 41,466 Referee: Malang Diedhiou (Senegal)

Japan  v  Costa Rica

11 September 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	3–0	Costa Rica	Suita, Japan
19:20 (UTC+9)	Sasaki  16' Minamino  66' J. Ito  90+3'	Report		Stadium: Panasonic Stadium Suita Attendance: 33,891

Japan  v  Panama

12 October 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	3–0	Panama	Niigata, Japan
19:35 (UTC+9)	Minamino  42' J. Ito  66' Cummings  85' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: Denka Big Swan Stadium Referee: Kim Dong-jin (South Korea)

Japan  v  Uruguay

16 October 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	v	Uruguay	Saitama, Japan
19:35 (UTC+9)				Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002

Japan  v  Venezuela

16 November 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	v	Venezuela	Ōita, Japan
19:30 (UTC+9)				Stadium: Ōita Bank Dome

Japan  v  Kyrgyzstan

20 November 2018 Kirin Challenge Cup 2018	Japan	v	Kyrgyzstan	Toyota, Japan
19:20 (UTC+9)				Stadium: Toyota Stadium

2019

Japan  v  Turkmenistan

9 January 2019 2019 AFC Asian Cup	Japan	v	Turkmenistan	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
				Stadium: Al Nahyan Stadium

Oman  v  Japan

13 January 2019 2019 AFC Asian Cup	Oman	v	Japan	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
				Stadium: Zayed Sports City Stadium

Japan  v  Uzbekistan

17 January 2019 2019 AFC Asian Cup	Japan	v	Uzbekistan	Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
				Stadium: Sheikh Khalifa International Stadium

Japan  v TBD

June 2019 2019 Copa America	Japan	v	TBD	Brazil
				Stadium: TBD

Japan  v TBD

June 2019 2019 Copa America	Japan	v	TBD	Brazil
				Stadium: TBD

Japan  v TBD

June 2019 2019 Copa America	Japan	v	TBD	Brazil
				Stadium: TBD

Current squad

The following 23 players have been called up for the friendly matches against Panama on 12 October and Uruguay on 16 October.
Caps and goals as of 12 October 2018 after the match against Panama.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Masaaki Higashiguchi	(1986-05-12) 12 May 1986	6	0	Gamba Osaka
12	1GK	Shūichi Gonda	(1989-03-03) 3 March 1989	4	0	Sagan Tosu
23	1GK	Daniel Schmidt	(1992-02-03) 3 February 1992	0	0	Vegalta Sendai
2	2DF	Genta Miura	(1995-03-01) 1 March 1995	3	0	Gamba Osaka
3	2DF	Sei Muroya	(1995-04-05) 5 April 1995	3	0	FC Tokyo
4	2DF	Sho Sasaki	(1989-10-02) 2 October 1989	2	1	Sanfrecce Hiroshima
5	2DF	Yuto Nagatomo	(1986-09-12) 12 September 1986	109	3	Galatasaray
16	2DF	Takehiro Tomiyasu	(1998-11-05) 5 November 1998	1	0	Sint-Truiden
19	2DF	Hiroki Sakai	(1990-04-12) 12 April 1990	47	0	Marseille
20	2DF	Tomoaki Makino	(1987-05-11) 11 May 1987	35	4	Urawa Red Diamonds
22	2DF	Maya Yoshida	(1988-08-24) 24 August 1988	86	10	Southampton
6	3MF	Wataru Endo	(1993-02-09) 9 February 1993	13	0	Sint-Truiden
7	3MF	Gaku Shibasaki	(1992-05-28) 28 May 1992	23	3	Getafe
8	3MF	Genki Haraguchi	(1991-05-09) 9 May 1991	37	7	Hannover 96
9	3MF	Takumi Minamino	(1995-01-16) 16 January 1995	4	2	Red Bull Salzburg
10	3MF	Shoya Nakajima	(1994-08-23) 23 August 1994	3	1	Portimonense
14	3MF	Junya Ito	(1993-03-09) 9 March 1993	5	2	Kashiwa Reysol
17	3MF	Toshihiro Aoyama	(1986-02-22) 22 February 1986	10	1	Sanfrecce Hiroshima
18	3MF	Kento Misao	(1996-04-19) 19 April 1996	5	0	Kashima Antlers
21	3MF	Ritsu Doan	(1998-06-16) 16 June 1998	2	0	Groningen
11	4FW	Kengo Kawamata	(1989-10-14) 14 October 1989	9	1	Júbilo Iwata
13	4FW	Koya Kitagawa	(1996-07-26) 26 July 1996	1	0	Shimizu S-Pulse
15	4FW	Yuya Osako	(1990-05-18) 18 May 1990	34	8	Werder Bremen

