“Tokyo Verdy Beleza is a soccer talent factory that flies under the radar.”
“Beleza has produced numerous top-level female soccer players,” the British media outlet The Guardian wrote on March 3, calling the club ”Japan’s most successful women’s soccer team.” Tokyo Verdi Velezza was founded in 1981. Velezza means “beautiful” 카지노 커뮤니티 in Italian.

Veleza has the most trophies in Japan, and its academy graduates are playing at the highest level. 2024 Ballon d’Or nominees Yui Hasegawa (Manchester City – pictured) and Riko Ueki (West Ham) are Veleza Academy graduates who play in the English Women’s Super League (WSL). Japanese legends Mana Iwabuchi and Homare Sawa also hail from the program. Maya Hijikata, who won the Bronze Boot at the 2024 U20 Women’s World Cup, along with fellow standouts Mayu Matsunaga and Rihona Ujihara, also hail from Velezza.
According to the Guardian, in a 2019 academic paper, sociologist Osamu Takamine noted the phenomenon of a sharp increase in sports participation rates during the upper elementary and middle school years. “During this period, the gender gap shrinks and the number of women participating in sports becomes similar to the number of men,” Takamine said. “As Tokyo’s only women’s professional soccer club, Beleza has a strong advantage in this situation,” the Guardian reported, ”and their achievements on the pitch are a big draw for many female soccer prospects.”
It’s not just their geographic location that’s commendable, but also their style of play and coaching methods. “Beleza’s philosophy is a forward-thinking approach that emphasizes mobility and solidarity,” the Guardian analyzed. “In training, we focus on build-up play and try to have a mutual understanding of how to execute it during the game,” said coach Takeo Matsuda, ”It’s very important to do what we train in practice.”
Velez’s finances aren’t exactly stellar, but the club continues to produce talent. “Overseas clubs are snapping up promising young players at an alarming rate, making it difficult for Velez to stop the brain drain,” the Guardian said, adding that ”traveling abroad also helps improve their game.” Yuki Nagasato, a Beleza Academy graduate forward who plays for the Houston Dash of the Women’s Professional Soccer League, said, “The number of Japanese players is skyrocketing, and their individual skills are improving greatly by playing for overseas clubs.”
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