Japan's national high school soccer tournament is thriving after more than 100 years, attracting huge crowds, millions watching on TV and breeding future stars, even as professional clubs try to lure young talent away.
The annual tournament kicked off on Saturday and continues to be regarded as the pinnacle of amateur soccer, with young players dreaming of playing the final at the National Stadium in Tokyo, witnessed by tens of thousands. Matches are massive occasions for schools, as student cheering squads wave flags, bang drums, and passionately roar on their teams, creating a spectacle of noise and color.
"All the teams are at a similar level of technical ability, so it's about who wants to win the most," said 18-year-old Junpei Fukuda, leader of the cheering squad from Ryutsukeizai University Kashiwa High School. "We want our voices to be the loudest."
Unlike Europe, where young players are quickly recruited by professional club academies, high school soccer in Japan still attracts elite talent.
Many players who participate eventually go on to play professionally, including current soccer stars like Daizen Maeda and Reo Hatate of Celtic, and Crystal Palace’s Daichi Kamada, all of whom were once high school soccer players.
Recently, the dynamics have shifted, with more top young talents opting to join youth teams of J.League clubs, impacting the tournament’s quality but the magic of high school soccer endures.
Kanaru Matsumoto, midfielder for Ryutsukeizai Kashiwa, expressed, "The tournament is the stage I’ve aspired to play on ever since I was little." The 17-year-old added, "The main reason I came to this school was because I thought I could play at the national high school tournament here."
The national tournament was first held in 1917, predicating the professional soccer era with the launch of the J.League in 1993. Competitors hail from each of Japan’s 47 prefectures, including two teams from Tokyo, engaging in knockout battles for 18 days across the capital. Every match is televised locally, with semis and finals broadcast nationwide, drawing millions of viewers. The last season’s final attracted 55,000 fans—a turnout surpassing most J.League crowds.
Besides soccer, high school baseball and rugby tournaments hold significant popularity, partly because school sports resonate deeply with Japanese culture. Soccer journalist Masashi Tsuchiya highlighted, "I'm from Gunma Prefecture, and I always support the Gunma team, even if it isn't my old high school’s team. It’s about local pride and old school ties."
Not every player aspires to the professional level. Some will continue at university, and others might quit football altogether after graduation. Ryutsukeizai Kashiwa manager Masahiro Enomoto remarked, "The tournament marks a transition after three years together as a team. It's where kids, who have worked really hard for something, become adults."
Television broadcasts extend beyond mere gameplay, exploring players' backgrounds and highlighting emotional moments, often showcasing beaten teams reduced to tears. "Japanese people love drama more than they think about the quality of the soccer," Enomoto noted, yet it's clear the standard remains high.
High school teams can still compete with J.League youth teams, which are often seen as stepping stones to professional careers. The nationwide Prince Takamado Under-18 Premier League reflects this, featuring nearly equal numbers of high school and League youth teams, with Ohzu High School crowned as the latest champions.
Tsuchiya asserted, "High school soccer shouldn’t just be viewed as a ladder to the top. Yes, it's thrilling to watch for the standard of soccer and the caliber of players, yet there's immense joy in witnessing these kids giving their all to win every game."