The 25th All Japan High School Women's Football Championship will get underway on Friday 30 December across Hyogo Prefecture as high school women’s teams compete to be the best in the nation. A total of 32 teams who got through the regional qualifiers in Japan will take part and strive to top the knockout tournament. This year, the final will be held on 8 January 2017.

Last year’s champions Fujieda Junshin High School (Tokai1/ Shizuoka) won the title of the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament in the summer, and they will face Kaishi Gakuen JSC High School Women (Kitashinetsu 1/ Niigata) in the first round. Fujieda Junshin’s FUKUDA Yui expresses her motivation by saying “the first match is just a passway to clinch the title for the second consecutive year. We want to win this game to gain momentum”, whereas Kaishi Gakuen’s MORIYA Kanna doesn’t show any fear of playing against the defending champions stating “we are excited because we wanted to compete against a strong team”.

The five-time winners, Tokiwagi Gakuen High School (Tohoku 1/ Miyagi), will kick off the competition by playing against Yanagigaura High School (Kyushu 1/ Oita). Tokiwagi Gakuen’s SUZUKI Hinako claims that “the first match will be crucial for the tournament. Winning and setting the right tone will be the key to clinching the title”. On the other hand, SASAKI Azumi of Yanagigaura High School says “it is not easy for us to compete against the powerhouse in the first round, but we want to gain momentum by beating them”.

Shonan Gakuin High School (Kanto 1/ Kanagawa) will take on Osaka Toin Senior High School (Kansai 3/ Osaka). Shonan Gakuin’s SAKUMA Miki says “we must always be reminded that we are challengers and we will fight until we climb to the summit”, whereas Osaka Toin’s SHIBA Hiyori states “we had a lot of activities together with Shonan Gakuin including the summer training camp. We want to win this one for our aim to grab the title”. Both teams already have shown their strong determination to compete in the first-round match.

This time, the competition starts at the end of the year unlike the previous ones which used to start from the beginning of the year. Regarding this change, Tokiwagi Gakuen’s coach ABE Yoshiharu comments “it will be a long competition. So the key will be maintaining the players’ conditioning and motivation”. TANABE Tomoe, the coach of Hinomoto Gakuen High School (Kansai 1/ Hyogo) adds “we cannot be sure what will happen until we actually try it. However, it is important to keep up the fitness level to compete effectively against our opponents. We will have more time between matches. Therefore, the risk of players getting injured will be reduced. Furthermore, how we prepare for the coming match will become important”.

This is the opportunity for all the teams to display what they have achieved this year. Check out their plays and see which teams will get through the competition.

25th All Japan High School Women's Football Championshi

30 December 2016 (Sat.) ～ 8 January 2017 (Sun.)　[Free Admission]
First Round～ Quater-finals：Venues across Hyogo Prefecture
Semi-finals ～ Final：Noevir Stadium Kobe (Hyogo Prefecture)

Tournament Information