Japan national under-23 football team

The Japan national under-23 football team(Japanese: U-23サッカー日本代表) is a national association football youth team of Japan and is controlled by the Japan Football Association. The team won the gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games and were champions in the 2016 AFC U-23 Championship. Since 1992, it was decided that teams targeting athletes under the age of 23 will participate in the Olympics (additional provisions for overage limits have been added since 1996). Therefore, the name changes to Japan national under-22 football team the year before the Olympics and Japan national under-21 football team two years prior. The exception to this is the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which has been postponed for one year, so in 2021, the team will be called the Japan national under-24 football team.

Japan U23
AssociationJapan Football Association
ConfederationAFC (Asia)
Sub-confederationEAFF (East Asia)
Head coachGo Oiwa
Most capsKensuke Nagai
Keigo Higashi
Reo Hatate
(31 each)
Top scorerShoya Nakajima (19)
FIFA codeJPN
First colours
Second colours
First international
 Malaysia 1–1 Japan 
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; December 1990)[1]
Biggest win
 Japan 13–0 Philippines 
(Hong Kong; 12 June 1999)
Biggest defeat
 Denmark 6–1 Japan 
(Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 6 February 1994)
Summer Olympic Games
Appearances7 (first in 1996)
Best resultFourth place (2012, 2020)
Asian Games
Appearances5 (first in 2002)
Best result Gold medalists (2010)
AFC U-23 Championship
Appearances5 (first in 2013)
Best result Champions (2016)

Team image

Nicknames

"サムライ・ブルー (Samurai Blue)" basically refers to the Japan national football team, but the under-23 football team are sometimes referred to as "Young" Samurai Blue. However, in reality, Samurai Blue is not often used.

South Korea
Main article: Japan–South Korea football rivalry

Japan maintains a strong football rivalry with South Korea.

Summer Olympics
Television channel Period Ref.
NHK General TV, NHK Educational TV, NHK BS1, NHK BS4K, NHK BS8K, TV Asahi, BS Asahi 4K, Fuji TV 2021 [2]

AFC U-23 Asian Cup
Television channel Period Ref.
TBA 2022

Friendly and Qualifiers
Dubai Cup U-23
Television channel Period Ref.
CS TV Asahi Channel 2 2022 [3][4]
Television channel Period Ref.
Fuji TV, Nippon TV, TBS, Nittele G+, BS Asahi, TVer 2021

Results and fixtures
See also: 2022 in Japanese football, 2022 in association football, 2022 in sports, and FIFA International Match Calendar
Legend

  Win   Draw   Lose   Voided or Postponed   Fixture

2021
3 June Unofficial friendly Japan A 3–0  Japan Hokkaido, Japan
19:30 UTC+9
  • Hashimoto 2'
  • Kamada 41'
  • Asano 52'
 Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)		 Stadium: Sapporo Dome
Attendance: 0
Referee: Mohamed Darwish (UAE)
5 June Friendly Japan  6–0  Ghana Fukuoka, Japan
19:25 UTC+9
Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)		 Stadium: Best Denki Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Hiroki Kasahara (Japan)
12 June Friendly Japan  4–0  Jamaica Toyota, Aichi, Japan
13:35 UTC+9
Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)		 Stadium: Toyota Stadium
Attendance: 4,029
Referee: Yudai Yamamoto (Japan)
12 July Kirin Challenge Cup (Under-24) Japan  3–1  Honduras Osaka, Japan
19:30 UTC+9
Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: Yodoko Sakura Stadium
Attendance: 4,063
Referee: Hiroki Kasahara (Japan)
17 July Kirin Challenge Cup (Under-24) Japan  1–1  Spain Hyogo, Japan
19:20 UTC+9
Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: Noevir Stadium Kobe
Attendance: 4,909
Referee: Yusuke Araki (Japan)
22 July 2020 Summer Olympics GS Group A Japan  1–0  South Africa Tokyo, Japan
20:00 UTC+9
Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)		 Stadium: Tokyo Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Jesús Valenzuela (Venezuela)
25 July 2020 Summer Olympics GS Group A Japan  2–1  Mexico Saitama, Japan
20:00 UTC+9
Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002
Attendance: 0
Referee: Artur Soares Dias (Portugal)
28 July 2020 Summer Olympics GS Group A France  0–4  Japan Yokohama, Japan
20:30 UTC+9 Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: International Stadium Yokohama
Attendance: 0
Referee: Iván Barton (El Savador)
31 July 2020 Summer Olympics Quarter-finals Japan  0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–2 p)		  New Zealand Ibaraki, Japan
18:00 UTC+9 Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)		 Stadium: Kashima Stadium
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ismail Elfath (USA)
Penalties
3 August 2020 Summer Olympics Semi-finals Japan  0–1 (a.e.t.)  Spain Saitama, Japan
20:00 UTC+9 Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002
Attendance: 0
Referee: Kevin Ortega (Peru)
6 August 2020 Summer Olympics Bronze medal match Mexico  3–1  Japan Saitama, Japan
18:00 UTC+9
Report (TOCOG)
Report (FIFA)
Report (JFA)
Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002
Attendance: 0
Referee: Bamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)
26 October 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification Group K Japan  4–0  Cambodia Hirono, Japan
13:00 UTC+9 Matsuki 10'
Koda 44'
Hosoya 52'
Nakamura 73'		 Report Stadium: J-Village Stadium
28 October 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification Group K Hong Kong  0–4  Japan Hirono, Japan
13:00 UTC+9 Report Fujio 14', 49'
Goke 63'
Hosoya 85'		 Stadium: J-Village Stadium