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up to the Japan squad in last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Eiji Kawashima	(1983-03-20) 20 March 1983	88	0	Strasbourg	2018 FIFA World Cup
GK	Kosuke Nakamura	(1995-02-27) 27 February 1995	4	0	Kashiwa Reysol	2018 FIFA World Cup
GK	Shusaku Nishikawa	(1986-06-18) 18 June 1986	31	0	Urawa Red Diamonds	v.  Belgium, 14 November 2017
DF	Shintaro Kurumaya	(1992-04-05) 5 April 1992	4	0	Kawasaki Frontale	v.  Costa Rica, 11 September 2018
DF	Naomichi Ueda	(1994-10-24) 24 October 1994	4	0	Cercle Brugge	v.  Costa Rica, 11 September 2018
DF	Gōtoku Sakai RET	(1991-03-14) 14 March 1991	42	0	Hamburger SV	2018 FIFA World Cup RET
DF	Gen Shoji	(1992-12-11) 11 December 1992	15	1	Kashima Antlers	2018 FIFA World Cup
DF	Masato Morishige	(1987-05-21) 21 May 1987	41	2	FC Tokyo	v.  Ukraine, 27 March 2018
DF	Tomoya Ugajin	(1988-03-23) 23 March 1988	1	0	Urawa Red Diamonds	v.  Ukraine, 27 March 2018
DF	Shūto Yamamoto	(1985-06-01) 1 June 1985	1	0	Kashima Antlers	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
DF	Ryo Hatsuse	(1997-07-10) 10 July 1997	0	0	Gamba Osaka	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
DF	Daigo Nishi	(1987-08-28) 28 August 1987	1	0	Kashima Antlers	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship INJ
MF	Jun Amano	(1991-07-19) 19 July 1991	1	0	Yokohama F. Marinos	v.  Costa Rica, 11 September 2018
MF	Hidemasa Morita	(1995-05-10) 10 May 1995	1	0	Kawasaki Frontale	v.  Costa Rica, 11 September 2018
MF	Tatsuya Ito	(1997-06-26) 26 June 1997	0	0	Hamburger SV	v.  Costa Rica, 11 September 2018
MF	Hotaru Yamaguchi	(1990-10-06) 6 October 1990	45	2	Cerezo Osaka	v.  Chile, 7 September 2018 INJ
MF	Ryota Oshima	(1993-01-23) 23 January 1993	5	0	Kawasaki Frontale	v.  Chile, 7 September 2018 INJ
MF	Makoto Hasebe	(1984-01-18) 18 January 1984	114	2	Eintracht Frankfurt	2018 FIFA World Cup RET
MF	Keisuke Honda	(1986-06-13) 13 June 1986	98	37	Melbourne Victory	2018 FIFA World Cup RET
MF	Shinji Kagawa	(1989-03-17) 17 March 1989	95	31	Borussia Dortmund	2018 FIFA World Cup
MF	Takashi Inui	(1988-06-02) 2 June 1988	31	6	Betis	2018 FIFA World Cup
MF	Takashi Usami	(1992-05-06) 6 May 1992	26	3	Fortuna Düsseldorf	2018 FIFA World Cup
MF	Yasuyuki Konno	(1983-01-25) 25 January 1983	93	4	Gamba Osaka	2018 FIFA World Cup PRE / INJ
MF	Yōsuke Ideguchi	(1996-08-23) 23 August 1996	12	2	Greuther Fürth	2018 FIFA World Cup PRE
MF	Ryota Morioka	(1991-04-12) 12 April 1991	5	0	Anderlecht	v.  Ukraine, 27 March 2018
MF	Mu Kanazaki	(1989-02-16) 16 February 1989	11	2	Sagan Tosu	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
MF	Hiroyuki Abe	(1989-07-05) 5 July 1989	3	0	Kawasaki Frontale	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
MF	Yōjiro Takahagi	(1986-08-02) 2 August 1986	3	0	FC Tokyo	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
MF	Shogo Taniguchi	(1991-07-15) 15 July 1991	3	0	Kawasaki Frontale	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
MF	Shoma Doi	(1992-05-21) 21 May 1992	2	0	Kashima Antlers	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
MF	Hiroshi Kiyotake	(1989-11-12) 12 November 1989	44	5	Cerezo Osaka	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship INJ
MF	Kazuki Nagasawa	(1991-12-16) 16 December 1991	1	0	Urawa Red Diamonds	v.  Belgium, 14 November 2017
FW	Takuma Asano	(1994-11-10) 10 November 1994	18	3	Hannover 96	v.  Panama, 12 October 2018 INJ
FW	Yu Kobayashi	(1987-09-23) 23 September 1987	14	2	Kawasaki Frontale	v.  Panama, 12 October 2018 INJ
FW	Kenyu Sugimoto	(1992-11-18) 18 November 1992	6	1	Cerezo Osaka	v.  Chile, 7 September 2018 INJ
FW	Shinji Okazaki	(1986-04-16) 16 April 1986	116	50	Leicester City	2018 FIFA World Cup
FW	Yoshinori Mutō	(1992-07-15) 15 July 1992	25	2	Newcastle United	2018 FIFA World Cup
FW	Yūya Kubo	(1993-12-24) 24 December 1993	13	2	Nürnberg	v.  Ukraine, 27 March 2018
FW	Shu Kurata	(1988-11-26) 26 November 1988	9	2	Gamba Osaka	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
FW	Kengo Kawamata	(1989-10-14) 14 October 1989	8	1	Júbilo Iwata	2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
FW	Shinzo Koroki	(1986-07-31) 31 July 1986	16	0	Urawa Red Diamonds	v.  Belgium, 14 November 2017
INJ Withdrew due to an injury. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Retired from national team. SUS Player suspended.

