Three years have passed since I was dispatched to Hong Kong, where I have been serving as Head Coach of U-16 Hong Kong National Team and Elite Youth Director of the Football Association of Hong Kong, China Limited (HKFA).

I am currently taking a break from my regular duties to travel to Japan with the HKFA Coach Education Department staff as part of a short-term training programme. Six HKFA staff members, including myself, have been invited to attend the JFA Class C/Class D Tutor Training Course as observers. The purpose of this programme is to familiarise the participants with the framework and background of coach education in Japan while also observing how coaches are actually being educated in JFA.

The Grassroots Leader course, which is the first course offered in Hong Kong's coach education system, is an 18-hour course that takes place over six days. From there, you can advance to the Class D licence, which takes 51 hours over nine days to complete, and to the Class C licence. Needless to say, each country has its own objectives and background in coach education, and we are not claiming that one is superior to the other, but we are hoping to gain as many new insights and knowledge as possible to develop coach education in Hong Kong.

In order to develop our own coach education system, we must thoroughly comprehend “why” and “how” the JFA Coach Education Department emphasises the connection between each licence and the specific approach taken for each licence. That is why it is crucial for us to experience the JFA philosophy at first hand.

I have the impression that there are many pro-Japanese people in Hong Kong. In fact, many HKFA staff have chosen Japan as their first international destination to travel after the restrictions for Covid-19 were lifted. There must be many aspects of Japan's culture and climate that draw visitors from Hong Kong, but I am sure that another reason why they love Japan so much is due to their encounters with the Japanese people. That is why as a Japanese coach in Hong Kong, I hope to continue to cultivate a friendly and mutually supportive relationship between Japan and Hong Kong through football.