Giravanz Kitakyushu
Giravanz Kitakyushu (ギラヴァンツ北九州, Giravantsu Kitakyūshū) is a Japanese football club based in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture. The club's name was changed from New Wave Kitakyushu (ニューウェーブ北九州, Nyū Wēbu Kitakyūshū) as of 1 December 2009.[2] They played in the Japan Football League from 2008–2009, and were promoted to J. League Division 2 (J2) for the 2010 season. They played in J2 until the 2016 season, but suffered relegation to the 2017 J3 League after being ranked 22nd. After slumping to the bottom of the 2018 J3 League, they bounced back to become champions in 2019, so were then promoted back to J2 for the 2020 season.
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| Full name | Giravanz Kitakyushu | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Giravanz, Kita-Q | ||
| Founded | 2001[1] | ||
| Ground | Mikuni World Stadium Kitakyushu Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture | ||
| Capacity | 15,300 | ||
| Chairman |  | ||
| Manager | | ||
| League | J2 League | ||
| 2019 | Champions, J3 league (promotion) | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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History
The club was formed in 1947 as part of Mitsubishi Chemical's Kurosaki factory. Most of its career was spent in the regional and prefectural leagues, as Kitakyushu was represented in the Japan Soccer League by Yawata Steel F.C. Yawata was a founding member of the JSL in 1965, and finished as runner-up in its first two seasons in that league. Yawata was renamed New Nippon Steel F.C. in 1970, when Yawata Steel merged with Fuji Steel to form (New) Nippon Steel. It ultimately was relegated to the Second Division in 1982, then relegated from the Second Division to Kyushu regional league after 1990–91 season, and has never returned.
In 2001, Mitsubishi Chemical Kurosaki F.C., which had been a member of Kyushu regional league since 1973, became a community-oriented club (New Wave) Kitakyushu F.C.
In 2007 New Wave took second place in the Regional League promotion series, and was promoted to the JFL for the 2008 season.
The team applied for J. League Associate Membership in January 2008, and the application was accepted at the J. League board meeting on February 19, 2008.
On 1 April 2009, the club made an announcement that they would be accepting suggestions for a new name. This was because the name "New Wave" may cause trademark or tradename disputes.[3] Therefore, the new name had to be something not yet registered as a trademark.
On 2 October 2009, they announced that the new club name for the 2010 season would be Giravanz Kitakyushu (ギラヴァンツ北九州, Giravantsu Kitakyūshū). According to the official news release, the name "Giravanz" is coined from two Italian words: "Girasole", which means "sunflower", and "Avanzare", which means "moving forward".[4] (The sunflower is one of Kitakyushu's symbol flowers.)
On 23 November 2009, after a 2–1 win away against Arte Takasaki, Kitakyushu secured a top four position in the JFL for the 2009 season, regardless of the result at the final week of 2009 JFL. This means they will play in J. League Division 2 for the 2010 season, something which was confirmed by the J.League board meeting on 30 November 2009.[5][6][7]
In its inaugural year in the pro ranks, despite attaining a large number of draw matches, Kitakyushu set new records for fewest wins and points in the season standings.
After several seasons in J2 League, on 20 November 2016 they suffered their first relegation to J3 League.
Colour, sponsors and manufacturers
| Season(s) | Main Shirt Sponsor | Collarbone Sponsor | Additional Sponsor(s) | Kit Manufacturer | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | TOTO | -/ Kitakyushu Bank (Left) April 2020 | -/ Sapporo Ichiban(Right) April 2020 | Yaskawa | - | Nafco | ZENRIN | PENALTY |
Current squad
As of 28 June 2020.[8]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Record as J. League member
| Season | Div. | Tms. | Pos. | Attendance/G | J. League Cup | Emperor's Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | J2 | 19 | 19 | 4,189 | - | 3rd Round |
| 2011 | J2 | 20 | 8 | 4,051 | - | 3rd Round |
| 2012 | J2 | 22 | 9 | 3,346 | - | 2nd Round |
| 2013 | J2 | 22 | 16 | 3,175 | - | 3rd Round |
| 2014 | J2 | 22 | 5 | 3,622 | - | Quarter-finals |
| 2015 | J2 | 22 | 7 | 3,488 | - | 2nd Round |
| 2016 | J2 | 22 | 22 | 3,224 | - | 2nd Round |
| 2017 | J3 | 17 | 9 | 5,939 | - | 2nd Round |
| 2018 | J3 | 17 | 17 | 4,501 | - | Did not qualify |
| 2019 | J3 | 18 | 1 | 6,049 | - | 2nd Round |
| 2020 | J2 | 22 | N/A | N/A | - | N/A |
- Key
- Tms. = Number of teams
- Pos. = Position in league
- Attendance/G = Average league attendance
Honours
- Kyushu Soccer League:
- 1973, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987, 1989, 2007
- J3 League:
References
- Club Profile
- News Release:New Wave Kitakyushu became a member of J. League(Japanese) (ニュースリリース ニューウェーブ北九州がJリーグ入会) Archived 2009-12-01 at the Wayback Machine J. League official website posted 2009-11-30
- Official website (Japanese only)
- Announcement of the new team name and its emblem (新チーム名称・エンブレム発表) Archived 2009-10-07 at the Wayback Machine New Wave Kitakyushu official website news release : dated 2 October 2009
- Official website (Japanese only) Archived 2009-12-03 at the Wayback Machine
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-12-04. Retrieved 2009-11-30.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) J's Goal Website (Japanese only)
- "Players & Staff選手・スタッフ". Giravanz Kitakyushu. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
External links
- Official "Giravanz" site (in Japanese)
- Kitakyushu Football Club (in Japanese) club organization and subsidiary teams