Records

Statistics below are from matches which the Japan Football Association consider as official.^{[1][43][44][45]}

Updated to 13th September 2018:

Rosters

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup Finals record										Qualifications record
Hosts / year	Result	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GS	GA		GP	W	D	L	GS	GA
1930	Did Not Enter									–	–	–	–	–	–
1934										–	–	–	–	–	–
1938	Withdrew									–	–	–	–	–	–
1950	Suspended from FIFA									–	–	–	–	–	–
1954	Did not qualify									2	0	1	1	3	7
1958	Did not enter									–	–	–	–	–	–
1962	Did not qualify									2	0	0	2	1	4
1966	Did not enter									–	–	–	–	–	–
1970	Did not qualify									4	0	2	2	4	8
1974										4	1	0	3	5	4
1978										4	0	1	3	0	5
1982										4	2	0	2	4	2
1986										8	5	1	2	15	5
1990										6	2	3	1	7	3
1994										13	9	3	1	35	6
1998	Group Stage	31st	3	0	0	3	1	4		15	9	5	1	51	12
2002	Round of 16	9th	4	2	1	1	5	3		–	–	–	–	–	–
2006	Group Stage	28th	3	0	1	2	2	7		12	11	0	1	25	5
2010	Round of 16	9th	4	2	1	1	4	2		14	8	4	2	23	9
2014	Group Stage	29th	3	0	1	2	2	6		14	8	3	3	30	8
2018	Round of 16	15th	4	1	1	2	6	7		18	13	3	2	44	7
Total	Round of 16	6/21	21	5	5	11	20	29		120	68	26	26	247	85

