| Nicknames | Thespa (ザスパ,Zasupa) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1995; 30 years ago (1995) (asLiaison Kusatsu) | ||
| Ground | Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma Maebashi, Gunma | ||
| Capacity | 15,253 | ||
| Owner | Kusatsu Onsen Football Club | ||
| Chairman | Hajime Hosogai | ||
| Manager | Masaru Okita | ||
| League | J3 League | ||
| 2024 | J2 League, 20th of 20 (relegated) | ||
| Website | thespa | ||
 Current season | |||
Thespa Gunma (ザスパ群馬,Zasupa Gunma), formerlyThespakusatsu Gunma (ザスパクサツ群馬,Zasupakusatsu Gunma) is a professionalfootball (soccer) club based inMaebashi,Gunma Prefecture in Japan. The club currently play in theJ3 League, the third tier of Japanese professional football.
The club was founded in 1995 inKusatsu, one of the most well-known spa resorts in Japan, asLiaison Kusatsu Football Club.[1] The players were students of the specialized training college Higashi Nihon Soccer Academy. When the school closed in 1999 due to financial difficulties, the players decided to stay in Kusatsu and keep the club alive. In 2002, the club was incorporated as K.K. Kusatsu Onsen Football Club with a future promotion to the J. League in mind and adopted the new team nameThespa Kusatsu (ザスパ草津,zasupa kusatsu), meaning "The Spa, Kusatsu".[1]
Because of J. League restrictions on stadiums, they play atShoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma (Shikishima Athletics Stadium) in nearbyMaebashi, the prefectural capital since the club were promoted toJ. League Division 2 in the2005 season.[2]
From 1 February 2013, the club adopted the new name "Thespakusatsu Gunma", to give the impression of the club as a representative of the entireGunma Prefecture, while still leaving the name "Kusatsu" in it, as well as the logo of the club as it is.[3][4]
After 12 years spent in the J2 League, Thespakusatsu Gunma were relegated to the J3 League for the first time in their history, having finished in last place in the2017 J2 League. Gunma returned to the J2 League ahead of the 2020 season after being promoted back to J2 after two years spent in J3.
On 5 October 2023, Thespakusatsu Gunma announced officially, a change of name and logo toThespa Gunma commencing from the 2024 season, dropping the "Kusatsu" which was included in the name since 2005.[5]
On 29 September 2024, Thespa Gunma were officially relegated to J3 for the second time in their history, for the 2025 season after a defeat byRoasso Kumamoto 2–3 at home, which ended four years in second tier with five games remaining.
The home stadium isShoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma,Maebashi,Gunma. The capacity of the stadium is 15,253. The training ground is GCC The Park in Maebashi.
| Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Promoted | Relegated |
| League | J. League Cup | Emperor's Cup | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Div. | Teams | Pos. | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | Attendance/G | ||
| AsThespa Kusatsu | ||||||||||||||
| 2004 | JFL | 16 | 3rd | 30 | 19 | 5 | 6 | 63 | 35 | 28 | 62 | 4,948 | Not eligible | Quartferfinals |
| 2005 | J2 | 12 | 12th | 44 | 5 | 8 | 31 | 26 | 82 | -56 | 23 | 3,959 | 4th round | |
| 2006 | 13 | 12th | 48 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 54 | 86 | -32 | 42 | 3,736 | 4th round | ||
| 2007 | 13 | 11th | 48 | 7 | 21 | 20 | 42 | 71 | -29 | 42 | 3,808 | 4th round | ||
| 2008 | 15 | 9th | 42 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 45 | 52 | -7 | 53 | 4,215 | 3rd round | ||
| 2009 | 18 | 10th | 51 | 18 | 11 | 22 | 64 | 76 | -12 | 65 | 4,330 | 3rd round | ||
| 2010 | 19 | 12th | 36 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 36 | 48 | -12 | 48 | 4,424 | 2nd round | ||
| 2011 | 20 | 9th | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 51 | 51 | 0 | 57 | 3,211 | 2nd round | ||
| 2012 | 22 | 17th | 42 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 31 | 15 | -14 | 47 | 3,341 | 2nd round | ||
