The Santen IBSA Blind Football World Grand Prix 2021 in Shinagawa, which is a world competition officially authorised by International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) will take place at Shinagawa Tennozu Park from Sunday 30 May to Saturday 5 June. Five participating countries; Japan, Argentina, Spain, Thailand, and France, will compete in a round-robin league match before the top two teams compete in the title match. Blind Football Japan National Team’s first match will be against France on Sunday 30 May at 13:00.

Since 2018, the tournament has been hosted by IBSA and Japan Blind Football Association (JBFA). Although the tournament was cancelled in 2020 due to the worldwide spread of COVID-19, it will be held without spectators this year, while all matches are scheduled to be streamed online.

Blind Football Japan National Team (Announced 1 May 2021)

Position/Name/(Team)
FP KAWAMURA Ryo (Papelecial Shinagawa)
FP TANAKA Akihito (Tama Hassas)
FP KURODA Tomonari (Tama Hassas)
FP KATO Kento (Saitama T.Wings)
FP TERANISHI Hajime (Papelecial Shinagawa)
FP SASAKI Roberto Izumi (Papelecial Shinagawa)
FP SASAKI Yasuhiro (Fantas Chiba SSC Matsudo Warriors)
FP SONOBE Yuzuki (free bird mejirodai)
GK SATO Daisuke (Tama Hassas)
GK IZUMI Kenya (free bird mejirodai)
Coach: TAKADA Satoshi
Guide: NAKAGWA Eiji

Tournament Detail

1. Title
Santen IBSA Blind Football World Grand Prix 2021 in Shinagawa

2. Schedule
Sun. 30 May - Sat. 5 June 2021

3. Venue
Shinagawa Tennozu Park

4. Organiser
IBSA / JBFA

5. Special Co-organiser
Shinagawa City

6. Co-organiser
Japan Para-Sports Association Japan Paralympic Committee / IBF Foundation

7. Nominal Support
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare / Japan Sport Agency / JFA / Japan Inclusive Football Federation / Tokyo Football Association / Tokyo Metropolitan Sports Association for the Disabled / The Asahi Shimbun

8. Title Sponsor
Santen Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.

9. Category Sponsor
Tanaka Holdings Co., Ltd. (Ceremony) / Alfa Romeo (Promotion)/ Tennozu Isle Blind Football Support Project Committee (Home-town)

10. Silver Sponsor
Insource Co., Ltd. / AXA Life Insurance Co., Ltd.

11. Supporters
Assetlead Inc. / SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. /KPMG Japan / Ajinomoto Co., Inc. / All Nippon Airways Co., Ltd. / Marui Group Co., Ltd. / Sojitz Corporation / Tokon Co., Ltd. / Renosy

12. Technical Support
Panasonic Corporation

13. Support
Sakura City (Side-fence)

14. Tournament Official website
http://www.en-wgp-blindfootball.com/

15. Participating Countries
Japan, Argentina, Spain, Thailand, France

16. How to watch
All matches will be streamed online

Results of past tournaments

2018: Winner Argentina, runners-up England, third place Turkey (Japan finished 5th)
2019: Winner Argentina, runners-up England, third place Spain (Japan finished 4th)
2020: Tournament cancelled due to the effects of COVID-19

Comments

TAKADA Satoshi, Coach
I feel very grateful to be given the opportunity to play in such a wonderful tournament despite the difficult circumstance. While we are all in a fight against an invisible enemy called COVID-19, I hope our players can convey a message to the viewers through their performance on the pitch. We thank you for all of the support.

KAWAMURA Ryo, Captain (Papelecial Shinagawa)
This will be the first time I play with the national team since the IBSA Blind Football Asian Championships 2019, and I feel very fortunate to be given this opportunity ahead of the Paralympic games. Although the matches will be played behind closed doors, they will be streamed online, so we hope to showcase a performance that can bring excitement to the viewers. We will give our best efforts to win the gold medal at the Paralympic games, so please stay tuned.