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup Finals record AFC Asian Cup qualification Hosts / year Result Position GP W D* L GS GA GP W D* L GS GA 1956 Withdrew – – – – – – 1960 – – – – – – 1964 – – – – – – 1968 Did Not Qualify 4 3 1 0 8 4 1972 Withdrew – – – – – – 1976 Did Not Qualify 5 2 1 2 4 4 1980 Withdrew – – – – – – 1984 – – – – – – 1988 Group Stage 10th 4 0 1 3 0 6 4 2 1 1 6 3 1992 Champions 1st 5 3 2 0 6 3 – – – – – – 1996 Quarter-Finals 5th 4 3 0 1 7 3 – – – – – – 2000 Champions 1st 6 5 1 0 21 6 3 3 0 0 15 0 2004 Champions 1st 6 4 2 0 13 6 – – – – – – 2007 Fourth Place 4th 6 2 3 1 11 7 6 5 0 1 15 2 2011 Champions 1st 6 4 2 0 14 6 6 5 0 1 17 4 2015 Quarter-Finals 5th 4 3 1 0 8 1 – – – – – – 2019 Qualified 8 7 1 0 27 0 Total 4 Titles 9/17 41 24 12 5 80 38 36 27 4 5 92 17 FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA Confederations Cup record Hosts / year Result Position Pld W D * L GF GA Squad 1992 Did Not Qualify 1995 Group Stage 6th 2 0 0 2 1 8 Squad 1997 Did Not Qualify 1999 2001 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 1 1 6 1 Squad 2003 Group Stage 6th 3 1 0 2 4 3 Squad 2005 Group Stage 5th 3 1 1 1 4 4 Squad 2009 Did Not Qualify 2013 Group Stage 7th 3 0 0 3 4 9 Squad 2017 Did Not Qualify Total Runners-up 5/10 15 5 2 9 19 25 - Olympic Games Since 1992, the Olympic team has been drawn from a squad with a maximum of three players over 23 years age, and the achievements of this team are not generally regarded as part of the national team's records, nor are the statistics credited to the players' international records. Summer Olympic Games Record Qualifications record Hosts / year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA 1908 Did Not Enter 0 0 0 0 0 0 1912 0 0 0 0 0 0 1920 0 0 0 0 0 0 1924 0 0 0 0 0 0 1928 0 0 0 0 0 0 1936 Quarter-Finals 8th 2 1 0 1 3 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 1948 Did Not Enter 0 0 0 0 0 0 1952 0 0 0 0 0 0 1956 Group Stage 10th 1 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1960 Did Not Qualify 0 0 0 0 0 0 1964 Quarter-Finals 8th 3 1 0 2 5 9 1968 Third Place 3rd 6 3 2 1 9 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 1972 Did Not Enter 0 0 0 0 0 0 1976 Did Not Qualify 0 0 0 0 0 0 1980 Did Not Enter 0 0 0 0 0 0 1984 Did Not Qualify 0 0 0 0 0 0 1988 0 0 0 0 0 0 1992 – present See Japan national under-23 team 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 1 Bronze Medal 4/17 12 5 2 5 17 29 0 0 0 0 0 0 Olympic Games History Year Round Score Result 1936 Round1 Japan  3 – 2  Sweden Win Quarterfinals Japan  0 – 8  Italy Loss 1956 Round 1 Japan  0 – 2  Australia Loss 1964 Round 1 Japan  3 – 2  Argentina Win Round 1 Japan  2 – 3  Ghana Loss Quarterfinals Japan  0 – 4  Czechoslovakia Loss 1968 Round 1 Japan  3 – 1  Nigeria Win Round 1 Japan  1 – 1  Brazil Draw Round 1 Japan  0 – 0  Spain Draw Quarterfinals Japan  3 – 1  France Win Semifinals Japan  0 – 5  Hungary Loss Bronze match Japan  2 – 0  Mexico Win Copa América Japan is the first team from outside the Americas to participate in the Copa América, having been invited in both 1999 and 2011.[4] However, Japan declined their invitation on 16 May 2011, after events related to the difficulty of releasing some Japanese players from European teams to play as replacements. On 17 May 2011, CONMEBOL invited Costa Rica to replace Japan in the competition; the Costa Rican Football Federation accepted their invitation later that day. On 16 August 2013, CONMEBOL president Eugenio Figueredo announced that Japan was invited to the 2015 Copa América.[47] However, Japan later declined the invitation due to scheduling problems.