J.League Yamazaki Nabisco Cup Knockout Stage Draw:
Kashima Antlers v FC Tokyo
Vissel Kobe v Kashiwa Reysol
Nagoya Grampus v Gamba Osaka
Urawa Reds v Albirex Niigata
Games to be played September 2nd and September 6th.
Winners of Antlers v Tokyo meet winners of Vissel v Reysol, while the other two winners will be in the other semi-final.
Semi-finals to be played October 7th and 11th with the final on Saturday October 31st, at Saitama Stadium.
Gamba Osaka’s Samurai Blue defender Daiki Niwa is launching a project to provide schools in the Tohoku area of Japan with grass fields.
The NSP Niwa Shiba Project (‘Niwa Grass Project’) will take the place of the defender’s previous charity campaign – run since 2011, in which footballs were donated to children living in the area affected by the Great Tohoku Earthquake..
“Through this project I hope to give children more opportunities to play outside and enjoy not only football, but other sports, as well,” Niwa said.
The 29-year-old Gamba centre back will visit the Sayuri Kindergarten in Miyako, Iwate Prefecture on 30th June to plant seeds for a new grass field and hold a football clinic there. On that day he will be joined by Vegalta Sendai goalkeeper Yuji Rokutan and Grulla Morioka defender Tokio Hatamoto.
Picture and original story at: http://www.jleague.jp/en/news/20150619-02.html
Gamba Osaka are very pleased to announce the final results of their fundraising efforts for the new stadium – the Field of Smile project.
The club raised almost 14.1 billion yen (around US$114 million) for the stadium project, reaching their original target of 14 billion yen, meaning that the full 40,000 seats projected will be built in, as well as all fixed cameras as originally intended, and VIP rooms, too!
Support of almost 10 billion yen came from 721 corporations, subsidies and grants accounted for 3.5 billion yen. And then there were 34,627 individuals who donated over 620 million yen.
The new ground is designed to be used exclusively for football – no running track, close to the action for the fans – and will be completed in autumn 2015, to be opened before the 2016 J.League season.
More details in Japanese can be found at the official web site http://www.field-of-smile.jp/
Story and picture from:
http://www.jleague.jp/en/news/20150624-02.html
FC Tokyo announced the departure of defender Michele Canini following the conclusion of his contract on Tuesday.
The former Italy youth international arrived on loan from Atalanta in 2014 and made 10 league and two cup appearances under coach and compatriot Massimo Ficcadenti.
“I want to express my gratitude to our fans for your wonderful support,” Canini said in a statement.
“I pray for FC Tokyo’s continued success and hope that I will be able to meet everyone again one day.”
Canini returned to Italy on Wednesday, three days before third-placed Tokyo face Shimizu S-Pulse in the final round of the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League’s first stage.
A page that never made it into issue 16 of JSoccer Magazine! Riyan Al-Jidani’s book on Japanese Football in Arabic! An interview here!
Gamba Osaka’s excellent English-language ticketing service is worth a re-promotion. Get your tickets here, print them at home, go to the game, easy!
http://www2.gamba-osaka.net/en/tickets.html
A message from: http://www.f-marinos.com/en/news/detail/2015-06-25/01.php
We are pleased to announce that the tickets for Yokohama F•Marinos home games are now available for purchase internationally. (Editor’s note – presumably them mean in English, but I suppose “internationally” is also correct, since it’s on the “web”!)
You can buy home game tickets online and the ticket is delivered as a QR code that can be scanned at the gate upon entry.
We look forward to seeing you at the stadium.
The link for tickets in English:
http://www.f-marinos.com/en/tickets/
Expect a celebration of their First Stage win!
Featuring Kazuma Watanabe as the ex-player F•Marinos player looking for goals!?
Who would be Calm, Cool and Collected?
Japan is currently blessed with a hoard of talented footballers. Although being ranked at a lowly 52 in the FIFA rankings presently, the team is undoubtedly under-performing. You only have to look at the exit from this year’s AFC Asia Cup to see the disappointment etched on many fans’ faces when knocked out in a penalty kicks loss to United Arab Emirates after previously topping their group with 3 wins out of 3 in the group stage.
With many of the star players currently in the international crop coming from top European leagues such as Germany, England and Italy many predict that the Japanese squad needs to reach its peak over the next couple of years. But after the disappointment of the AFC Asia Cup we thought we would take a lighthearted look at some of the national team’s squad members.
Have you ever wondered how some of the players would fare playing another sport? Poker has become a very valuable fundraiser for football clubs over the years. You only have to look at the extremely popular ‘Road to Old Trafford’ hosted by Manchester United that raised a sizeable amount for Rio Ferdinand’s Foundation in 2012. The charity poker event featured past and present players as well as a host of professional poker players. But how would some of Japan’s national players fare against each other? Let’s discuss…
Shinji Kagawa (Borussia Dortmund)
Always composed on the ball, Kagawa would be cool, calm and collected under pressure. With a rabid card culture at his old club Manchester United, the midfield maestro would’ve no doubt played his fair share of poker during his time in England. At the poker table, you could imagine Kagawa being unreadable at times staying stoic throughout – getting creative with his bluffs and would always be willing to take a risk just like when he’s taking on defenders in the final third for his current club, Borussia Dortmund.
Maya Yoshida (Southampton)
The big central defender is having the best period of his career to date with Southampton in the English Premier League. He would no doubt be full of confidence and wouldn’t be intimidated at the poker table. He’s also a ball playing defender who is calm under pressure, too and you’d expect this to transcend to his poker game.
Keisuke Honda (Milan)
One of Japan’s most celebrated players, Honda is suave and sophisticated – he’d likely bring a certain aura of confidence to the tables. Another creative, risk-taker, Honda would be unpredictable in his game play and always look for interesting ways to steal his opponents’ stacks.
Makoto Hasebe (Eintracht Frankfurt)
The national team captain, Hasebe would be dependable under pressure and like his on-the-field-game, extremely reliable and consistent. Unlikely to do anything particularly rash, Hasebe’s game would rely solely on playing the odds and percentages as opposed to risking his stack for a needless bet.
If the above international players were to engage in some high-stakes poker, they wouldn’t be the first from the football world. Just last year German international Max Kruse and Spanish ace Sergio Ramos played in the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas among 6,000+ professionals. With Kruse and Ramos learning their trade on online portal and during away trips, it didn’t take the pair long to realize their love for the game was more than just a hobby.
The availability of online poker portals in Europe is unparalleled with thousands operating legally across the continent. Betting exchange Betfair has over 30 game variants taking place at one time on their site, which is the ideal platform for poker players to access and play competitively anytime of the day. These vast options helped the betting exchange to post record profits in 2015 as well inking deals with professional clubs such as Liverpool, which has broadened the brand’s appeal in the football world.
With many professional footballers now transitioning into the world of poker. Who do you think will be the first Japanese international to make their bow at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas? And, who do you think out of the current crop of internationals would make the finest poker player? Let us know your thoughts below.