 | |||
| Full name | Tokyo Verdy 1969 Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Verdy | ||
| Founded | 1969; 56 years ago (1969) as Yomiuri FC[1] | ||
| Ground | Ajinomoto Stadium Chōfu, Tokyo | ||
| Capacity | 49,970 | ||
| Owner | Tokyo Verdy Holdings | ||
| Chairman | Yasuo Shimada | ||
| Manager | Hiroshi Jofuku | ||
| League | J1 League | ||
| 2024 | J1 League, 6th of 20 | ||
| Website | www | ||
 Current season | |||
Tokyo Verdy (東京ヴェルディ,Tōkyō Berudi) is a Japanese professionalfootball club based inInagi, Tokyo. The club currently competes in theJ1 League, following promotion from theJ2 League in2023.
Founded asYomiuri Football Club in 1969, Tokyo Verdy is one of the most decorated clubs in the J.League, with honours including 2 league titles, 5Emperor's Cups, 6JSL Cup/J.League Cups and anAsian Club Championship title, and the most successful team in Japanese football history with 25 titles. The club was an original member[a] of the J.League in 1993.
In October 1968, following Japan's bronze medal triumph at the1968 Summer Olympics inMexico City and the interest in football that ensued,[1]Japan Football Association presidentYuzuru Nozu visitedYomiuri Giants chairmanMatsutaro Shoriki to ask him if Yomiuri was willing to ride on the wave of the game by establishing their own football club. Shoriki died a year later, in 1969, but not before signing his name to the plans to establish Yomiuri Football Club.[2] Backed by theYomiuri Group andNTV, Yomiuri Football Club firstly launched at Tokyo Local League B(5th tier) in 1969. They began gaining promotions from the Tokyo Local League to theKantoFootball League(3rd tier) in 1971. In1971, Yomiuri marked 3rd place and promotedJapan Soccer League Second Division.[3]
They were promoted to First Division in1978, starting a long career of success in the top flight. Their first major title was theJapan Soccer League Cup in1979.
From its days as Yomiuri FC, the ownership had visions of a football equivalent of the baseball team Yomiuri Giants – a star-studded powerhouse with fans across Japan. As Japanese football began its transition from the JSL to the J.League in the early 1990s, it invested heavily in stars and featuredJapan internationalsKazuyoshi Miura,Ruy Ramos andTsuyoshi Kitazawa.[1]
The last two JSL championships as Yomiuri FC in1990–91 and1991–92, and then winning the first two championships as Verdy Kawasaki in1993 and1994, effectively winning four straight Japanese league titles making a total ofseven overall; the highest in the Japanese system. Verdy also won the1996 Emperor's Cup and three consecutiveJ.League Cups from 1992 to 1994.[4][5]
The JSL disbanded and reformed as the professional J.League in 1993. At this time the team professionalized and renamed itselfVerdy Kawasaki, "Coined from the Portuguese "VERDE" meaning "green" probably named after their green jersey colour "Tokyo Greens/Tokyo Verdi", although the color was picked in homage to Brazilian clubPalmeiras, a team admired by one of Yomiuri's first idols,São Paulo-bornGeorge Yonashiro.[6] AlthoughYomiuri was dropped from the name as the club spun off from the company, the team remained under Yomiuri's ownership until 1997, when it was acquired by Nippon Television Network, the broadcast arm of the Yomiuri Group.[7]
This early success did not last, however, and as the stars aged, the team's performance suffered. Verdy's 1st-place finish in the 2nd stage of the1995 season would be its last stage victory and the 1996 Emperor's Cup would be its last major title of the decade. A downturn in the national economy and the cooling of the J.League fad meant all teams had to cut expenses. This meant Verdy could no longer buy expensive replacements for its aging stars.
The1996 J.League season saw Verdy Kawasaki finish in 7th place overall, the lowest standing in the league's existence at that point, and would fall further in the1997 season, finishing 16th and 12th, in the 1st stage and 2nd stage, respectively, and 15th overall out of 17 teams. Although Verdy looked to return to prominence in1999, finishing 2nd in the 1st Stage, the resurgence was short-lived as it fell to 10th in the 2nd stage.
Meanwhile, the team's efforts to become "Japan's Team" alienated local fans inKawasaki. The expensive salaries and struggling attendance caused the club's debts to mount. Struggling to compete with the newly professionalized crosstown rivalKawasaki Frontale and the nearbyYokohama Marinos andYokohama Flügels, Verdy made the decision to leave Kawasaki.