U-21
23 March Dubai Cup U-23 Japan  1–0  Croatia Dubai, UAE
16:00 UTC+4
Report (JFA)
Report (JFA)
(in Japanese and English)
Report (Soccerway)		 Stadium: Al Awir Stadium
26 March Dubai Cup U-23  Qatar 0–2 Japan  Dubai, UAE
16:00 UTC+4 Report (JFA)
Report (Soccerway)
Stadium: Al Maktoum Stadium
29 March Dubai Cup U-23 Placement match  Saudi Arabia 0–1 Japan  Dubai, UAE
21:00 UTC+4 Report (JFA)
Report (Soccerway)
Stadium: Al Maktoum Stadium
3 June AFC U-23 Asian Cup  UAE v Japan  Tashkent, Uzbekistan
18:00 UTC+5 Report (AFC)
Report (JFA)
Report (Soccerway)		 Stadium: Pakhtakor Stadium
6 June AFC U-23 Asian Cup Japan  v  Saudi Arabia Tashkent, Uzbekistan
18:00 UTC+5 Report (AFC)
Report (JFA)
Report (Soccerway)		 Stadium: Pakhtakor Stadium
9 June AFC U-23 Asian Cup Japan  v  Tajikistan Tashkent, Uzbekistan
18:00 UTC+5 Report (AFC)
Report (JFA)
Report (Soccerway)		 Stadium: Milliy Stadium
10–25 September Asian Games v  Japan China
10–25 September Asian Games v  Japan China
10–25 September Asian Games v  Japan China

Head-to-head record
As of 23 March 2022, after the match against  Croatia.

The following table shows Japan under-23 team's all-time international record.

Against Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA GD Confederation
 Australia104061715+2AFC
 Bahrain210162+4AFC
 Cambodia220060+6AFC
 China PR730485+3AFC
 Chinese Taipei4400151+14AFC
 Hong Kong6501154+11AFC
 Indonesia3200103+7AFC
 India110010+1AFC
 Iran5221107+3AFC
 Iraq411246–2AFC
 Jordan1010220AFC
 Kuwait5320152+13AFC
 Lebanon220061+5AFC
 Macau3300210+21AFC
 Malaysia171340477+40AFC
 Myanmar2200160+16AFC
   Nepal5500210+21AFC
 Oman110041+3AFC
 North Korea220043+1AFC
 Qatar522154+1AFC
 Saudi Arabia540196+3AFC
 South Korea175392120+1AFC
 Palestine440091+8AFC
 Philippines3300320+32AFC
 Pakistan220072+5AFC
 Singapore220041+3AFC
 Syria2101220AFC
 Tajikistan0000000AFC
 Thailand10901263+23AFC
 Timor-Leste220070+7AFC
 Uzbekistan100104–4AFC
 United Arab Emirates531172+5AFC
 Vietnam210121+1AFC
 Ghana4301112+9CAF
 Morocco330072+5CAF
 Egypt621328–6CAF
 Angola1010110CAF
 Nigeria300359–4CAF
 South Africa330061+5CAF
 Mali1010110CAF
 Tunisia310246–2CAF
 Mexico411269–3CONCACAF
 United States302145–1CONCACAF
 Canada100101–1CONCACAF
 Costa Rica412154+1CONCACAF
 Jamaica2200130+13CONCACAF
 Honduras211031+2CONCACAF
 Brazil522165+1CONMEBOL
 Chile110061+5CONMEBOL
 Colombia201124–2CONMEBOL
 Venezuela110040+4CONMEBOL
 Argentina320141+3CONMEBOL
 Paraguay100134–1CONMEBOL
 Ecuador100101–1CONMEBOL
 Croatia0000000UEFA
 Denmark201116–5UEFA
 England211021+1UEFA
 Italy200226–4UEFA
 France110040+4UEFA
 Greece1010110UEFA
 Kazakhstan220051+4UEFA
 Germany210173+4UEFA
 Hungary110032+1UEFA
 Portugal100101–1UEFA
 Republic of Ireland110020+2UEFA
 Netherlands100101–1UEFA
 Norway100123–1UEFA
 Russia522175+2UEFA
 Spain3111220UEFA
 Sweden110010+1UEFA
  Switzerland110021+1UEFA
 Slovakia110021+1UEFA
 New Zealand422091+8OFC
Against Played Won Drawn Lost GF GA GD Confederation

