Toyama Stadium
Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture
Toyama Stadium is located in the city of Toyama, on the chilly plains facing the Japan Sea coast. Though the city is relatively small, it is home to J2 club Kataller Toyama. In the early years of the J.League, even before there was a local J.League member, Toyama Stadium was often used as an alternate venue by J.League clubs, particularly (for some unknown reason) the Kashima Antlers. For years, the Antlers played at least one "home" match at Toyama Stadium. This practice of trying to spread the word about the Beautiful Game to "outlying regions" was followed by several teams (Gamba played one match a year just a short distance down the coast, in Ishikawa Prefecture). Two local boys -- Atsushi Yanagisawa and Yuki Nakashima -- graduated from local high school football in Toyama to a spot in the Antlers roster, and this helped attract interest. The effort paid off in the long run, as it helped raise interest and supported the creation of Kataller, though due to historical ties, you can find almost as many Antlers fans in Toyama as Kataller fans.
The stadium itself is not particularly unique in architectural terms, but for a multipurpose stadium, it has a very cozy "feel" and on the rare occasions when local fans manage to fill all 28,000 seats, it can be a great football venue.
Toyama Stadium
| Location: Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture |  |
Capacity: 28,494 |
| Home Team(s): Kataller Toyama | Completed: 1968 |
