JFA Hall of Fame Inductee

NODA Akemi

Special Selection: 21st Japan Football Hall of Fame in 2025

Born in Tokyo on 13 October 1969

NODA Akemi played for Yomiuri Soccer Club Ladies Beleza (now Nipon TV Tokyo Verdy Beleza) from 1982 when she was a junior high school student. She emerged early on and became a key player. She contributed to back-to-back championships in the All Japan Women's Football Championship (now the Empress Cup JFA All Japan Women's Football Championship) and four consecutive championships in the Japan Ladies Soccer League (later the Japan Women’s Football League), and as an individual won the league's top scorer with 16 goals in 1990, as well as the Best Player Award. For two years from 1995, she played for Takarazuka Bunnys Ladies Soccer Club. She has been selected six times as one of the best eleven players in the Japan Ladies Soccer League.

She was first selected for the Japan women's national team in 1984 and made her international A-match debut at the age of 15 years and 4 days, the third oldest player of all time (as of 2025). Since then, she has led the team as a key player of the Japan women's national team for about 12 years. In 1995, she scored two goals against Brazil in the group stage of the second FIFA Women's World Championship (now the FIFA Women's World Cup), contributing to Japan's first World Cup goal and first victory. She also played an impressive role in the 26th Olympic Games held in Atlanta (1996) as captain, scoring one goal against Germany.

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  TAKAKURA Asako