is a Japanese professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club from

Kōfu is the capital city of Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 187,985 in 90,924 households, and a population density of 880 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Overview Toponymy Kōfu's name means "c ...

Yamanashi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu. Yamanashi Prefecture has a population of 817,192 (1 January 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,465 km2 (1,724 sq mi). Yamanashi Prefecture borders Saitama Prefecture to the no ...

. The team currently competes in the

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yas ...

, Japanese second tier of professional football, hosting their home matches in the

JIT Recycle Ink Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Kōfu, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches. It serves as a home ground of Ventforet Kofu. The stadium holds 17,000 people and was built in 1985. It is a ...

, located in Kōfu. Ventforet has won a total of 1

title and 1

Emperor's Cup , commonly known as or also Japan FA Cup is a Japanese football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football match in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J.League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, J ...

in their history.

Name origin

The word "Ventforet" is a compound formed from two French root words: "vent" (wind) and "forêt" (forest). The name alludes to the famous phrase Fū-rin-ka-zan (風林火山) that

Takeda Shingen , of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period. Shingen was a warlord of great ...

, a prominent Kōfu-based ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

'' in the

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

, emblazoned on his war banners. The phrase contains four similies: as swift as the wind; as silent as a forest; as fierce as fire; as immovable as a mountain.

History

Kofu Club (1965–1994)

The club was founded in 1965 when the old boys' club of Kofu Dai-ichi High School, the Kakujo Club, started to recruit graduates of other high schools with the intention of promotion to the

Japan Soccer League , or JSL, was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League. JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professional ...

and was formed as Kofu Club. Kofu Club was formed by volunteers, unlike other mainstream football clubs at that time in Japan, whose players were mostly the employees of their sponsoring companies. Kofu Club joined the newly formed JSL Division 2 in 1972. They stayed there until the conclusion of the league in 1992 when it became a founding member of the former Japan Football League.

Ventforet Kofu (1995–present)

The club was renamed Ventforet Kofu in 1995 and joined

J.League Division 2 The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Y ...

in 1999 when it was formed. The club survived a difficult period between 1999 and 2001, when it suffered from financial troubles as well as miserable results on the pitch, including a streak of twenty-five consecutive losses. Ventforet finished bottom for three seasons in succession and was dubbed as "Excess baggage of J2". Ventforet improved in 2002, and in 2005 finished third, gaining promotion to the Japanese first division by winning the promotion/relegation play-offs against

Kashiwa Reysol is a Japanese professional football club based in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Sankyo Frontier Kashiwa Stadiu ...

. However, the team was relegated with a week remaining in the 2007 season. At the end of 2010 season, the team was promoted a second time. Despite having striker

Mike Havenaar is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a striker for FC Bonbonera GIFU. Early life Havenaar's parents came to Japan from the Netherlands in 1986 when his father Dido signed on to play for Hiroshima-based side Mazda FC of the Japa ...

contend for the Top Scorer award in division one the following year, the club was relegated again at the end of 2011. However, it returned after only one year's absence as

champions A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the Victory, victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and w ...

of division two, Ventforet's first championship in its thirty-six-year history. Ventforet remained in J.League 1 until 2017, consistently staying as a top tier J.League 2 team after relegation

Emperor's Cup win (2022)

Ventforet participated in the

2022 Emperor's Cup The 2022 Emperor's Cup (Emperor's Cup JFA 102nd Japan Football Championship (Japanese: 天皇杯 JFA 第102回全日本サッカー選手権大会)) was the 102nd edition of the annually contested cup, taking place from 21 May to 16 October. The f ...

, earning a direct second round entry alongside all J1 and

teams. Following a 5–1 win over Okayama-based

International Pacific University is a private university Private universities and private colleges are institutions of higher education, not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. They may (and often do) receive from governments tax breaks, public stu ...

, they then only faced

J1 League The , known as the for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the system. Founded in 1992, it is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football. Contested by 18 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the J ...

opponents the rest of the tournament. They would beat

Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo is a Japanese professional football club, which plays in the J1 League. The team is based in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Sapporo, on the island of Hokkaido. The club name of "Consadole" is made from ''consado'', a reverse of the Japanese word and the ...

and

Sagan Tosu is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J1 League. The team is located in Tosu, Saga Prefecture. ''Sagan'' is a coined word with a couple of meanings behind it. One of its homophones is in Japanese. This symbolises ...

away from home by 2–1 and 3–1 respectively to advance to the quarter finals, in a stage which they had been on 4 times without ever getting past it. In another match away from home, now against

Avispa Fukuoka is a Japanese professional football club, currently competing in the J1 League. The team is located in Hakata, Fukuoka. "Avispa" means "wasp" in Spanish. They were originally called Fujieda Blux and based in Fujieda, Shizuoka before moving t ...