[48] On 14 May 2018, CONMEBOL annunced that Japan, alongside Qatar, will be the two invited teams for the 2019 Copa América.[49] CONMEBOL Copa América record Hosts / year Result Position GP W D* L GS GA 1999 Group Stage 10th 3 0 1 2 3 8 2011 Withdrew 2015 Withdrew 2019 Invited Total Group Stage 2/46 3 0 1 2 3 8 Asian Games Football at the Asian Games has been an under-23 tournament since 2002. See also: Japan national under-23 football team Asian Games Record Year Result GP W D* L GS GA 1951 Third Place 3 1 1 1 4 3 1954 10th 2 0 0 2 5 8 1958 12th 2 0 0 2 0 3 1962 6th 3 1 0 2 3 4 1966 Third Place 7 6 0 1 18 5 1970 Fourth Place 7 5 0 2 8 5 1974 9th 3 1 1 1 5 4 1978 9th 3 1 0 2 5 5 1982 5th 4 3 0 1 6 3 1986 9th 4 2 0 2 9 4 1990 8th 3 1 0 2 3 3 1994 7th 4 1 2 1 9 5 1998 9th 5 3 0 2 8 4 2002–present See Japan national under-23 football team Total 13/13 50 25 4 21 83 56 Head-to-head records against other countries Main article: Japan national football team head to head As of 11 September 2018. Year Pld W D L GF GA GD AFC 486 250 104 132 931 533 +398 CAF 34 20 6 8 56 35 +21 CONCACAF 24 14 4 6 57 30 +27 CONMEBOL 54 13 16 26 51 89 -38 OFC 6 3 0 3 10 8 +2 UEFA 112 34 23 55 137 186 -49 Total 716 334 152 230 1,242 871 +361 FIFA Rankings Last updated 21 December 2017 Key to FIFA World Rankings table Highest position Lowest position Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2017 46 52 51 44 44 45 46 44 40 44 55 57 Team records As of 23 January 2015[50] Biggest victory 15–0 vs Philippines, 27 September 1967 Heaviest defeat 15–2 vs Philippines, 10 May 1917 Most consecutive victories 8, 8 August 1970 vs. Indonesia – 17 December 1970 vs. India 8, 14 March 1993 vs. United States – 5 May 1995 vs. Sri Lanka 8, 26 May 1996 vs. Yugoslavia – 12 December 1996 vs. China Most consecutive matches without defeat 20, 24 June 2010 vs. Denmark – 11 November 2011 vs. Tajikistan Most consecutive defeats 6, 10 June 1956 vs. South Korea – 28 December 1958 vs. Malaya Most consecutive matches without victory 11, 13 August 1976 vs. Burma – 15 June 1976 vs. South Korea Most consecutive draws 4, 13 August 1976 vs. Burma – 20 August 1976 vs. Malaya Most consecutive matches scoring 13, 19 December 1966 vs. Singapore – 16 October 1969 vs. Australia 13, 7 February 2004 vs. Malaysia – 24 July 2004 vs. Thailand Most consecutive matches without scoring 6, 18 June 1989 vs. Hong Kong – 31 July 1990 vs. North Korea Most consecutive matches conceding a goal 28, 6 November 1960 vs. South Korea – 11 December 1966 vs. Iran Most consecutive matches without conceding a goal 7, 19 November 2003 vs. Cameroon – 18 February 2004 vs. Oman Honors International Olympic Games Bronze Medal: 1968 FIFA Confederations Cup Runners-Up: 2001 Continental AFC Asian Cup Champions: 1992, 2000, 2004, 2011 Regional Dynasty Cup Champions: 1992, 1995, 1998 EAFF East Asian Cup Champions: 2013 Far Eastern Games Champions: 1930 Other Afro-Asian Cup of Nations Champions: 1993, 2007 AFC – OFC Challenge Cup Champions: 2001 Friendly Kirin Cup Champions (11): 1991, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011 Individual awards Japan Professional Sports Grand Prize Years: 2002 AFC National Team of the Year Years: 2000, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011 See also List of Japan international footballers Japan–South Korea football rivalry Japan Football Association Football in Japan Japan national under-23 football team Sport in Japan References 1 2 80 days to go – With 80 goals in 84 appearances, Kunishige Kamamoto is Japan's all-time leading goalscorer. (FIFA.com) ↑ "Japan National Football Team Results: 1910–1919". Football Japan. p. 29 December 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2014. ↑ Motoaki Inukai 「日本代表公式記録集2008」 Japan Football Association p.206 1 2 Japan Invited To Copa America 2011 Along With Mexico Goal.com 2 June 2009 ↑ ESPNFC.com 17 May 2011 ↑ "1917年の日本サッカー ｜ 日本サッカーアーカイブ". 