On Friday 17 March, the quarterfinals of the JFA 28th Japan Futsal Championship took pace at Komazawa Olympic Park in Tokyo.

The top eight teams from the 2022-2023 season of the F. League Division 1 engaged in a heated battle for Japan’s most prestigious title.

In the first fixture, Nagoya Oceans (F1/Aichi), who won their sixth consecutive league title, faced BORK bullet Kitakyushu (F1/Fukuoka), who finished eighth in the league. The match started with Brazilian international Gabriel PENEZIO scoring the opening goal for Nagoya in the seventh minute. After Kitakyushu levelled the match with the goal of HANASHIMA Yu in the 16th minute, Nagoya retook the lead with a powerful shot struck by OLIVEIRA Arthur.

With momentum on their side, Nagoya went on a goal spree in the second period, starting with ANDRESITO’s corner kick that deflected off a defender and into the net. MIZUTANI SOMA scored the team’s fourth goal, before Oliveira showcased a spectacular individual effort to score the fifth. NISHITANI Ryosuke, who had announced his retirement after this season, capped of the match by scoring off a counterattack, as Nagoya advanced to the semi-finals with a 6-1 victory.

In the second match between Pescadola Machida (F1/Tokyo) and Shonan Bellmare (F1/Kanagawa), Shonan defeated Machida for the first time in 2063 days after failing to beat their regional rival for almost five and a half years. Shonan took the lead in the 12th minute when their goalkeeper delivered a throw to setup the goal of UCHIMURA Shunta. Although it was Machida who dominated the ball possession in the second period, Shonan doubled their lead in the 13th minute with a powerful strike from Uchida. With Fiuza adding another goal at the end, Shonan won the match 4-1.

The match between the defending champions Tachikawa Athletic FC (F1/Tokyo) and Y.S.C.C. Yokohama (F1/Kanagawa) came down to the wire. The match started with KANAZAWA Sora assisting the goal of ARAI Yusei to give Tachikawa the lead. Yokohama responded in the second period, when SHIBANO Sota struck a shot that forced a save from KUROMOTO Guilherme, allowing YADOMOTO Ryota to convert the deflection. Soon afterwards, this time Shibano redirected the shot of Yadomoto to put Yokohama ahead.

Trailing by a goal, Tachikawa initiated their powerplay with four minutes left on the clock, which led to the 18th minute equaliser scored by their team captain UEMURA Atsuya, sending the match into a penalty shootout. After both goalkeepers Kuromoto and YAZAWA Daimu made a save apiece, it was Yokohama who prevailed at the end, beating the defending champions to reach their first ever semi-finals.

The last fixture played on this day was between Bardral Urayasu (F1/Chiba) and Fugador Sumida (F1/Tokyo), which saw Sumida’s NAKADA Shuto showcase his dominance. He scored the opening goal in the seventh minute, doubled the tally after Urayasu’s DIDUDA was ejected to give Sumida a numerical advantage. Nakada quickly completed his hat-trick in the second minute of the second period before scoring his fourth goal of the match in the 16th minute to propel his side to a 5-1 victory, leading Sumida to their second semi-finals in three years.

The Japan Futsal Championship will continue on Saturday 18 March, where the top four teams will collide for the championship match.

Players' Comments

FP #7 KANAYAMA Yuki (Pescadola Machida)
It has been over 20 years since I played in the Japan Futsal Championship as a member of Cascavel, Machida's predecessor team. I consider myself extremely fortunate to have one last opportunity to play on this pitch. It has been a while since we last played a match in front of such a sizable audience, and the young players seemed touched by the occasion. It once again made us realise the importance of the supporters’ presence.

FP #17 UCHIMURA Shunta (Shonan Bellmare)
It feels great to finally be able to defeat Machida because we had the impression that we couldn't win against them. I am proud of the way I was able to score today. I haven’t been able to train at all for the last month or so because of an injury, so I am glad that I was able to produce results within the limited playing time on the pitch.

FP #9 KANAZAWA Sora (Tachikawa Athletic FC)
It’s really frustrating that I couldn’t help the team win despite getting a lot of playing time on the pitch. I need to become a player who is capable of scoring goals even when my opponents are fully prepared to face me. After the disappointment of finishing second in both the Ocean Cup and the league standing, we entered this tournament determined to win the title, so we are very disappointed with this result.

FP #8 YADOMOTO Ryota (Y.S.C.C. Yokohama)
The fact that we are missing a number of players is helping us bond as a team. I don’t usually make runs into the final third, but when I scored the first goal, I sensed that the ball was headed in my direction. Five years ago, when the former team president WATANABE Shun-san told us "Let's win the national title in five years," it didn't feel realistic to me, but we have worked hard to come this far. The players are showing great improvements, so we hope to finish this tournament in a high note.

【Highlights】Nagoya Oceans vs BORK bullet Kitakyushu

【Highlights】Pescadola Machida vs Shonan Bellmare

【Highlights】Tachikawa Athletic FC vs Y.S.C.C. Yokohama

【Highlights】Bardral Urayasu vs Fugador Sumida

JFA 28th Japan Futsal Championship

Tournament dates: Sat. 11 - Sun. 19 March 2023
Tournament venue: Ecopa Arena (Shizuoka), Kishiwada City Gymnasium (Osaka), Kobe Central Gymnasium (Hyogo), Komazawa Olympic Park (Tokyo)

Tournament information