Ventforet Kofu

Ventforet Kofu (ヴァンフォーレ甲府, Vanfōre Kōfu) is a Japanese professional football club from Kōfu in Yamanashi Prefecture. The team currently competes in the J2 League, Japanese second tier of professional football, hosting their home matches in the JIT Recycle Ink Stadium, located in Kōfu.

Ventforet Kofu
ヴァンフォーレ甲府

Full name	Ventforet Kofu Football Club
Nickname(s)	Ventforet
Short name	VFK
Founded	1965 (1965) as Kofu Club
Stadium	JIT Recycle Ink Stadium, Kōfu
Capacity	17,000
Chairman	Kazuyuki Umino
Manager	Yoshiyuki Shinoda
League	J2 League
2023	J2 League, 8th of 22
Website	www.ventforet.jp
Home colours Away colours

Ventforet has won a total of 1 J2 League title and 1 Emperor's Cup in their history.

Name origin

The word "Ventforet" is a compound formed from two French root words: "vent" (wind) and "forêt" (forest). The name alludes to the famous phrase Fū-rin-ka-zan (風林火山) that Takeda Shingen, a prominent Kōfu-based daimyō in the Sengoku period, emblazoned on his war banners. The phrase contains four similies: as swift as the wind; as silent as a forest; as fierce as fire; as immovable as a mountain.

History

Kofu Club (1965–1994)

The club was founded in 1965 when the old boys' club of Kofu Dai-ichi High School, the Kakujo Club, started to recruit graduates of other high schools with the intention of promotion to the Japan Soccer League and was formed as Kofu Club. Kofu Club was formed by volunteers, unlike other mainstream football clubs at that time in Japan, whose players were mostly the employees of their sponsoring companies.

Kofu Club joined the newly formed JSL Division 2 in 1972. They stayed there until the conclusion of the league in 1992 when it became a founding member of the former Japan Football League.

Ventforet Kofu (1995–present)

The club was renamed Ventforet Kofu in 1995 and joined J.League Division 2 in 1999 when it was formed. The club survived a difficult period between 1999 and 2001, when it suffered from financial troubles as well as miserable results on the pitch, including a streak of twenty-five consecutive losses. Ventforet finished bottom for three seasons in succession and was dubbed as "Excess baggage of J2".

Ventforet improved in 2002, and in 2005 finished third, gaining promotion to the Japanese first division by winning the promotion/relegation play-offs against Kashiwa Reysol. However, the team was relegated with a week remaining in the 2007 season.

At the end of 2010 season, the team was promoted a second time. Despite having striker Mike Havenaar contend for the Top Scorer award in division one the following year, the club was relegated again at the end of 2011. However, it returned after only one year's absence as champions of division two, Ventforet's first championship in its thirty-six-year history. Ventforet remained in J.League 1 until 2017, consistently staying as a top tier J.League 2 team after relegation

Emperor's Cup win (2022)

Ventforet participated in the 2022 Emperor's Cup, earning a direct second round entry alongside all J1 and J2 League teams. Following a 5–1 win over Okayama-based International Pacific University, they then only faced J1 League opponents the rest of the tournament. They would beat Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo and Sagan Tosu away from home by 2–1 and 3–1 respectively to advance to the quarter finals, in a stage which they had been on 4 times without ever getting past it. In another match away from home, now against Avispa Fukuoka, the game would be tied up 1–1 and head into extra time, with Yoshiki Torikai scoring in the 97th minute to bring Kofu to their first Emperor's Cup Semi-final, where they would beat Kashima Antlers thanks to Jumma Miyazaki's goal in the 37th minute to reach their first Emperor's Cup Final.

In the final, Kofu were up against Sanfrecce Hiroshima, a J1 team who hadn't won an Emperor's Cup since 1969 (including amateur era). Kazushi Mitsuhira scored in the 26th minute to give Kofu the lead, before Sanfrecce midfielder Takumu Kawamura tied the match in the 84th minute. After a scoreless extra time, the final was decided in a penalty shootout. After Sanfrecce missed their fourth penalty, 42-year-old Hideomi Yamamoto scored Kofu's fifth and final penalty to win the Emperor's Cup champions for the first time. Their win marked the first time that a J2 League team had won the Emperor's Cup since FC Tokyo in 2011, the fourth J2 champion overall, and the first occasion in which the winner was not the second division champions. Thus, they will play the AFC Champions League while playing in their domestic second-tier league.

