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July 19, 2025
 

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WE LEAGUE

A WE League Cup championship match between Sanfrecce Hiroshima Regina and INAC Kobe takes place on Dec. 29 in Tokyo. A healthy increase in gross revenue has highlighted the WE League’s newfound growth potential.
SOCCER
Jun 24, 2025
WE League finally sowing seeds of growth under new stewardship
Yoshikazu Nonomura, who took the helm a year ago, oversaw improved attendance and financial numbers during his first season as chairman.
Tokyo Verdy Beleza players celebrate after being crowned WE League champions on Saturday at Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka in Tokyo.
SOCCER
May 21, 2025
Tokyo Verdy Beleza hope to stay on top after long-awaited WE League triumph
The storied club earned its first league title of the professional era on the back of a formidable attack and consistent play throughout the year.
Japan forward Mina Tanaka dribbles during a SheBelieves Cup match against Australia in Houston on Feb. 20.
SOCCER
Mar 20, 2025
How Mina Tanaka evolved into a prolific striker for Nadeshiko Japan
Mina Tanaka is having a moment. The Nadeshiko Japan and Utah Royals striker dominated the SheBelieves Cup, winning both MVP and top scorer as Japan defeated the U.S.
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.
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.
SOCCER
Oct 14, 2023
Sanfrecce outlasts Albirex for WE League Cup title
The sister team of three-time J. League champions Sanfrecce Hiroshima earned its first major trophy since its 2020 inception.
Nadeshiko Japan reached the knockout stage at a fourth consecutive FIFA Women's World Cup before being eliminated in the quarterfinals on Friday by Sweden.
SOCCER / Women's World cup / From the Spot
Aug 15, 2023
Bold steps needed from JFA, WE League to maintain momentum after WWC
After Nadeshiko Japan's inspiring quarterfinal run in New Zealand, the country's soccer bodies must avoid the missteps of the post-2011 boom and bust.
SOCCER / Women's World Cup
Jul 18, 2023
WE League chair: Japan sees 'cute' players, not elite athletes
Momentum behind women’s soccer in Japan has stalled in the years since its 2011 triumph and 2015 runner-up finish, even as global interest in women’s sports accelerates.
SOCCER / Women's World Cup / From the Spot
Jun 27, 2023
Broadcaster standoff shows fragile state of Japanese women's soccer
Failure to find a television home for the upcoming FIFA Women's World Cup could all but cripple the sport's hopes of mainstream acceptance in the country.
SOCCER
Oct 1, 2022
Urawa fights back to win WE League Cup final over Beleza
Down 3-0 with less than 20 minutes left on the clock, the Reds rallied back to equalize the game before winning in penalties at Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka.
SOCCER
Sep 14, 2022
Haruna Takata to replace Kikuko Okajima as WE League chairperson
The former V-Varen Nagasaki president will take charge of Japan's professional women's soccer league just six months after joining the J. League's board of directors.
SOCCER / From the Spot
Aug 16, 2022
WE League aims to build on first-season challenges
After a challenging debut season, Japan's professional women's soccer competition will return to action on Saturday with the first edition of the WE League Cup.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Nov 24, 2021
WE League aims to learn from NWSL's harassment scandals
League officials said that while Japan's understanding of harassment has improved in recent years, there is still much to be done to ensure the well-being of the country's athletes.
SOCCER / WE LEAGUE
Sep 12, 2021
Late goal seals Urawa comeback over Beleza as WE League debuts
Yuzuho Shiokoshi's right-footed rocket gave the defending Nadeshiko League champion a win to start Japan's new professional women's soccer league.
SOCCER / WE LEAGUE
Sep 10, 2021
Japan's ambitious WE League aims to empower in historic first season
Japan's first professional women's soccer league will launch on Sunday with the goals of promoting gender equality and raising the country's level of play.
OLYMPICS
Jul 20, 2021
New faces look to steer Nadeshiko Japan to first Olympic medal since London
Defender Saori Takarada and midfielder Honoka Hayashi, boasting a combined 14 senior caps, are among many new faces looking to lead a new generation for the country's women's team.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jul 5, 2021
WE League welcomes Yogibo as title partner, DAZN as broadcaster
In sponsoring Japan's new professional women's soccer league, the two companies doubled down on their commitments toward gender equality other sustainable development goals.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jun 18, 2021
Nadeshiko Japan squad for Tokyo Olympics announced as Mana Iwabuchi inherits No. 10
Head coach Asako Takakura has chosen five overseas-based players to join 13 WE Leaguers at Japan's first Summer Games since London 2012.
SOCCER
Apr 24, 2021
Urawa and Sendai share spoils as WE League preseason begins
Nadeshiko Japan regular Yuika Sugasawa's penalty kick was negated by Hinata Miyazawa's second-half equalizer in front of a healthy 1,504 fans at Komaba Stadium.
Living conditions index hits lowest level in 15 years in Japan
The share of respondents to a Bank of Japan quarterly survey in June who said they have become worse off came to 61.0%, up 5.1 percentage points from the previous survey.
Tokyo emerges as a top market for global tech talent
Tokyo ranks among the world's top tech talent hubs alongside Beijing, the San Francisco Bay Area, Bengaluru, Paris, New York and Dublin, according to Colliers' newly released global tech markets report.
From stalking to death threats, female candidates still face harassment
Mayu Ushida, a former NHK newscaster running for election in the Tokyo electoral district on the Democratic Party for the People ticket, signs an autograph for a voter after a public rally at Shinjuku Station in Tokyo on Tuesday.
CDP leader criticizes ‘Japanese First’ policy and calls for inclusive society
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda said it is obvious that Japanese society could not function without the help of foreign workers in manufacturing, health care, construction and public transportation.
JSA’s 100th anniversary event is a once-in-a-lifetime chance for sumo fans
Egyptian wrestler Osunaarashi has some fun with children during a special Japan Sumo Association event in 2017.
Japan's rice farmers are confounded by Shinjiro Koizumi’s policies
Kiyoshi Shibata stands in front of one of the rice paddies in Murayama, Yamagata Prefecture, where he produces the prefecture's signature rice brand Tsuyahime.
From stalking to death threats, female candidates still face harassment
Mayu Ushida, a former NHK newscaster running for election in the Tokyo electoral district on the Democratic Party for the People ticket, signs an autograph for a voter after a public rally at Shinjuku Station in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Kawaii Lab redefines idol pop for the TikTok generation
Misa Kimura is the main producer for Kawaii Lab, a project by entertainment agency Asobisystem whose groups have found success by pairing a social media-first strategy with a fresh perspective on traditional idol-pop tropes.
Craig Mod's life in motion in a disappearing Japan
Mod's memoir “Things Become Other Things” chronicles his walking trips across the Kii Peninsula, surveying “a graceful end to a certain life cycle.”

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan
By Megha Wadhwa

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