In 2001, the club returned from Kawasaki toChōfu, Tokyo and was renamed asTokyo Verdy1969 to reflect the new hometown and the club's origins as Yomiuri. Although Verdy made the move to increase its fan base and distance itself from its rivals, by this time Tokyo was already home to a J1 club inFC Tokyo. Despite a sharp increase in crowd numbers for Verdy, this was still well below those of FC Tokyo. Their new local rivals had been promoted to J1 in 2000 and had already captured a vast number of the supporters Verdy had been hoping to attract.
In its first year in Tokyo, Tokyo Verdy 1969 found itself trailing FC Tokyo in the standings as well, and finished last in the division at 16th in the first stage of the2001 season. Only the play of midseason acquisitionEdmundo and a win in the final match of the second stage saved the club from relegation toJ2. Tokyo Verdy 1969 was back at the bottom of the table in the first stage of the2002 season, but again finished the season strong, placing 4th in the second stage.
Two mid-table finishes followed in2003 and2004, before Tokyo Verdy 1969, underOsvaldo Ardiles, won theEmperor's Cup on 1 January 2005, its first major title in 9 years and the first in Tokyo. Winning the cup earned Verdy a spot in the2006 AFC Champions League.[8]
However, the2005 season saw Tokyo Verdy 1969 fall to its worst finish of its history, finishing 17th out of 18. This was the first season after the scrapping of the two-stage season format, and Tokyo Verdy 1969 were relegated to J2, after 28 years of top flight football. The season was marked by three huge losses in July: 1–7 to Gamba Osaka on 2 July, 0–7 toUrawa Red Diamonds on 6 July and a 6–0 loss toJúbilo Iwata on 17 July. Tokyo Verdy then sacked Ardiles two days later.[9] At the time of his sacking, Ardiles' team had conceded 23 goals in their last 5 matches and had a 9 match winless streak.[9] However, the struggling Verdy upset European giantReal Madrid (who were in Asia on a preseason tour), 3–0 on 25 July.[10]
For the2006 season, the club appointed former Verdy Kawasaki legend, Ruy Ramos, as manager on 22 December 2005.[11] Tokyo Verdy 1969 found itself in the odd position of competing in the AFC Champions League while playing in the second tier of the national league system. After Tokyo Verdy 1969 was relegated, the club released many of the veteran players, leaving a core of young players, most notablyTakayuki Morimoto, who became the youngest player to score in the J.League at age 15 in 2004.[12]
In the2007 season, Tokyo Verdy 1969 managed to beatThespa Kusatsu 5–0 on the first day. After a brief scuffle withConsadole Sapporo over the J2 title, Tokyo Verdy 1969 had to settle for runners-up position, enough to earn promotion back into the top flight for2008. At this time the club renamed itself for the second time, dropping1969 from its team name, but the management corporation name remained asTokyo Verdy 1969.
Verdy would eventually be relegated once again after finishing in 17th place (second to last) in their 2008 J1 League return.
On 17 September 2009, NTV announced it would divest itself of shares in the club and transfer it to a new holding company, Tokyo Verdy Holdings, closing 40 years of Yomiuri/NTV direct financial support.[13] The J.League approved the transfer, but made it a condition that Verdy find a new sponsor by 16 November or risk not being able to play J2 football for the2010 season.[14]
In October 2010, Tokyo Verdy signed a five-year sponsorship deal with sports retail store and apparel company Xebio.[15]The sponsorship deal saw the Xebio logo placed on Tokyo Verdy's kit and included naming rights for two regular season home games.[15] Xebio also produced the clubs football kit, although under their sports brand "Ennerre". After talks with Xebio, several companies decided to invest in the company and the new Xebio led administration was announced in November.
The club suffered a mere respite from heartbreak during the 2018 season, when they finished 6th, qualifying then for the promotion/relegation playoffs. They beatOmiya Ardija 1–0 in the 1st round, and repeated the script againstYokohama FC in the semi-final. They ended just one game short of a J1 League comeback, having lost in the final by 2–0 againstJúbilo Iwata, which saw the promotion hopes fade away for another time. Ever since being relegated to the J2 at the end of 2008 season, the club were unable to return to the J1 and continue to compete in J2 League until 2023 season.
On 2 December 2023, Tokyo Verdy gained promotion to the J1 League for the2024 season after a 1–1 draw againstShimizu S-Pulse in thepromotion play-off final, withItsuki Someno scored the equalizer from the penalty spot in the 96th minute. As a result, Verdy, who were the top-ranked side entering the J2 League playoffs, returned to the national top tier for the first time since 2008.[16][17]
Verdy plays its home games at theAjinomoto Stadium, a stadium with the capacity of 49,970. It is shared with the club's main rivalsFC Tokyo, although occasional home matches are played in other stadiums in Tokyo, such as theAjinomoto Field Nishigaoka.