, the game would be tied up 1–1 and head into extra time, with

Yoshiki Torikai is a Japanese footballer currently playing as a midfielder for Ventforet Kofu. Career statistics Club . ;Notes Honours Club Ventforet Kofu * Emperor's Cup: 2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yam ...

scoring in the 97th minute to bring Kofu to their first Emperor's Cup Semi-final, where they would beat

Kashima Antlers are a football club in Kashima, Ibaraki, currently playing in the J1 League, top tier of Japanese professional football leagues. The name ''Antlers'' is derived from the city name, Kashima, which literally means "deer island". The club has fi ...

thanks to Jumma Miyazaki's goal in the 37th minute to reach their first Emperor's Cup Final. In the final, Kofu were up against

Sanfrecce Hiroshima Sanfrecce Hiroshima ( ja, サンフレッチェ広島, translit=''Sanfuretche Hiroshima'') is a Japanese professional football club based in Asaminami-ku, Hiroshima. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the coun ...

, a J1 team who hadn't won an Emperor's Cup since 1969 (including amateur era).

Kazushi Mitsuhira is a Japanese football player who currently plays for Ventforet Kofu. Club career Mitsuhira begin youth career with Kanagawa University since 2006 to 2009 after graduation at college, he signed to Shonan Bellmare in 2008 as first career and bac ...

scored in the 26th minute to give Kofu the lead, before Sanfrecce midfielder

Takumu Kawamura is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Club career Kawamura was born in Hiroshima Prefecture on August 28, 1999. He joined J1 League club Sanfrecce Hiroshima from youth team in ...

tied the match in the 84th minute. After a scoreless extra time, the final was decided in a penalty shootout. After Sanfrecce missed their fourth penalty, 42-year-old

Hideomi Yamamoto is a Japanese football player who plays for Ventforet Kofu. Playing career Yamamoto was born in Ichikawa on June 26, 1980. He joined J1 League club JEF United Ichihara from youth team in 1999. He debuted against Nagoya Grampus Eight on March 17 ...

scored Kofu's fifth and final penalty to win the Emperor's Cup champions for the first time. Their win marked the first time that a J2 League team had won the Emperor's Cup since

FC Tokyo Football Club Tokyo, commonly known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chōfu, Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The team is one of only four in the J.League to be si ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, the fourth J2 champion overall, and the first occasion in which the winner was not the second division champions. Thus, they will play the

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

while playing in their domestic second-tier league.

AFC Champions League debut (2023)

On 20 September 2023, Ventforet played their first

official match against Australian side Melbourne City for the competition's group stage. Playing away at

Melbourne Rectangular Stadium The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, known as AAMI Park for sponsorship reasons, is an outdoor sports stadium on the site of Edwin Flack Field in the Sports and Entertainment Precinct in the Melbourne central business district. When completed ...

with few of their usual starting players, the match ended in a 0–0 draw, earning them their first point and clean sheet in this competition. On 4 October 2023, Ventforet picked up their first Champions League win against Thai champions

Buriram United Buriram United Football Club ( th, สโมสรฟุตบอลบุรีรัมย์ ยูไนเต็ด) is a professional football club based in Buriram, Thailand. The club has played at the top level of Thai football for the ...

. Motoki Hasegawa scored in stoppage time as Ventforet won 1–0 at home, On 12 December 2023, Ventforet clinched their spots in the

Round of 16 A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

after a 2–3 away win against Buriram United. This marks the first time a team qualified for the knockout phase of the AFC Champions League though not playing in their nation's top division. Ventforet than faced against Korean giants,

Ulsan Hyundai Ulsan Hyundai FC ( ko, 울산 현대 축구단) is a South Korean professional football club based in Ulsan that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Founded in 1983 as Hyundai Horang-i, they joined the K League in ...

in the Round of 16, however, they were knocked out from the tournament after suffering a 5–1 on aggregate defeat.

2023–24 AFC Champions League - Group H

League and cup record

;Key

Honours

League history

*Kanto League: 1967–71 (as Kofu Club) *Division 2 (JSL Div. 2): 1972–91 (as Kofu Club) *Division 3 (former JFL Div. 2): 1992–93 (as Kofu Club) *Division 2 (former JFL): 1994–98 (Kofu Club until 1994, Ventforet Kofu since 1995) *Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 1999–05 *Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2006–07 *Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2008–10 *Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2011 *Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2012 *Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2013–2017 *Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2018–

Current squad

Out on loan

Club officials

Managerial history

Kit evolution

References

External links

* {{Japanese Club Football, group=clubs

Ventforet Kofu is a Japanese football club from Kōfu in Yamanashi Prefecture. The team currently competes in the J2 League and play their home games in JIT Recycle Ink Stadium, located in Kōfu. The word "Ventforet" is a compound formed from two French roo ...

J.League clubs Japan Soccer League clubs Football clubs in Japan Association football clubs established in 1965 Sports clubs and teams in Yamanashi Prefecture 1965 establishments in Japan Japan Football League (1992–1998) clubs Emperor's Cup winners