is a Japanese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

defensive midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for club

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

and

captains Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

the Japan national team. Endo began his career at J1 League club

Shonan Bellmare is a Japanese professional football club based in Hiratsuka, in the west of Kanagawa 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 Hiratsuk ...

before moving to

Urawa Red Diamonds The or simply Urawa Reds (浦和レッズ, ''Urawa Rezzu''), also known as Mitsubishi Urawa Football Club from April 1992 to January 1996, are a professional association football, football club in the city of Saitama (city), Saitama, part of t ...

in 2016, where he won the league title and the

2017 AFC Champions League The 2017 AFC Champions League was the 36th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 15th under the current AFC Champions League title. Urawa Red Diamonds defeated Al-Hil ...

. In 2018, he joined

Sint-Truiden Sint-Truiden (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg, Flemish Region, Belgium. With more than 41,500 inhabitants, it is on ...

of the Belgian Pro League, before being loaned to

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

club

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V. (), commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German professional sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's Association football, football team is currently part of Germany's f ...

in 2019. He signed permanently with Stuttgart in April 2020, captaining them during his final season in Germany. Endo joined Liverpool in August 2023. Endo made his debut for the Japan national team in 2015, and has since made 70 appearances for the national team, including in two

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

s and two

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second-oldest c ...

s. He captained Japan for the first time in June 2023.

Club career

Shonan Bellmare

Endo began his professional career with Shonan Bellmare. After being relegated in 2013, he would help Shonan regain promotion back to the J1 League, scoring seven goals in 38 league matches as they won the

2014 J.League Division 2 The 2014 J.League Division 2 season was the 43rd season of the second-tier club football in Japan and the 16th season since the establishment of J2 League. The season commenced on 2 March and ended on 23 November. Post-season promotion and relega ...

title. His form continued into the following season, where he scored four goals in 31 league matches and helped his side to a comfortable 8th-placed finish. Endo recorded a total of 23 goals in 167 matches during his tenure at the club.

Urawa Red Diamonds

Endo's performances were noticed and he was quickly signed by fellow J1 League side

, who had finished as runners-up the previous season. In his first campaign with his new club, Endo claimed the 2016 J.League Cup, scoring the winning penalty in the final shoot-out. The following season, he won the

2017 Suruga Bank Championship The 2017 Suruga Bank Championship (; ) was the tenth edition of the Suruga Bank Championship (also referred to as the ''J.League Cup / Copa Sudamericana Championship Final''), the club football match co-organized by the Japan Football Association, ...

, as well as the greatest honour in Asian football, the

. Throughout his time at Urawa Red Diamonds, Endo accumulated a total of six goals in 109 matches.

Sint-Truiden

Endo joined

Belgian Pro League The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023 ...

outfit

in 2018, playing one year at the club and scoring two goals.

VfB Stuttgart

On 13 August 2019, Endo was loaned out to German club

until the end of the season. In April 2020, Stuttgart signed Endo permanently. On 26 November 2020, Endo extended his contract with VfB Stuttgart until June 2024. On 25 February 2022, Endo scored Stuttgart's only goal in a 2–1 loss to 1899 Hoffenheim. He scored again in the club's 3–2 win over

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e.V. Mönchengladbach, better known as Borussia Mönchengladbach () and colloquially known as just Gladbach, is a professional Association football, football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-W ...

. On 14 May 2022, Endo netted the winning goal in stoppage time of a 2–1 victory against

1. FC Köln 1. Fußball-Club Köln 01/07 e. V., better known as simply 1. FC Köln () or FC Cologne in English language, English, is a German professional association football, football club based in Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 ...

to save Stuttgart from the relegation play-offs and secure their place in the

2022–23 Bundesliga The 2022–23 Bundesliga was the 60th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 5 August 2022 and concluded on 27 May 2023. Bayern Munich were the ten-time consecutive defending champions and retained their ti ...

. Endo's final appearance for Stuttgart was in a

DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal (), also known as the German Cup in English language, English, is a German knockout Association football, football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competiti ...

first round match against

TSG Balingen TSG Balingen is a German football club from the city of Balingen, Baden-Württemberg. With over 1,800 members, it is the largest sports club in the city and has departments for athletics, basketball, fencing, fistball, gymnastics, handball, ju ...

on 12 August 2023, where he scored the fourth goal of a 4–0 win.

