Over 130 enthusiastic children took part in the VfB football school training sessions in Tokyo this year, spread over two weeks. VfB have been active in Japan since 2021 via a wide variety of measures with the club’s football school and its partners, which have enabled a year-round exchange between coaches and players via digital sessions. These measures are bearing fruit in Japan, as proven by the positive feedback from the parents, players and organisers involved, and also the example of the development of VfB U21 player Rinto Hanashiro, who was discovered by VfB during one of the regular exchange programmes and brought over to Stuttgart.
During the visit to Japan’s biggest city, VfB and partner Funroots agreed to extend their joint activities and measures. “The two weeks were a real success and we were delighted with the excellent feedback that we received,” said Jun Hirano, founder and president of Funroots. “The regular digital training sessions and the top-quality coaching here in Tokyo, with over 130 people taking part over the fortnight, show how well the programme is received.”
Coaching apprenticeships with FC Tokyo
After FC Tokyo’s U18s came over to VfB this March, FC Tokyo academy director Asari Satoru returned the invitation to the football school delegation who had made the trip to Japan. VfB coaches led further training courses at the academy’s facilities for 26 of their Japanese counterparts, who also had the opportunity for exchanges with coaches from J1 club FC Tokyo during the coaching clinic. The participants included Katsuhito Kinoshi, assistant coach of the Serbian national team which will be playing in this summer’s EURO in Germany. There was also a chance to catch up with Kita Makoto, who spent time at VfB while training for his pro licence which he has since gone on to obtain.
These activities in Japan, which is a target market for the club, are also a way for VfB to support the Bundesliga’s globalisation strategy, and VfB will be travelling to Japan again this year for the first time since 1996 to carry out part of their pre-season preparations. You can find all the details on the 2024 Japan Tour here.