Japan Men's National Team Profile

Asher Hyre Updated: Apr 28 2026 19:20

Japan's Men's National Soccer Team has qualified for its eighth straight World Cup, where it hopes to progress out of the group stage for the second straight tournament.

Prior to 1998, Japan had not qualified for a World Cup in the country's history. Since then, they've ranked consistently in the top-20 and are a difficult team to knock out of the prestigious tournament.

Japan Men's National Team Results

Last 10 games:

Date	Competition	Opponent	Result
March 31, 2026	Friendly	England	1-0 W
March 28, 2026	Friendly	Scotland	1-0 W
Nov. 18, 2025	Friendly	Bolivia	3-0 W
Nov. 14, 2025	Friendly	Ghana	2-0 W
Oct. 14, 2025	Friendly	Brazil	3-2 W
Oct. 10, 2025	Friendly	Paraguay	2-2 D
Sept. 9, 2025	Friendly	USA	0-2 L
Sept. 6, 2025	Friendly	Mexico	0-0 D
June 10, 2025	AFC World Cup Qualifying	Indonesia	6-0 W
June 5, 2025	AFC World Cup Qualifying	Australia	0-1 L
March 25, 2025	AFC World Cup Qualifying	Saudi Arabia	0-0 D

Japan Men's National Team World Cup Schedule

Date	Competition	Opponent
June 14, 2026	World Cup	Netherlands
June 20, 2026	World Cup	Tunisia
June 25, 2026	World Cup	Sweden

How to Watch the Japan Men's National Team in the World Cup

All of Japan's World Cup matches will be broadcast on either FS1 or Fox for an English broadcast, and Telemundo for a Spanish broadcast. Their matches will also all be available to stream on Peacock.

Previous World Cup Summary (2022)

Japan made it through the group stage in the 2022 World Cup, before eventually falling to Croatia in penalties.

Japan was impressive in the group stage, knocking off powerhouses Germany and Spain by a score of 2-1 in each game. They lost to Costa Rica, but ended up leading the group with six points.

As mentioned previously, they played Croatia well, drawing 1-1 in regulation time before losing 3-1 in penalties in the knockout Round of 16.

Japan World Cup History

Japan has been a staple in World Cup play in the 2000s. They've made seven straight World Cups, with their best finish coming in the Round of 16 (four times).

They've made the Round of 16 in two straight tournaments, 2018 and 2022, falling to Belgium and Croatia respectively.

Japan Asian Cup History

Japan has been a powerhouse in Asian Cup history, appearing in 11 tournaments and winning four of them (1992, 2000, 2004, 2011).

Their four Asian Cup wins are the most in history, and they also finished as runners-up in 2019.

Japan Soccer Olympics History

Japan has consistently been in the Olympics, finishing fourth in 2020 in their home country.

Their best finish at the Olympics was in 1968 when their soccer team won the bronze medal in Mexico City.

In 2024, the men's team reached the quarterfinal stage but lost to Spain 3-0. They dominated in the group stage however, winning all matches against Paraguya, Mali, and Israel without allowing a single goal.

Japan Soccer Manager

Japan's current manager is Hajime Moriyasu, a former player who made more than 250 appearances with multiple professional teams in Japan.

He made 35 appearances with team Japan itself, scoring one goal for his home country.

Moriyasu was appointed as manager in 2018, leading Japan to successful World Cup and Olympic runs during his time.

Key Active Japan Players

Name	Position	Age	Japan Caps	Japan Goals	Japan Assists	Club
Hidemasa Morita	Midfielder	27	39	6	4	Sporting CP
Kaishu Sano	Midfielder	25	11	0	1	Mainz 05
Wataru Endo	Midfielder	33	55	4	3	Liverpool
Hiroki Ito	Defender	26	21	1	1	Bayern Munich
Takumi Minamino	Forward	31	70	25	11	Monaco
Junya Ito	Midfielder	33	62	15	24	Genk