The JFA Mid-Term Plan for 2023-2026Japan Football Hall of Fame
JFA Hall of Fame Inductee
SHIMOMURA Sachio
Special Selection: 12 th Japan Football Hall of Fame Inductee in 2015
- Born in Hiroshima on 25 January 1932
SHIMOMURA Sachio started to play football at Shudo High School as a goalkeeper and led the team to the third place in the National Sports Festival in 1949. He joined Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd., a predecessor of Mazda/Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC in 1950 and went on to the final of the Emperor’s Cup in 1954 for the first time as a corporate-sponsored team which led to the emergence of the era of corporate-sponsored team. In 1956, his team won their first All-Japan works team Tournament title.
He was selected as the goalkeeper of the Japan National Team for the FIFA World Cup Switzerland Qualifiers in 1954, the Olympic Games Melbourne in 1956 and the third Asian Games in Tokyo in 1958.
He began his coaching career at Shudo High School in 1958 while continuing to play as a player. With his focus on the fundamental techniques and tactics, the team won both the National Sports Festival and the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament in his fourth year of coaching.
In 1965, he became a coach of Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd. as the same year of the establishment of the Japan Soccer League (JSL). He assembled many excellent players such as OGI Ariatsu and MATSUMOTO Ikuo and balanced the team systematic plays both in offence and defence.
He displayed his great talent as a coach by training players for the combination play called “the third person’s movement” and led the team to win four consecutive league titles since the JSL’s establishment. Toyo Kogyo Co., Ltd. is the first and the only team winning the Japanese top league four years consecutively, including the current J. League. While managing the team to their fifth league title in 1970, his team won the Emperor’s Cup for 3 times. In 1970, his team only allowed 5 goals within 14 games which was the lowest number of goals in the history of JSL and the team won the title of this year. He built a team with a strong defence.
In 1972, he became a head coach at Towa Real Estate Development Co., Ltd., a predecessor of Fujita Engineering and Shonan Bellmare, and later built the foundation of the team which competes for the number 1 spot in Japan. Since 1979, he was appointed as the head coach of the Japan National Team and advanced his career in coaching by winning the “Japan-South Korea Regular Match” with the must-win mentality.
He also worked as the fourth JSL General Manager during the period from 1977 to 1978 and contributed in the management of its organisation.
