Ōita Trinita (大分トリニータ, Ōita Torinīta) is a Japanese football club located in Ōita, Capital of Ōita Prefecture. They currently play in J2 League, Japanese second tier of professional football.

Ōita Trinita
大分トリニータ
Full nameOita Trinita
Nickname(s)Trinita (トリニータ, Torinīta)
Azzurro (Azūro)
Camenaccio (カメナチオ, Kamenachio)
Founded1994; 30 years ago (1994) as Ōita Trinity
StadiumResonac Dome Oita
Ōita
Capacity40,000 [1]
ChairmanMasakaze Ozawa
ManagerTomohiro Katanosaka
LeagueJ2 League
2024J2 League, 16th of 20
Websiteoita-trinita.co.jp
Current season

Name origin

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The club's name, Trinita, is the Italian translation of the word trinity (trinità), which was the club's original name before being changed in 1999, and Ōita, the club's home town.[2] The combined word expresses the will of the local citizens, companies, and government to support the team. Another connection to the Italian culture can be found in the city nickname Azzurro ("light blue" in Italian).

History

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The club was formed as Ōita Trinity in 1994 and advanced through the Ōita Prefectural League and the Kyushu League before finishing as the runner-up of the 1996 National League, resulting in promotion to the JFL. In 1999, the club changed its name to Trinita due to copyright infringement concerns. The same year, the club joined J.League Division 2, the second-highest flight in Japanese football (renamed to its current name of J2 League in 2015) and placed third. The club also placed third in 2000, and despite being in contention for promotion until the final game of the season in 2001, finished sixth. The following year, the club won J.League Division 2 and finally earned promotion to the top-flight Division 1. In 2008, the club won the J.League Cup, the first major title won by a Kyūshū club since Yawata Steel SC shared the 1964 Emperor's Cup.[3]

In the 2009 season, Ōita suffered their worst-ever results in their seven-year history in the topflight, including 14 straight losses in league matches, which is the current worst record in the J.League since the golden goal system was eliminated. Ōita even fired cup-winning manager Pericles Chamusca in mid-July.[4] On October 25, the club's relegation was confirmed after being held to a 1–1 draw by ten-man Kyoto Sanga, although the club would have faced relegation anyway as they had outstanding loans from the JFL's emergency fund and league rules prohibit clubs with such loans from participating in the top tier.[5]

During the 2012 J.League Division 2 season, Ōita finished in sixth place, qualifying for the promotion playoffs in the first year of its introduction in Japan's second flight as the club had also paid back all its emergency loans that October. Despite being the lowest seed, Ōita defeated Kyoto Sanga 4–0 in the semi-final and JEF United Chiba 1–0 in the final, earning promotion to 2013 J.League Division 1, returning to the top tier after a 5-year absence[6] This time, however, their top tier stay lasted only one season. In 2015 they were further relegated to J3 League after losing in the promotion playoffs to Machida Zelvia on December 6,[7] becoming the first major trophy winner to be relegated to the third tier. The club immediately gained promotion back to J2 League by winning the J3 League title in 2016. In 2018, after finishing as runner's up in the J2 League in 2018, Oita Trinita gained promotion back to J1. After finishing 18th in 2021, Trinita would be relegated back to J2 League, but in the background of that, the club made a Cinderella run to the Emperor's Cup Final. Just 1 week after the confirmation to be relegated, they defeated defending Emperor's Cup champion Kawasaki Frontale in stunning fashion in the semis; after the game was tied 1 all, Trinita won 4–5 on penalty kicks. They ended up losing to Urawa Red Diamonds in the final, giving the Reds their eighth Emperor's Cup title.

The club will play its second consecutive season at the J2 League in the 2023 season.

Stadium

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Ōita Stadium

The club's home town is the city of Ōita, but the club draws support from the entire Ōita Prefecture. The stadium originally had a capacity of 43,000. After the 2002 FIFA World Cup, 3,000 movable seats on the track were removed, giving the stadium its current capacity of 40,000.

The club's home ground is Resonac Dome Oita, also known as the "Big Eye", which was one of the venues built for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The club practices at its adjacent football and rugby field, and Ōita City Public Ground.


