News On Japan

Japan Soccer Team Begin Training for 2026 World Cup

TOKYO - Japan's national soccer team began a domestic training camp in Chiba on May 25th ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, with 13 players including 39-year-old Yuto Nagatomo of FC Tokyo and Daichi Kamada of Eintracht Frankfurt taking part in the opening session.

Nagatomo was selected for his fifth consecutive World Cup squad, the most appearances by a Japanese player in the tournament's history. The remaining squad members are expected to join the camp in stages.

Japan will face Iceland in a farewell match at MUFG Stadium in Tokyo on May 31st before departing for Monterrey, Mexico, on June 2nd for a pre-tournament camp.

The team will then move to its base camp in Nashville in the United States as preparations continue for its opening Group F match against the Netherlands on June 14th local time, which will be played on June 15th in Japan time.

Japan Squad

GK
Tomoki Hayakawa / Keisuke Osako / Zion Suzuki

DF
Yuto Nagatomo / Shogo Taniguchi / Ko Itakura
Tsuyoshi Watanabe / Takehiro Tomiyasu / Hiroki Ito
Ayumu Seko / Yukinari Sugawara / Junnosuke Suzuki

MF/FW
Wataru Endo / Junya Ito / Daichi Kamada / Koki Ogawa
Daizen Maeda / Ritsu Doan / Ayase Ueda / Ao Tanaka
Keito Nakamura / Kaishu Sano / Takefusa Kubo / Yuito Suzuki
Kento Shiogai / Keisuke Goto

Source: Kyodo

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Japan’s World Cup campaign ended in the cruelest possible fashion on June 29, as Gabriel Martinelli scored in the fifth minute of stoppage time to give Brazil a 2-1 victory over the Samurai Blue in their knockout match in Houston. Japan had led in the first half and were still level at 1-1 in the final moments, but Martinelli’s late strike sent Brazil into the Round of 16 and eliminated Japan from the tournament.

Strong earthquakes have continued to shake parts of Japan in recent weeks, with 11 temblors measuring lower 5 or above on the Japanese seismic intensity scale recorded across the country since April 2026.

A Kintetsu Railway train derailed inside Kyoto Station on the morning of June 29, forcing partial suspensions on the Kintetsu Kyoto Line for the rest of the day and causing long delays that hit commuters, students and tourists.

A section of stone wall at Hikone Castle, one of Japan’s few surviving original Edo-period castles and a National Treasure whose main keep remains intact more than 400 years after its construction, collapsed after heavy rain caused by Typhoons No. 7 and No. 8, Hikone city officials said.

Japan advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Sweden on June 25, finishing second in Group F and setting up a Round of 32 clash with Brazil in Houston.

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Japan advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup after a 1-1 draw with Sweden on June 25, finishing second in Group F and setting up a Round of 32 clash with Brazil in Houston.

Japan will face Brazil in the Round of 32 at Houston Stadium at 2:00 a.m. Japan time on June 30, with Hajime Moriyasu’s side seeking the first knockout-stage victory in the country’s World Cup history against the five-time champions and one of the tournament’s most dangerous attacking teams.

In 2006, these teams met for the first time at the world’s biggest football tournament. Back then, you could bet on Brazil to win at odds of 1.28 and hardly worry about the outcome.

Japan delivered their strongest performance of the World Cup so far with a 4-0 victory over Tunisia in Monterrey on June 21, moving to four points in Group F and putting themselves in a strong position to reach the knockout stage ahead of their final group match against Sweden.

Japan's national soccer team arrived in Monterrey, Mexico, after holding a mostly closed training session near Nashville, Tennessee, on June 18 as it prepares for a key Group F match against Tunisia on June 20 local time, or June 21 in Japan, at Monterrey Stadium.

Japan's national team continued preparations on June 17 for its World Cup Group F match against Tunisia, holding a largely closed training session near Nashville, Tennessee, ahead of the June 20 fixture, which will be played on June 21 Japan time.

When Japan faces Tunisia at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, at 1 p.m. local time on June 20 (3 a.m. Japan time on June 21), the Samurai Blue will have an opportunity to take a major step toward the knockout stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.