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff
As of 17 March 2022[5]
Role Name
Head coach (U21) Go Oiwa (JFA National Coaching Staff)
Assistant coach Kenji Haneda (JFA National Coaching Staff)
GK coach Yukiya Hamano (JFA National Coaching Staff)
Physical coach Yoshiharu Yano (JFA National Coaching Staff)
Technical staff Shigeyuki Ochi (JFA Technical House)
Technical staff Daisuke Sugawara (JFA Technical House)

Manager history
As of 27 December 2021, after the match against  Hong Kong.
Name Period Matches Wins Draws Losses Winning % Notes
Yoshitada Yamaguchi 1990–1992 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Akira Nishino 1993–1996 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Philippe Troussier 1998–2000 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Masakuni Yamamoto 2002–2004 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Yasuharu Sorimachi 2006–2008 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Takashi Sekizuka 2010–2012 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Makoto Teguramori 2014–2016 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Hajime Moriyasu 2017–2020 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Akinobu Yokouchi 2020 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Hajime Moriyasu 2020–2021 0 0 0 0 00.0%
Koichi Togashi 2021 2 2 0 0 100.0%
Go Oiwa 2021– 0 0 0 0 00.0% [6]

source:[7]

Players

Current squad

The following 24 players were called up for the 2022 U-23 Dubai Cup.[8]

Caps and goals accurate up to and including 6 August 2021 after match against Mexico.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Club
1 1GK Leo Brian Kokubo (2001-01-23) 23 January 2001 SL Benfica
12 1GK Zion Suzuki (2002-08-21) 21 August 2002 Urawa Red Diamonds
23 1GK Masato Sasaki (2002-05-01) 1 May 2002 Kashiwa Reysol
2 2DF Ryuya Nishio (2001-05-16) 16 May 2001 Cerezo Osaka
3 2DF Seiya Baba (2001-10-24) 24 October 2001 Tokyo Verdy
4 2DF Riku Handa (2002-01-01) 1 January 2002 Montedio Yamagata
14 2DF Hijiri Kato (2001-09-16) 16 September 2001 V-Varen Nagasaki
16 2DF Seiji Kimura (2001-08-24) 24 August 2001 Montedio Yamagata
17 2DF Shumpei Naruse (2001-01-17) 17 January 2001 Nagoya Grampus
18 2DF Takashi Uchino (2001-03-07) 7 March 2001 Fortuna Dusseldorf
25 2DF Kaito Suzuki (2002-08-25) 25 August 2002 Tochigi SC
27 2DF Anrie Chase (2004-08-24) 24 August 2004 Shoshi High School
5 3MF Satoshi Tanaka (2002-08-13) 13 August 2002 Shonan Bellmare
6 3MF Joel Chima Fujita (2002-02-16) 16 February 2002 Yokohama F. Marinos
7 3MF Rihito Yamamoto (2001-12-12) 12 December 2001 Tokyo Verdy
10 3MF Koki Saito (2001-08-10) 10 August 2001 Lommel SK
13 3MF Kuryu Matsuki (2003-04-30) 30 April 2003 FC Tokyo
15 3MF Sota Kawasaki (2001-07-30) 30 July 2001 Kyoto Sanga FC
20 3MF Hidemasa Koda (2003-10-02) 2 October 2003 Nagoya Grampus
24 3MF Yuta Matsumura (2001-04-13) 13 April 2001 Kashima Antlers
8 4FW Ryotaro Araki (2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 Kashima Antlers
9 4FW Yuito Suzuki (2001-10-25) 25 October 2001 Shimizu S-Pulse
11 4FW Mao Hosoya (2001-09-07) 7 September 2001 Kashiwa Reysol
22 4FW Shota Fujio (2001-05-02) 2 May 2001 Tokushima Vortis