Kit evolution

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Home kit - 1st
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1999
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2000 - 2001
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2002 - 2003
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2004
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2005 - 2006
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2007
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2008
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2009
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2010 - 2011
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2012 - 2013
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2014
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2015
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2016
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2017
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2019
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2020
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2021
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2022
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2024 -
Away kit - 2nd
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1999 - 2001
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2002 - 2003
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2004
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2005
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2006
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2007
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2008
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2009
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2010
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2011
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2012 - 2013
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2014
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2015
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2016
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2017 - 2018
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2019
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2020
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2021
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2022
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2024 -
Special kits - 3rd
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2020
Limited
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2021
Limited
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2022
Limited
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023
Limited


Players

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Current squad

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As of 16 August 2024.[8]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
2 DF   JPN Yuki Kagawa
3 DF   BRA Derlan
4 DF   JPN Atsuki Satsukawa
5 MF   JPN Hiroto Nakagawa
6 MF   JPN Masaki Yumiba
7 MF   JPN Tsukasa Umesaki
8 MF   JPN Yamato Machida
9 FW   BRA Samuel
10 MF   JPN Naoki Nomura
11 FW   JPN Arata Watanabe (captain)
13 FW   JPN Kohei Isa
14 MF   JPN Ren Ikeda
15 FW   JPN Yusei Yashiki
16 MF   JPN Taira Shige
17 DF   JPN Kento Haneda
18 MF   JPN Junya Nodake
19 MF   JPN Arata Kozakai
20 FW   JPN Taiga Kimoto
21 FW   JPN Shun Ayukawa (on loan from Sanfrecce Hiroshima)
22 GK   KOR Mun Kyung-gun
23 DF   JPN Shunsuke Ono
24 GK   JPN Konosuke Nishikawa
No. Pos. Nation Player
25 DF   JPN Tomoya Ando
26 MF   JPN Kenshin Yasuda
27 DF   JPN Yusuke Matsuo
29 FW   JPN Shinya Utsumoto
30 DF   JPN Yusho Takahashi
31 DF   BRA Pereira
32 GK   JPN Taro Hamada
33 DF   JPN Ayuki Miyakawa DSP
34 DF   JPN Yudai Fujiwara (on loan from Urawa Red Diamonds)
35 MF   JPN Josei Sato
36 MF   JPN Hayato Matsuoka
37 MF   JPN Manato Kimoto DSP
39 FW   JPN Shuto Udo DSP
41 FW   KOR Kim Hyun-woo
42 MF   JPN Seiryu Ono Type 2
43 DF   JPN Soha Yano Type 2
44 DF   JPN Manato Yoshida (on loan from Yokohama F. Marinos)
48 GK   JPN Hiroto Kono Type 2
93 FW   JPN Shun Nagasawa
99 FW   JPN Daigo Takahashi (on loan from Machida Zelvia)

Club captains

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Club official

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Position Staff
Manager   Tomohiro Katanosaka
Head coach   Minoru Takenaka
First-team coach   Kazuki Fukui
  Satoshi Yasui
Goalkeeper coach   Keisuke Yoshisaka
Physical coach   Ryo Yano
Trainer   Kiyohisa Shibata
  Toru Mizoguchi
  Ryosuke Shibata
  Shota Harada
Competent   Hikaru Kikuzumi
Side affairs   Keishiro Seto
Akito Shimoyama
Interpreter   Alejandro Masafumi Matsumura

Managerial history

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Manager Nationality Tenure
Start Finish
Moon Jung-sik   South Korea 1 February 1994 31 January 1997
Nobuhiro Ishizaki   Japan 1 February 1999 30 April 2001
Shinji Kobayashi   Japan 1 May 2001 31 January 2004
Han Berger   Netherlands 1 February 2004 31 January 2005
Hwangbo Kwan   South Korea 1 February 2005 28 August 2005
Arie Schans   Netherlands 1 September 2005 8 September 2005
Pericles Chamusca   Brazil 9 September 2005 13 July 2009
Ranko Popović   Serbia 1 August 2009 31 December 2009
Hwangbo Kwan   South Korea 1 February 2010 31 January 2011
Kazuaki Tasaka   Japan 1 February 2011 2 June 2015
Nobuaki Yanagida   Japan 1 June 2015 3 January 2016
Tomohiro Katanosaka   Japan 1 February 2016 31 January 2022
Takahiro Shimotaira   Japan 1 February 2022 10 November 2023
Tomohiro Katanosaka (2)   Japan 30 November 2023

