The Prince Takamado Trophy JFA 32nd U-15 Japan Football Championship will kick-off on Saturday 12 December, as regional representatives will clash to determine the national champion of the U-15 category.

The tournament is held to develop football skills and to promote healthy growth of youth football players at the junior high school category. Normally the regional representatives are determined through results of league competitions played that year, but due to the effects of COVID-19, many leagues were cancelled, leaving out some of the teams from this year’s national competition. Therefore the 32 teams advancing to the knockout stage will be playing on behalf of those teams and players who were not able to qualify for the tournament.

Fixtures up to the quarterfinals will be played at two venues in Gunma and at J-GREEN Sakai in Osaka, while the semi-finals and final will be played at Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka in Tokyo. The final is scheduled to take place on Monday 28 December to determine the national champion.

Despite finishing in third place at the Kansai Sunrise League, last year’s champion, Gamba Osaka Junior Youth (Kansai1/Osaka) showcased their strengths by winning through the play-offs to earn their ticket into the national competition, as they seek to defend their title.

Last year’s runners-up, Sagan Tosu U-15 (Kyushu2/Saga) topped the Kyushu league with an undefeated record. SAKAIYA Keisuke, who shined in last year’s tournament will be returning this year wearing the number 10 jersey.

As one of the most competitive regions in the nation, Kanto is assigned with eight qualifying spots and FC Lavida (Kanto1/Saitama) will be entering the tournament as the number one qualifier from Kanto. Since the club was established in 2012, the Saitama side has shown steady improvements over the years. This year, the club has won the title of the Kanto first division, in their first year joining the league. It will be interesting to see if they can carry their momentum into the national stage.

Each year, there are junior high school teams making their appearance at this tournament. This year, Aomori Yamada Junior High School (Tohoku1/Aomori) and Nisshou Gakuen Junior High School (Kyushu3/Miyazaki) have made it through to the national stage. Club teams have been dominating the tournament in recent years, but it will be interesting to see how these junior high school teams will cope against the clubs and academy teams.

Prince Takamado Trophy JFA 32nd U-15 Japan Football Championship

Tournament duration: Sat. 12 - Mon. 28 December 2020

Tournament Information