Tokyo Verdy's main colors are green.
The club's name was coined from thePortuguese, orSpanish, orItalian, orEsperanto "verde" meaning "green", probably named after their green jersey colour, so the meaning is "Tokyo Greens/Tokyo Verdi".[6] InItalian, the form "verdi" indicates the plural form "the greens".
| Period | Kit supplier | Shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | Puma | Coca-Cola |
| 1993 | Mizuno | |
| 1994 | ||
| 1995 | ||
| 1996 | MALT'S | |
| 1997 | Nike | |
| 1998 | ||
| 1999 | KONAMI | |
| 2000 | ||
| 2001 | ||
| 2002 | 楽天 ICHIBA | |
| 2003 | ||
| 2004 | LEOC | |
| 2005 | CyberAgent | |
| 2006 | CyberAgent (J2) 日テレ (ACL) | |
| 2007 | Kappa | Ameba |
| 2008 | ||
| 2009 | – | |
| 2010 | - / XEBIO | |
| 2011 | ennerre | 飯田産業 |
| 2012 | Athleta | |
| 2013 | - / GAGA MILANO | |
| 2014 | - / 緑の心臓 | |
| 2015 | 緑の心臓 | |
| 2016 | Create | |
| 2017 | ISPS HANDA | |
| 2018 | ||
| 2019 | Akatsuki | |
| 2020 | ||
| 2021 | NICIGAS | |
| 2022 | ||
| 2023 | ||
| 2024 | ||
| 2025–2030 | Givova | Ramsdens Currency |
| 1st – Home | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
          1993–1994 |      1995–1996 |     1997 |     1998 |      1999–2000 |
     2001–2002 |    2003–2004 |     2005–2006 |      2007 |      2008 |
     2009 |      2010 |      2011 |      2012 |  2013 |
    2014 |    2015 |      2016 |    2017 |      2018 |
     2019 |      2020 |      2021 |      2022 |      2023 |
     2024 |      2025 – | |||
| 2nd – Away | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
     1992 |      1993–1994 |     1995–1996 |     1997 |     1998 |
     1999–2000 |      2001–2002 |    2003–2004 |      2005–2006 |      2007 |
     2008 |      2009 |      2010 |      2011 |     2012 |
 2013 |    2014 |    2015 |      2016 |     2017 |
    2018 |      2019 |      2020 |      2021 |      2022 |
     2023 |      2024 – |      2025 – | ||
| 3rd – Special | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
1995 - 1996 CUP 1st | 1995 - 1996 CUP 2nd |    2012 3rd |      2019 Anniversary |      2020 3rd |
     2021 3rd |      2021 Athleta Contract 10th Anniversary |      2022 3rd |      2023 3rd |      2024 3rd |
As of 7 March 2025.[18]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Hiroshi Jofuku |
| Assistant managers | Ichiro WadaHitoshi Morishita Yuta Narawa |
| Goalkeeper coach | Atsushi Shirai |
| Conditioning coach | Yuya Noshiro |
| Analytical coach | Daiki Yamamoto |
| Interpreter | Genta Iwauchi |
| Doctor | Kenta Uemura |
| Trainer | Naoki Matsuda Shuji Ogawa Yusuke Kaneuchi Hiroyoshi Mutaguchi |
| Side manager | Hideki Sato |
| Equipment manager | Ryo Ito Jun Yamato |
| Training coach |  Noh Alam ShahIsa Halim |
| Manager | Nationality | Tenure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Finish | ||
| Jujiro Narita | Japan | 1 February 1970 | 30 June 1973 |
| Frans van Balkom |  Netherlands | 1 February 1973 | 31 January 1976 |
| Shoichi Nishimura | Japan | 1 February 1976 | 31 January 1981 |
| Ryoichi Aikawa | Japan | 1 February 1981 | 30 June 1983 |
| Susumu Chiba | Japan | 1 July 1983 | 31 January 1984 |
| Rudi Gutendorf |  Germany | 1 January 1984 | 30 June 1986 |
| George Yonashiro | Japan | 1 July 1986 | 30 June 1989 |
| Carlos Alberto Silva |  Brazil | 1 July 1990 | 30 June 1991 |
| José Macia "Pepe" | Brazil | 1 January 1991 | 31 December 1992 |
| Yasutarō Matsuki | Japan | 1 February 1993 | 31 January 1995 |
| Nelsinho Baptista | Brazil | 1 February 1995 | 25 April 1996 |
