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Alex Bishop
INAC Kobe's Megumi Takase (left) battles Hiroshima's Funa Yanase during a match in Hiroshima in 2022.
SOCCER
Oct 20, 2024
Struggling WE League seeks course correction as it aims close gap with world’s top leagues
The top women's soccer league in Japan has struggled to meet its ambitious targets. Officials hope a new vision can right the ship.
Fuka Nagano (left) and Hinata Miyazawa after Japan was eliminated from the Olympic soccer tournament by the U.S. on Saturday in Paris.
OLYMPICS
Aug 4, 2024
For Nadeshiko Japan, the quarterfinals prove to be a stumbling block — again
The team fell 1-0 to the U.S. after also losing in the last eight at the Tokyo Games in 2021 and at the Women’s World Cup in 2023.
Honoka Hayashi in action during a match against Great Britain at the Tokyo Olympics, in Sapporo on July 24, 2021. Hayashi’s clinical passing, acute understanding of the game and high work-rate make her an embodiment of Nadeshiko soccer principles.
OLYMPICS
Jul 24, 2024
Nadeshiko Japan’s Honoka Hayashi ready to settle the score at Paris Games
Lauded for her intricate passing and soccer intelligence, Hayashi has adjusted her game to fit the demanding nature of elite leagues over the course of her career.
Japan's Hikaru Kitagawa dribbles past a defender during an Olympic qualifying match against North Korea at National Stadium in Tokyo in February.
OLYMPICS / Football
Jul 17, 2024
After Tokyo Olympic disappointment, Nadeshiko Japan look for redemption
For many, a disappointing effort on home soil in 2021 was a marker of just how far Japan's women's soccer team had fallen. Now the squad has its sights set on redemption.
Japan's Fuka Nagano competes for the ball against Zambia's Evarine Katongo during the 2023 Women's World Cup in Hamilton, New Zealand. Nagano is among the stalwarts that will be looking to propel Nadeshiko Japan onto the podium at the Paris Games.
OLYMPICS / Football
Jun 14, 2024
Nadeshiko Japan’s Olympic squad strikes balance between experience and youth
The challenge in Paris looks daunting as Japan has been put in what many have labeled “the group of death” alongside world champions Spain, Brazil and Nigeria.
Urawa's Kiko Seike (right) celebrates with Yu Endo during the AFC Women’s Championship Cup at Urawa Komaba Stadium in Saitama on Friday.
SOCCER
May 13, 2024
Kiko Seike shines as Urawa Reds Ladies add two titles to collection over weekend
Urawa won the AFC Women’s Championship Cup on Friday and clinched the WE League title on Sunday.
Urawa Reds Ladies celebrate with their fans after winning the league championship at Urawa Komaba Stadium on June 3, 2023.
SOCCER
May 9, 2024
Urawa Reds Ladies to vie for Asian supremacy amid controversy over AFC's actions
Final to go ahead after backlash forced AFC to reverse earlier decision to cancel match.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?