Japan has announced the squad for World Cup 2026, the 26 players that will aim to improve their best results in World Cup this summer in the US, Canada, and Mexico. They are scheduled to play against Netherlands on June 14, Tunisia on June 20, and Sweden on June 26, in Dallas and Mexico.
Alongside France, Japan has been one of the first countries to announce the full and final squad, way before deadline set by FIFA. And the 26 player list selected by coach Hajime Moriyasu features many players from European leagues, with only three from the J-League, including 39-year-old Yūto Nagatomo from FC Tokyo.
English fans will know Wataru Endo from Liverpool, Daichi Kamada from Crystal Palace, and Ao Tanaka from Leeds United. There are also many from Germany, such as Hiroki Ito from Bayern Munich, Kaishu Sano from Mainz 05; from the Dutch league such as Ko Itakura and Takehiro Tomiyasu from Ajax or Tsuyoshi Watanabe from Feyenoord; and of course the Spanish champion Takefusa Kubo from Real Sociedad.
Japan squad for World Cup 2026:
Goalkeepers
Tomoki Hayakawa - Kashima Antlers (Japan)
Keisuke Osako - Sanfrecce Hiroshima (Japan)
Aya Suzuka - Parma Calcio (Italy)
Defenders
Yuto Nagatomo - FC Tokyo (Japan)
Shogo Taniguchi - Sint-Truiden VV (Belgium)
Ko Itakura - Ajax (Netherlands)
Tsuyoshi Watanabe - Feyenoord (Netherlands)
Takehiro Tomiyasu - Ajax (Netherlands)
Hiroki Ito - Bayern Munich (Germany)
Ayumu Seko - Le Havre AC (France)
Yukinari Sugawara - Werder Bremen (Germany)
Junosuke Suzuki - FC Copenhagen (Denmark)
Midfielders/Forwards
Wataru Endo - Liverpool FC (England)
Junya Ito - KRC Genk (Belgium)
Daichi Kamada - Crystal Palace (England)
Koki Ogawa - NEC Nijmegen (Netherlands)
Daizen Maeda - Celtic (Scotland)
Ritsu Doan - Eintracht Frankfurt (Germany)
Ayase Ueda - Feyenoord (Netherlands)
Ao Tanaka - Leeds United (England)
Keito Nakamura - Stade de Reims (France)
Kaishu Sano - Mainz 05 (Germany)
Takefusa Kubo - Real Sociedad (Spain)
Ito Suzuki - SC Freiburg (Germany)
Kento Shiode - VfL Wolfsburg (Germany)
Keisuke Goto - Sint-Truiden VV (Belgium)
Japan has not missed any World Cup since their first appearance in France 1998. That year, they were one of the worst teams, losing all group matches, but the Samurai Blue have reached round of 16 in three occasions, including last time in Qatar 2022, where they were group leaders beating Germany and Spain, only losing to Croatia in round of 16 in penalties.
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