Record as J.League member

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Champions Runners-up Third place Promoted Relegated
Season Div. Teams Pos. P W (OTW) D L (OTL) F A GD Pts Attendance/G J.League Cup Emperor's Cup
1999 J2 10 3rd 36 18 (3) 3 8 (4) 62 42 20 63 3,886 2nd round 3rd round
2000 11 3rd 40 26 (0) 3 8 (3) 80 38 42 81 4,818 1st round 3rd round
2001 12 6th 44 24 (1) 4 9 (6) 75 52 23 78 6,638 2nd round 3rd round
2002 12 1st 44 28 10 6 67 34 33 94 12,349 Not eligible 4th round
2003 J1 16 14th 30 5 11 14 27 37 -10 26 21,373 Group stage 3rd round
2004 16 13th 30 8 6 16 35 56 -21 30 21,889 Group stage 5th round
2005 18 11th 34 12 7 15 44 43 1 43 22,080 Group stage 5th round
2006 18 8th 34 13 8 13 47 45 2 47 20,350 Group stage 5th round
2007 18 14th 34 12 5 17 42 60 -18 41 19,759 Group stage 5th round
2008 18 4th 34 16 8 10 33 24 9 56 20,322 Winners 4th round
2009 18 17th 34 8 6 20 26 45 -19 30 18,428 Group stage 3rd round
2010 J2 19 15th 36 10 11 15 39 49 -10 41 10,463 Not eligible 3rd round
2011 20 12th 38 12 14 12 42 45 -3 50 8,779 2nd round
2012 22 6th 42 21 8 13 59 40 19 71 9,721 2nd round
2013 J1 18 18th 34 2 8 24 31 67 -36 14 11,915 Group stage Quarter finals
2014 J2 22 7th 42 17 12 13 52 55 -3 63 8,422 Not eligible 3rd round
2015 22 21st 42 8 14 20 41 51 -10 38 7,533 3rd round
2016 J3 16 1st 30 19 4 7 50 24 26 61 7,771 3rd round
2017 J2 22 9th 42 17 13 12 58 50 8 64 8,063 3rd round
2018 22 2nd 42 23 7 12 76 51 25 76 8,907 2nd round
2019 J1 18 9th 34 12 11 11 35 35 0 47 15,347 Group stage Quarter finals
2020 18 11th 34 11 10 13 36 45 -9 43 5,147 Group stage Did not qualify
2021 20 18th 38 9 8 21 31 55 -24 35 6,722 Group stage Runners-up
2022 J2 22 5th 42 17 15 10 62 52 10 66 6,618 Group stage 3rd round
2023 22 9th 42 17 11 14 54 56 -2 62 9,143 Not eligible 2nd round
2024 20 16th 38 10 13 15 33 47 -14 43 10,360 First round Round of 16
2025 20 TBD 38 TBD TBD
Key
  • Pos. = Position in league; P = Games played; W = Games won; D = Games drawn; L = Games lost; F = Goals scored; A = Goals conceded; GD = Goals difference; Pts = Points gained
  • OTW = Overtime wins - 1999, 2000, 2001 & 2002 Overtime wins only
  • OTL = Overtime losses - 1999, 2000 & 2001 Overtime losses only
  • 3 points for a win; 2 points for an overtime win (OTW), 1 point for a drawn game.
  • Attendance/G = Average home league attendance
  • 2020 & 2021 seasons attendances reduced by COVID-19 worldwide pandemic
  • Note: The 2011 season changed temporarily because of Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, clubs in the affected area could not play, therefore the Division 2 North & Division 2 South merged into one group and the clubs only played once each. No promotion to Division 1 in that season.
  • Source: J.League Data Site

Honours

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Honour No. Years
Kyushu Soccer League 1 1995
J2 League 1 2002
J.League Cup 1 2008
J3 League 1 2016

References

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  1. ^ "Listing in Stadium DB". stadiumdb.com/. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  2. ^ "クラブ・選手名鑑 大分トリニータ" [Club · Player's Directory Oita Trinita] (in Japanese). J.League. Archived from the original on 14 April 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  3. ^ "J.League News No.40" (PDF). J.League. November 24, 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 January 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  4. ^ Andrew Mckirdy (July 9, 2009). "Indecision over Chamusca can only worsen Oita's plight". Japan Times. Archived from the original on 13 November 2017. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  5. ^ "A yellow card for J.League". Japan Times. December 12, 2009. Archived from the original on 10 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  6. ^ Andrew Mckirdy (November 24, 2012). "Trinita slip past JEF United to earn promotion to first division". Japan Times. Archived from the original on 10 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  7. ^ "Machida promoted to J2". J. League. December 8, 2015. Archived from the original on February 22, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2016.
  8. ^ "選手・スタッフ一覧". 大分トリニータ公式サイト (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 15 April 2022. Retrieved 30 April 2022.
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