(Players are listed within position group by order of seniority, kit number, caps, goals, and then alphabetically)

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up to a under-23 squad in the past 12 months.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Club
1GK Taiki Yamada (2002-01-08) 8 January 2002 Kashima Antlers
1GK Yuma Obata (2001-11-07) 7 November 2001 Vegalta Sendai
1GK Mitsuki Sugimoto (2001-08-17) 17 August 2001 Rissho University
1GK Cailen Hill (2002-07-09) 9 July 2002 Waseda University
21 2DF Ayumu Ohata (2001-04-27) 27 April 2001 Urawa Red Diamonds
2DF Reon Yamahara (1999-06-08) 8 June 1999 Shimizu S-Pulse
2DF Taiga Hata (2002-01-20) 20 January 2002 Shonan Bellmare
2DF Ryotaro Tsunoda (1999-06-27) 27 June 1999 Yokohama F. Marinos
2DF Maaya Sako (2002-12-02) 2 December 2002 Fujieda MYFC
2DF Takumi Narasaka (2002-07-06) 6 July 2002 Machida Zelvia
2DF Shinya Nakano (2003-08-17) 17 August 2003 Sagan Tosu
26 3MF Shun Ayukawa (2001-09-15) 15 September 2001 Sanfrecce Hiroshima
3MF Taiyo Hiraoka (2002-09-14) 14 September 2002 Shonan Bellmare
3MF Shunsuke Mito (2002-09-28) 28 September 2002 Albirex Niigata
3MF Hikaru Naruoka (2002-07-28) 28 July 2002 Shimizu S-Pulse
3MF Renji Matsui (2000-02-27) 27 February 2000 Kawasaki Frontale
3MF Daiki Matsuoka (2001-06-01) 1 June 2001 Shimizu S-Pulse
3MF Yuta Goke (1999-06-10) 10 June 1999 Vissel Kobe
3MF Jiro Nakamura (2003-08-22) 22 August 2003 Gamba Osaka
3MF Haruki Yoshida (2003-04-29) 29 April 2003 Nagoya Grampus
19 4FW Yutaro Oda (2001-08-12) 12 August 2001 Vissel Kobe
4FW Kein Sato (2001-07-11) 11 July 2001 Meiji University
4FW Kanta Chiba (2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 Shimizu S-Pulse

INJ Withdrew due to injury
PRE Preliminary squad / standby
RET Retired from the national team
SUS Serving suspension
WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.

(Players are listed within position group by order of latest call-up, seniority, caps, goals, and then alphabetically)

Previous squads
Bold indicates winning squads
Olympic Games
AFC U-23 Asian Cup
Asian Games

Records
As of 6 August 2021
Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.
Caps and goals is calculated by all national team level include U21, U22, and U23.

Competitive record

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place  

Olympic Games
Main article: Japan at the Olympics
See also: Football at the Summer Olympics
A match vs Spain at the 2012 Summer Olympics at Glasgow in the United Kingdom
Summer Olympics record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
1908–1988 See Japan national team
1992 Did Not Qualify
1996 Group Stage 9th 3 2 0 1 4 4
2000 Quarter-finals 5th 4 2 1 1 6 5
2004 Group Stage 13th 3 1 0 2 6 7
2008 Group Stage 15th 3 0 0 3 1 4
2012 Fourth Place 4th 6 3 1 2 6 5
2016 Group Stage 10th 3 1 1 1 7 7
2020 Fourth Place 4th 6 3 1 2 8 5
2024 To be Determined
2028
2032
TotalFourth Place7/728124123838

Match history
Summer Olympics history
Year Round Opponent Score Result
1996 Group stage Brazil1–0Win
Group stage Nigeria0–2Loss
Group stage Hungary3–2Win
2000 Group stage South Africa2–1Win
Group stage Slovakia2–1Win
Group stage Brazil0–1Loss
Quarter-finals United States2–2
4–5		Draw
Loss
2004 Group stage Paraguay3–4Loss
Group stage Italy2–3Loss
Group stage Ghana1–0Win
2008 Group stage United States0–1Loss
Group stage Nigeria1–2Loss
Group stage Netherlands0–1Loss
2012 Group stage Spain1–0Win
Group stage Morocco1–0Win
Group stage Honduras0–0Draw
Quarter-finals Egypt3–0Win
Semi-finals Mexico1–3Loss
Bronze Play-off South Korea0–2Loss
2016 Group stage Nigeria4–5Loss
Group stage Colombia2–2Draw
Group stage Sweden1–0Win
2020 Group stage South Africa1–0Win
Group stage Mexico2–1Win
Group stage France4–0Win
Quarter-finals New Zealand0–0 4–2Draw Win
Semi-finals Spain0–1Loss
Bronze Play-off Mexico1–3Loss