| Yasuyuki Kishino | Japan | 26 April 1996 | 9 May 1996 |
| Émerson Leão | Brazil | 10 May 1996 | 31 January 1997 |
| Hisashi Katō | Japan | 1 February 1997 | 1 June 1997 |
| Valdir Espinosa | Brazil | 2 June 1997 | 30 October 1997 |
| Ryōichi Kawakatsu | Japan | 1 November 1997 | 31 January 1998 |
| Nicanor | Brazil | 1 February 1998 | 7 September 1998 |
| Ryōichi Kawakatsu | Japan | 8 September 1998 | 31 January 1999 |
| Hideki Matsunaga | Japan | 1 February 1999 | 31 January 2000 |
| Chang Woe-ryong |  South Korea | 1 February 2000 | 1 January 2001 |
| Yasutarō Matsuki | Japan | 1 February 2001 | 16 July 2001 |
| Yukitaka Omi | Japan | 17 July 2001 | 9 April 2002 |
| Lori Paulo Sandri | Brazil | 1 January 2002 | 30 June 2003 |
| Osvaldo Ardiles |  Argentina | 16 May 2003 | 18 July 2005 |
| Nobuhiro Ishizaki | Japan | 19 July 2005 | 31 July 2005 |
| Vadão | Brazil | 1 August 2005 | 14 December 2005 |
| Ruy Ramos | Japan | 1 February 2006 | 31 January 2008 |
| Tetsuji Hashiratani | Japan | 1 February 2008 | 31 January 2009 |
| Takuya Takagi | Japan | 1 February 2009 | 14 October 2009 |
| Takeo Matsuda | Japan | 14 October 2009 | 31 January 2010 |
| Ryōichi Kawakatsu | Japan | 1 February 2010 | 6 September 2012 |
| Shinichiro Takahashi | Japan | 6 September 2012 | 31 January 2013 |
| Yasutoshi Miura | Japan | 1 February 2013 | 15 September 2014 |
| Kōichi Togashi | Japan | 1 September 2014 | 31 December 2016 |
| Miguel Ángel Lotina |  Spain | 1 February 2017 | 31 January 2019 |
| Gary White |  England | 1 February 2019 | 17 July 2019 |
| Hideki Nagai | Japan | 17 July 2019 | 1 September 2021 |
| Takafumi Hori | Japan | 2 September 2021 | 13 June 2022 |
| Hiroshi Jofuku | Japan | 14 June 2022 | current |
| Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Promoted | Relegated |
| Season | Div. | Teams | Pos. | P | W(OTW/PKW) | D | L(OTL/PKL) | F | A | GD | Pts | Attendance/G | J.League Cup | Emperor's Cup | Asia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verdy Kawasaki | ||||||||||||||||
| 1992 | – | – | – | – | Winner | Runners-up | CC | 2nd round | ||||||||
| 1993 | J1 | 10 | 1st | 36 | 28 | 8 | 69 | 28 | 41 | 25,235 | Winner | Quarter final | CC | 4th place | ||
| 1994 | 12 | 1st | 44 | 31 | 13 | 91 | 47 | 44 | 24,926 | Winner | 2nd round | CC | 3rd place | |||
| 1995 | 14 | 2nd | 52 | 35 | 13(-/3) | 106 | 62 | 44 | 108 | 20,834 | – | Quarter final | CC | Quarter final | ||
| 1996 | 16 | 7th | 30 | 19 | 11(-/0) | 68 | 42 | 26 | 57 | 17,653 | Runners-Up | Winner | CC | Quarter final | ||
| 1997 | 17 | 15th | 32 | 6(4/0) | 19(1/2) | 38 | 65 | −27 | 26 | 10,933 | Group stage | 3rd round | – | – | ||
| 1998 | 18 | 12th | 34 | 13(0/0) | 17(2/2) | 47 | 53 | −6 | 39 | 13,338 | Group stage | Quarter-final | CWC | Quarter final | ||
| 1999 | 16 | 7th | 30 | 13(4/-) | 2 | 9(2/-) | 43 | 43 | 0 | 49 | 9,379 | 2nd round | Semi-final | – | – | |
| 2000 | 16 | 10th | 30 | 10(2/-) | 4 | 10(4/0) | 46 | 44 | 2 | 38 | 7,609 | Quarter final | 4th round | |||
| Tokyo Verdy 1969 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | J1 | 16 | 14th | 30 | 8(2/-) | 2 | 13(5/-) | 38 | 57 | −19 | 30 | 19,396 | 1st round | Quarter final | – | – |
| 2002 | 16 | 10th | 30 | 8(5/-) | 3 | 14 | 41 | 43 | −2 | 39 | 15,128 | Group stage | 3rd round | |||
| 2003 | 16 | 8th | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 56 | 57 | −1 | 40 | 17,563 | Group stage | Quarter final | |||
| 2004 | 16 | 9th | 30 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 43 | 46 | −3 | 39 | 15,059 | Semi-final | Winner | |||