Liverpool

On 18 August 2023, Endo signed a four-year deal with

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club

for a fee of £16 million. He became just the second male Japanese footballer to play for the club after

Takumi Minamino is a Japanese professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or Winger (association football), winger for Ligue 1 club AS Monaco FC, Monaco and the Japan national football team, Japan national team. Minam ...

who joined the club in 2020. The following day, he made his Premier League and club debut against

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

, coming on as a substitute in the 63rd minute. Endo was praised for his performance, only misplacing one pass. On 27 August, Endo made his first Liverpool and Premier League start in an away victory against

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

. On 27 September, he made his first full Anfield appearance and contributed to Liverpool's victory in the third round of the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

against

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, assisting

Dominik Szoboszlai Dominik Szoboszlai ( ; born 25 October 2000) is a Hungarian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Liverpool F.C., Liverpool and Captain (association football), captains the Hungary national football t ...

for the deciding goal. On 26 October 2023, Endo scored his first goal for Liverpool in a 5–1 win over

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

at Anfield in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

. On 3 December 2023, Endo scored his first Premier League goal, an equaliser just four minutes after being substituted on, in a 4–3 victory over

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

. Afterwards, he started the next seven fixtures as Liverpool achieved victories against

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

and

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. In recognition of his efforts, Endo was voted Liverpool's Player of the Month for December. He played the full 120 minutes of the

2024 EFL Cup final The 2024 EFL Cup final was the final match of the 2023–24 EFL Cup. It was played between Chelsea F.C., Chelsea and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, in a repeat of the 2022 EFL Cup final, 2022 final, at Wembley Stadium in London, England, on 25 Februa ...

, in which Liverpool defeated Chelsea 1–0, earning Endo his first trophy with the club.

International career

On 23 July 2015,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

's coach

Vahid Halilhodžić Vahid Halilhodžić (; born 15 May 1952) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He is regarded as one of the most controversially successful Bosnian football managers, due to his successful tenure in coaching various nation ...

called Endo up to the squad for the upcoming

2015 EAFF East Asian Cup The 2015 EAFF East Asian Cup was the 6th edition of the EAFF East Asian Cup, the football championship of East Asia. It was held in China in 2015. Two preliminary competitions were held during 2014. First preliminary round *All matches were pl ...

. On 2 August 2015, he made his international debut in the opening game of the competition in a 2–1 defeat to

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. He was named in Japan's squad for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

in Russia, although he did not play in any of their matches. Endo was again in the Japan squad for the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

in Qatar, where the team reached the round of 16 before losing to

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

on penalties. Endo has scored three international goals. He was named captain of the national team in June 2023. In January 2024, he was named for the

2023 AFC Asian Cup The 2023 AFC Asian Cup was the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It involved 24 national teams after its expansion in 20 ...

final squads, and scored a late goal for Japan in the 2–1 loss against

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in their second group match.

Style of play

Endo mainly plays as a defensive midfielder, but can also play as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

. His ability to read the game has helped him gain success in the Bundesliga, and he has gained reputation as a prolific ball-winner. While playing in Germany, he topped the Bundesliga for most duels, and second for possession won and tackles. The

's official website states that at Liverpool, Endo's biggest role is picking up loose balls and recycling possession efficiently. He is also able to make active plays when needed, forcing turnovers and making tackles.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Endō goal''

Honours

Shonan Bellmare * J.League Division 2:

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

Urawa Red Diamonds *

J.League Cup The is a Japanese Association football, football (soccer) competition organised by J.League, the men's association football league in Japan. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since it ...

: 2016 *

Suruga Bank Championship The J.League Cup / Copa Sudamericana Championship was an annual intercontinental football match held in Japan, contested by the reigning champions of the J.League Cup and the Copa Sudamericana. The tournament was previously officially called the ...

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

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

Liverpool *

: 2024–25 *

: 2023–24; runner-up: 2024–25 Japan U23 *

AFC U-23 Asian Cup The AFC U-23 Asian Cup, previously the AFC U-22 Championship (in 2013) and AFC U-23 Championship (between 2016 and 2020), is a biennial international football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the men's under-23 n ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Japan *

runner-up: 2019 Individual * J2 League Monthly MVP: April 2014 *Japan Pro-Footballers Association Best XI: 2022, 2023, 2024 * AFC Asian Cup Team of the Tournament: 2023 *

IFFHS The International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) is an organisation that chronicles the history and records of association football. It was founded in 1984 by Alfredo Pöge in Leipzig. The IFFHS was based in Abu Dhabi for so ...

Asian Men's Team of the Year: 2024

References

External links

Profile
at the Liverpool F.C. website

at the Japan Football Association website * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Endo, Wataru 1993 births Living people People from Totsuka, Yokohama Association football people from Kanagawa Prefecture Japanese men's footballers Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Shonan Bellmare players Urawa Red Diamonds players Sint-Truidense V.V. players VfB Stuttgart players Liverpool F.C. players J1 League players J2 League players Belgian Pro League players Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players Premier League players Japan men's youth international footballers 21st-century Japanese sportsmen Japan men's international footballers Footballers at the 2014 Asian Games Footballers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Japan 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2019 AFC Asian Cup players Asian Games competitors for Japan Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics 2022 FIFA World Cup players 2023 AFC Asian Cup players AFC Champions League Elite–winning players Japanese expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Japanese expatriate sportspeople in England Japanese expatriate sportspeople in Germany