The second day of the 13th Football Conference took place on Sunday15 January. Continuing from the first day, the event was held in a hybrid format at both Pacifico Yokohama in Kanagawa Prefecture and online, under the theme “Signposts to the Future.”

IKEDA Futoshi, Head Coach of Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team), first took the stage to speak on the theme “Towards the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™.” Regarding the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022™, where he led the U-20 Women's Japan National Team to a runners-up finish, he said, “Although it was a U-20s competition, the level of football displayed was similar to that of the seniors. I got the impression that the intensity to win the ball and score goals has increased, but the tournament also made us realise that Japan's signature combination plays were still effective at the international level.” He also touched on the fact that some of the players who participated in this tournament have gone on to join the Nadeshiko Japan, saying, “We were able to call them up after they experienced the world level and were still feeling the disappointment of missing out on the championships, and they have brought new competition to the team.”

When asked about his aspirations for the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™ to be held in July this year, coach Ikeda responded as follows.

“There are more players playing for clubs abroad, but we are requesting for more international matches against powerful nations so that we can expand our international experience. We are experimenting with various things because we want to learn as much as we can to increase our capacity as a team. There will be errors, but we are providing the players all the knowledge they need to play confidently, and we are beginning to have more successful experiences, so we will keep advancing before the tournament in July.”

Mr. Frank LUDOLPH, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Head of Technical Development, then gave a presentation titled “The application and effects of the UEFA TSG,” in which he reviewed the highly successful UEFA Women's EURO 2022 and the national team conference where all the national team coaches from the participating countries were gathered. Using case studies from the programme’s advanced implementation, he also spoke about the UEFA Coach Development Programme for Women.

Mr. David ADAMS, Technical Director of the Football Association of Wales, gave a lecture on the Football Association of Wales' national syllabus “Welsh way,” which has attracted the attention of coaches from around the world.

“Japan's Way” was then introduced by KAGEYAMA Masanaga, Director of JFA Youth Development, which was developed in July 2022 after analysing and discussing the “Welsh way” and other models of advanced football nations. “Japan's Way" is a road map for achieving the “ideal” state of Japanese football, and it was explained using actual PDF files. When explaining the “vision of play,” MORIYASU Hajime, Head Coach of SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team), who appeared on the day before, unexpectedly joined Director Kageyama on the stage to discuss the topic.

Regarding the “quality” and “uniqueness” of Japanese football, coach Moriyasu suggested, “What we have imagined was something that was thought of only in Japan. From now on, we need to be able to demonstrate our football while acknowledging the global standards.” Based on actual conversations with the players, he added, “I think Japan's strengths lie in its technical prowess and its ability to fight in an organised manner, but the national team players who are active in Europe constantly stress the need for us to develop our individual strength. In order to be successful at the international level, I believe that it is necessary for us to develop our individual strength before demonstrating Japan's strengths.”

The final session was held by Mr. Andy ROXBURGH, AFC Technical Director, who discussed the future of Japanese football with Mr. Alberto ZACCHERONI, former Head Coach of the Japan National Team. Under the theme “Football in the Future,” the two discussed how Japanese football compares with the rest of the world and what is needed for Japan to develop in the future.

Towards the end of the session, Mr. Roxburgh listed ten reasons why he was optimistic about the future of Japanese football, including “a clear vision,” “strong leadership,” and “constant improvement.” Mr. Zaccheroni concluded the discussion by adding one more factor to this list, which was “passion for football.”

The Football Conference, which took place over two days, provoked a wide range of discussions, and helped the participants deepen their knowledge. The next conference is scheduled to take place in 2025.

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