| AsThespakusatsu Gunma | ||||||||||||||
| 2013 | J2 | 22 | 20th | 42 | 9 | 13 | 20 | 43 | 61 | -18 | 40 | 3,571 | Not eligible | 2nd round |
| 2014 | 22 | 18th | 42 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 45 | 54 | -9 | 49 | 3,689 | 4th round | ||
| 2015 | 22 | 18th | 42 | 13 | 9 | 20 | 34 | 56 | -22 | 48 | 4,099 | 1st round | ||
| 2016 | 22 | 17th | 42 | 11 | 12 | 19 | 52 | 66 | -14 | 45 | 4,744 | 2nd round | ||
| 2017 | 22 | 22nd | 42 | 5 | 5 | 32 | 32 | 88 | -56 | 20 | 3,832 | 3rd round | ||
| 2018 | J3 | 17 | 5th | 32 | 15 | 7 | 10 | 37 | 35 | 2 | 52 | 3,346 | 2nd round | |
| 2019 | 18 | 2nd | 34 | 18 | 9 | 7 | 59 | 34 | 25 | 63 | 3,594 | 2nd round | ||
| 2020† | J2 | 22 | 20th | 42 | 15 | 4 | 23 | 40 | 62 | -22 | 49 | 1,709 | Did not qualify | |
| 2021† | 22 | 18th | 42 | 9 | 14 | 19 | 35 | 56 | -21 | 41 | 2,082 | 4th round | ||
| 2022 | 22 | 20th | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 36 | 57 | -21 | 42 | 3,076 | Round of 16 | ||
| 2023 | 22 | 11th | 42 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 44 | 44 | 0 | 57 | 4,116 | 2nd round | ||
| AsThespa Gunma | ||||||||||||||
| 2024 | J2 | 20 | 20th | 38 | 3 | 9 | 26 | 24 | 62 | -38 | 18 | 3,988 | 2nd round | 2nd round |
| 2025 | J3 | 20 | TBD | 38 | 1st round | 2nd round | ||||||||
| Honour | No. | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gunma Prefecture Division 4 | 1 | 1995 | as Liaison Kusatsu |
| Gunma Prefecture Division 3 | 1 | 1996 | |
| Gunma Prefecture 2nd Division A | 1 | 1997 | |
| Gunma Prefecture Division 2 B | 1 | 2001 | |
| Gunma Prefecture Division 1 | 1 | 2002 | as Thespa Kusatsu |
| Kantō Division 2 | 1 | 2003 | |
| Gunma Prefectural Football Association President's Cup Soccer Tournament | 4 | 2003, 2018, 2019, 2025 |
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
Coaching staff for 2025.
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Masaru Okita |
| Coach | Kentaro Yoshida |
| Assistant coach | Ryo Ishibashi |
| Goalkeeping coach | Hidetoyo Watanabe |
| Analyst | Yota Sakuma |
| Physical coach | Yutaka Aoki |
| Physiotherapist | Koki Katakai |
| Trainer | Ryo Murakami Ryoji Sejino |
| Chief secretary | Ryo Suzuki |
| Team secretary | Ryota Osawa |
| Kitman | Riku Takahashi |
| Manager | Nationality | Tenure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Finish | ||
| Ratko Stevović |  Montenegro | 1995 | 1997 |
| Naoki Kimura | Japan | 1998 | 1999 |
| Ratko Stevović | Montenegro | 2000 | 2001 |
| Ryōsuke Okuno | Japan | 1 February 2002 | 31 January 2004 |
| Satoshi Tezuka | Japan | 1 January 2005 | 31 December 2005 |
| Shigeharu Ueki | Japan | 1 February 2006 | 31 January 2009 |
| Tōru Sano | Japan | 1 February 2009 | 31 January 2010 |
| Hiroshi Soejima | Japan | 1 February 2010 | 31 January 2013 |
| Tadahiro Akiba | Japan | 1 February 2013 | 31 January 2015 |
| Hiroki Hattori | Japan | 1 January 2015 | 31 December 2016 |
| Hitoshi Morishita | Japan | 1 February 2017 | 31 January 2018 |
| Keiichirō Nuno | Japan | 1 February 2018 | 31 January 2020 |
| Ryōsuke Okuno | Japan | 1 February 2020 | 4 July 2021 |
| Kiyokazu Kudō | Japan | 5 July 2021 | 31 January 2022 |
| Tsuyoshi Otsuki | Japan | 1 February 2022 | 8 May 2024 |
| Akira Muto | Japan | 9 May 2024[7] | 31 January 2025 |
| Masaru Okita | Japan | 1 February 2025[8] | present |
| Home kits - 1st | ||||
          2003 - 2004 |      2005 |      2006 - 2007 |      2008 |      2009 |
    2010 |     2011 |      2012 |      2013 |      2014 |
     2015 |     2016 |      2017 |      2018 |      2019 |
     2020 |      2021 |      2022 |      2023 |      2024 |
 2025 - | ||||
| Away kits - 2nd | |||||
     2003 - 2004 |      2005 |     2006 - 2007 |      2008 |      2009 | |
  2010 |     2011 |      2012 |      2013 |      2014 | |
     2015 |     2016 |      2017 |      2018 |      2019 | |
     2020 |      2021 |      2022 |    2023 |      2024 | |
   2025 - | |||||