| 2005 | 18 | 17th | 34 | 6 | 12 | 16 | 40 | 73 | −33 | 30 | 14,716 | Group stage | 4th round | |||
| 2006 | J2 | 13 | 7th | 48 | 21 | 8 | 19 | 69 | 75 | −6 | 71 | 5,705 | Not eligible | 3rd round | CL | Group stage |
| 2007 | 13 | 2nd | 48 | 26 | 11 | 11 | 90 | 57 | 33 | 89 | 7,327 | 3rd round | – | – | ||
| Tokyo Verdy | ||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | J1 | 18 | 17th | 34 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 38 | 50 | −12 | 37 | 14,837 | Group stage | 4th round | – | – |
| 2009 | J2 | 18 | 7th | 51 | 21 | 11 | 19 | 68 | 61 | 7 | 74 | 5,521 | Not eligible | 2nd round | ||
| 2010 | 19 | 5th | 36 | 17 | 7 | 12 | 47 | 34 | 13 | 58 | 5,572 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2011 | 20 | 5th | 38 | 16 | 11 | 11 | 69 | 45 | 24 | 59 | 5,710 | 3rd round | ||||
| 2012 | 22 | 7th | 42 | 20 | 6 | 16 | 65 | 46 | 19 | 66 | 5,341 | 3rd round | ||||
| 2013 | 22 | 13th | 42 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 52 | 58 | −6 | 56 | 6,343 | 3rd round | ||||
| 2014 | 22 | 20th | 42 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 31 | 48 | −17 | 42 | 5,430 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2015 | 22 | 8th | 42 | 16 | 10 | 16 | 43 | 41 | 2 | 58 | 5,655 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2016 | 22 | 18th | 42 | 10 | 13 | 19 | 43 | 61 | −18 | 43 | 5,402 | 3rd round | ||||
| 2017 | 22 | 5th | 42 | 20 | 10 | 12 | 64 | 49 | 15 | 70 | 6,206 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2018 | 22 | 6th | 42 | 19 | 14 | 9 | 56 | 41 | 15 | 71 | 5,936 | 4th round | ||||
| 2019 | 22 | 13th | 42 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 59 | 59 | 0 | 55 | 5,371 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2020† | 22 | 12th | 42 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 48 | 48 | 0 | 54 | 2,429 | Did not qualify | ||||
| 2021† | 22 | 12th | 42 | 16 | 10 | 16 | 62 | 66 | −4 | 58 | 3,246 | 2nd round | ||||
| 2022 | 22 | 9th | 42 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 62 | 55 | 7 | 61 | 4,955 | Quarter-finals | ||||
| 2023 | 22 | 3rd | 42 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 57 | 31 | 26 | 75 | 7,982 | 3rd round | ||||
| 2024 | J1 | 20 | 6th | 38 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 51 | 51 | 0 | 56 | 3rd round | 3rd round | – | – | |
With seven tier one league titles, five Emperor's Cups and six League Cups, Tokyo Verdy is one of the most decorated football clubs in Japan, although nearly all of its titles, came during their stay at Tokyo in the semi-professional era as Yomiuri FC, before the inception of the professional J.League.
| Honour | No. | Years |
|---|---|---|
| JSL 2nd Division | 2 | 1974,1977 |
| JSL Cup | 3 | 1979,1985,1991 |
| JSL 1st Division | 5 | 1983,1984,1986–87,1990–91,1991–92 |
| Emperor's Cup | 5 | 1984,1986,1987,1996,2004 |
| Japanese Super Cup | 4 | 1984,1994,1995,2005 |
| Asian Club Championship | 1 | 1987 |
| Konica Cup | 1 | 1990 |
| J.League Cup | 3 | 1992,1993,1994 |
| J.League 1 | 2 | 1993,1994 |
| Sanwa Bank Cup | 1 | 1994 |
Verdy is apolideportivo and also fields teams inwomen's football,volleyball, andtriathlon.Tokyo Verdy's women's football team is the 12 timeNadeshiko League champions, 14 timeEmpress's Cup winners and 1 timeAFC Women's Club Championship winners.
| Achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Champions of Asia 1987–88 | Succeeded by |
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