日本サッカーアーカイブ (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 June 2018. 1 2 3 4 5 Horne, John, ed. (2002). Japan, Korea and the 2002 World Cup. Psychology Press. pp. 121–122. ISBN 0415275636.CS1 maint: Extra text: authors list (link) 1 2 3 "Japan Football Museum| Japan Football Association". www.jfa.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 June 2018. ↑ "World Cup 1938 Qualifying". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 19 June 2018. 1 2 "World Football Elo Ratings". www.eloratings.net. Retrieved 19 June 2018. 1 2 "Origins and History｜JFA｜Japan Football Association". www.jfa.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 19 June 2018. ↑ Matsushima, Ken. "History of the J. League". Rising Sun News. Archived from the original on 12 May 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2016. ↑ Hongo, Jun (9 February 2010). "Japan team has foot in World Cup door but can it kick?". Japan Times. p. 3. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 29 June 2018. ↑ Staff and agencies (29 January 2011). "Australia 0 Japan 1 (aet): match report". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 2 February 2011. ↑ "Japan coach gamble to pay off?". Pete Hall. Sky Sports. 19 June 2018. Retrieved 1 July 2018. ↑ "Japan make history with World Cup win against 10-man Colombia". Agence France Presse. 19 June 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2018. ↑ Gendler, Daniel (24 June 2018). "Japan and Senegal Control World Cup Fates After Draw". New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 25 June 2018. ↑ Mather, Victor (27 June 2018). "Japan Advances in World Cup 2018 Despite Losing to Poland". New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 28 June 2018. ↑ Tweedale, Alistair; Ducker, James (28 June 2018). "Lucky Japan qualify for knockout stages through Fifa's fair play rules despite losing 1-0 to Poland". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. Retrieved 28 June 2018. ↑ "World Cup's most shameful moment". NewsComAu. Retrieved 6 July 2018. ↑ "World Cup 2018: Japan go through but final group game ends in 'mind-boggling farce'". BBC Sport. 28 June 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018. ↑ Glendenning, Barry (28 June 2018). "Japan 0-1 Poland: World Cup 2018 – as it happened". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 July 2018. ↑ "'Anti-football': World Cup fair play farce embarrasses Japanese fans". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 6 July 2018. ↑ FIFA.com. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 6 July 2018. ↑ "World Cup 2018: Belgium stun Japan to reach quarters". BBC Sport. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2018. ↑ "A two-goal comeback after 48 years, and a new high for AFC". Debayan Sen. ESPN. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2018. ↑ "England finish fourth at World Cup after Eden Hazard seals Belgium win". Dominic Fifield. The Guardian. 