AFC U-23 Asian Cup
See also: AFC U-23 Asian Cup
AFC U-23 Asian Cup record Qualifier record
Year Result Position GP W D L GS GA GP W D L GS GA
2013Quarter-finals7412185 5500202
2016Champions16600154 3300100
2018Quarter-finals5430155 3300112
2020Group Stage15301235 3300210
2022 Qualified 220080
Total5/5Champions1710343119 161600704

Match history
AFC U-23 Asian Cup history
Year Round Opponent Score Result
2013 Group Stage Iran3–3Draw
Group Stage Kuwait0–0Draw
Group Stage Australia4–0Win
Quarter-finals Iraq0–1Loss
2016 Group Stage North Korea1–0Win
Group Stage Thailand4–0Win
Group Stage Saudi Arabia2–1Win
Quarter-finals Iran3–0Win
Semi-finals Iraq2–1Win
Final South Korea3–2Win
2018 Group Stage Palestine1–0Win
Group Stage Thailand1–0Win
Group Stage North Korea3–1Win
Quarter-finals Uzbekistan0–4Loss
2020 Group Stage Saudi Arabia1–2Loss
Group Stage Syria1–2Loss
Group Stage Qatar1–1Draw
2022 Group stage UAE–
Group stage Saudi Arabia–
Group stage Tajikistan–

Asian Games
Main article: Japan at the Asian Games
See also: Football at the Asian Games
Asian Games record
Hosts / Year Result Position GP W D L GS GA
2002 Silver26501134
2006Round 111320154
2010 Gold17700171
2014Quarter-finals65302105
2018 Silver27502104
2022To be Determined
2026
2030
2034
Total5/5 Gold2822065518

Match history
Asian Games history
Year Round Opponent Score Result
2002 Round 1 Palestine2–0Win
Round 1 Bahrain5–2Win
Round 1 Uzbekistan1–0Win
Quarter-finals China PR1–0Win
Semi-finals Thailand3–0Win
Final Iran1–2Loss
2006 Round 1 Pakistan3–2Win
Round 1 Syria1–0Win
Round 1 North Korea1–2Loss
2010 Round 1 China PR3–0Win
Round 1 Malaysia2–0Win
Round 1 Kyrgyzstan3–0Win
Round 2 India5–0Win
Quarter-finals Thailand1–0Win
Semi-finals Iran2–1Win
Final UAE1–0Win
2014 Round 1 Kuwait4–1Win
Round 1 Iraq1–3Loss
Round 1   Nepal4–0Win
Round 2 Palestine4–0Win
Quarter-finals South Korea0–1Loss
2018 Round 1   Nepal1–0Win
Round 1 Pakistan4–0Win
Round 1 Vietnam0–1Loss
Round 2 Malaysia1–0Win
Quarter-finals Saudi Arabia2–1Win
Semi-finals UAE1–0Win
Final South Korea1–2Loss

See also
National teams
Men's
Women's

References
  1. Hyung-Jin Yoon (6 May 2006). "Japan - International Results U-23 (Olympic) Team [Malaysia (1) – Japan (1)]". RDFC. Archived from the original on 29 March 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
  2. "TV放送". www.jfa.jp (in Japanese). Japan Football Association (JFA). July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  3. "TV放送 | International Cup U-23 | 2022/3/20(日)～2022/3/29(火) | ドバイ／UAE" [TV broadcasting]. www.jfa.jp (in Japanese). Japan Football Association (JFA). Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  4. "U-21日本代表戦テレビ放送決定のお知らせ　ドバイカップU-23（3.23～29＠アラブ首長国連邦／ドバイ）" [U-21 Japan National Team TV Broadcast Decision Notice (23-29 March@United Arab Emirates / Dubai)]. www.jfa.jp (in Japanese). Japan Football Association (JFA). 17 March 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  5. "U-21 Japan National Team squad - Dubai Cup U-23 (3/23-29＠Dubai, UAE)". Japan Football Association (JFA). Tokyo. 17 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  6. "Mr. OIWA Go appointed as Head Coach of U-21 Japan National Team". Japan Football Association (JFA). Tokyo. 16 December 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  7. https://www.jfa.jp/national_team/tokyo_olympic_2020/img/all_02s.pdf
  8. "U-21 Japan National Team squad - Dubai Cup U-23 (3/23-29＠Dubai, UAE)". Japan Football Association (JFA). Tokyo. 17 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
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