14 July 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2018. ↑ https://dailyfootballshow.com/talking-points-belgium-3-japan-2-blue-samurai-heartbreak-after-a-miracle-comeback/ ↑ "Australia, Japan rivalry hits new heights". Football Federation Australia. Retrieved 30 September 2013. ↑ "Highlights". Foxtel.com.au. Archived from the original on 16 November 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2015. ↑ Sebastian Hassett. "Socceroos to resume Japan rivalry in qualifying group for Brazil". Smh.com.au. Retrieved 3 May 2015. ↑ "Japan-Australia: a classic football rivalry". theroar.com.au. Retrieved 30 September 2013. ↑ A common methodology of nickname creation is done by taking the last name of incumbent head coach followed by "Japan". Past teams have been referred to as, "Osim Japan" (オシムジャパン, Oshimu Japan), "Zico Japan" (ジーコジャパン, Jīko Japan), "Troussier Japan" (トルシエジャパン, Torushie Japan) ↑ ハリルジャパン、白星発進!!岡崎&本田のゴールで初陣飾る. Gekisaka (in Japanese). Kodansha. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015. ↑ 岡崎、本田がゴール！　ハリルジャパン初陣を勝利で飾る. Football Channel (in Japanese). Kanzen ltd. 27 March 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2015. ↑ Chant of JAPAN National Team "NIPPON Ole" YT ↑ "Why does Japan wear blue soccer uniforms?". The Wichita Eagle. ↑ 11月6日、日本代表新ユニフォーム発表…歴代戦闘服を写真で振り返る ↑ "JFA renews visual identity and reconstructs brand values". Japan Football Association. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2018. 1 2 "NEW JAPANESE NATIONAL TEAM LOGO UNVEILED". Soccer 365. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2018. ↑ D'Asaro, Filippo. "The new Japan's National Team Logo". NSS Magazine. Retrieved 27 July 2018. ↑ Sanchez, Miranda (15 March 2014). "Pikachu Named Mascot of the 2014 World Cup". ↑ Yoon Hyung-Jin. "Japan International Match – List of Full International Matches". RSSSF. Retrieved 1 July 2012. ↑ Mamrud, Roberto. "Japan – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 2 July 2012. ↑ "Players Records". Japan National Football Team Database. Retrieved 15 May 2014. ↑ "Managers". Japan National Football Team Database. Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014. ↑ "El Presidente Figueredo Aguerre anunció la presencia del Japón en la Copa América Chile 2015" [President Figueredo Aguerre announced the presence of Japan at the 2015 Copa América in Chile] (in Spanish). CONMEBOL. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2018. I want to announce that the Japan national team will participate at the 2015 Copa América. ↑ Sánchez Sandoval, Édgar (2 June 2016). "Copa América: Japón, el invitado más extraño" [Copa América: Japan, the most strange invitee] (in Spanish). Publimetro Chile. Retrieved 1 July 2018. Even in 2015, the japanese were asked to be part of the Copa América in Chile, but they withdrew again due to problems with their calendar and previously scheduled matches. ↑ González, Christian (4 May 2018). "Conmebol confirma a Japón y Qatar en la Copa América de 2019" (in Spanish). La Tercera. Retrieved 1 July 2018. CONMEBOL confirmed, via its website, what has been speculated several months ago: Japan and Qatar will be invited at the event that will be held in Brazil. ↑ "Team Records". Japan National Football Team Database. Retrieved 15 May 2014. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Japan national football team. Japan Football Association (in Japanese) Japan Samurai Blue (in Japanese) Japan Football Association Japan FIFA Japan at the World Cups Preceded by 1988 Saudi Arabia  Asian Champions 1992 (1st title) Succeeded by 1996 Saudi Arabia  Preceded by 1996 Saudi Arabia  Asian Champions 2000 (2nd title) 2004 (3rd title) Succeeded by 2007 Iraq  Preceded by 2007 Iraq  Asian Champions 2011 (4th title) Succeeded by 2015 Australia  Preceded by 2001 Ichiro Suzuki Japan Professional Sports Grand Prize 2002 Japan National Football Team Succeeded by 2003 Hideki Matsui