AFC Champions League debut (2023)

On 20 September 2023, Ventforet played their first AFC Champions League official match against Australian side Melbourne City for the competition's group stage. Playing away at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium with few of their usual starting players, the match ended in a 0–0 draw, earning them their first point and clean sheet in this competition. On 4 October 2023, Ventforet picked up their first Champions League win against Thai champions Buriram United. Motoki Hasegawa scored in stoppage time as Ventforet won 1–0 at home, On 12 December 2023, Ventforet clinched their spots in the Round of 16 after a 2–3 away win against Buriram United. This marks the first time a team qualified for the knockout phase of the AFC Champions League though not playing in their nation's top division. Ventforet than faced against Korean giants, Ulsan Hyundai in the Round of 16, however, they were knocked out from the tournament after suffering a 5–1 on aggregate defeat.

2023–24 AFC Champions League - Group H

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification		VEN	MCY	ZHP	BUR
1	Ventforet Kofu	6	3	2	1	11	8	3	11	Advance to round of 16		—	3–3	4–1	1–0
2	Melbourne City	6	2	3	1	8	6	2	9			0–0	—	1–1	0–1
3	Zhejiang	6	2	1	3	9	13	−4	7			2–0	1–2	—	3–2
4	Buriram United	6	2	0	4	9	10	−1	6			2–3	0–2	4–1	—

Source: AFC
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

League and cup record

Champions

Runners-up

Third place

Promoted

Relegated

League													J.League Cup	Emperor's Cup	AFC Champions League
Year	Division	Tier	Pos.	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts	Attendance/G
1992	former JFL Div. 2	3	5th	18	9	1	8	26	29	-3	28		Not eligible		Not eligible
1993			9th	18	6	-	12	15	37	-22	-
1994	former JFL	2	14th	30	9	-	21	36	74	-38	-			2nd round
1995			9th	30	14	-	16	54	54	0	43
1996			11th	30	11	-	19	50	56	-6	33			2nd round
1997			6th	30	19	-	11	59	41	18	52			3rd round
1998			4th	30	22	-	8	74	40	34	59			4th round
1999	J2	2	10th	36	5	4	27	32	85	-53	18	1,469	1st round	2nd round
2000			11th	40	5	3	32	31	84	-53	18	1,850	1st round	4th round
2001			12th	44	8	2	34	38	98	-60	25	3,130	1st round	3rd round
2002			7th	44	16	10	18	51	55	-4	58	4,914	Not eligible	3rd round
2003			5th	44	19	12	13	58	46	12	69	5,796		3rd round
2004			7th	44	15	13	16	51	46	5	58	6,370		4th round
2005			3rd	44	19	12	13	78	64	14	69	6,931		4th round
2006	J1	1	15th	34	12	6	15	42	64	-22	42	12,211	Group Stage	Quarter Finals
2007			17th	34	7	6	21	33	65	-32	27	13,734	Quarter Finals	5th round
2008	J2	2	7th	42	15	14	13	56	47	9	59	10,354	Not eligible	4th round
2009			4th	51	28	13	10	76	46	30	97	11,059		4th round
2010			2nd	36	19	13	4	71	40	31	70	12,431		3rd round
2011	J1	1	16th	34	9	19	6	42	63	-21	33	12,106	1st round	3rd round
2012	J2	2	1st	42	24	4	14	63	35	28	86	10,407		2nd round
2013	J1	1	15th	34	8	13	13	30	41	-11	37	12,614	Group Stage	Quarter Finals
2014			13th	34	9	11	14	27	31	-4	41	12,171	Group Stage	Round of 16
2015			13th	34	10	17	7	26	43	-17	37	11,612	Group Stage	4th round
2016			14th	34	7	17	10	32	58	-26	31	10,833	Group Stage	2nd round
2017			16th	34	7	16	11	23	39	-16	32	10,829	Group Stage	2nd round
2018	J2	2	9th	42	16	15	11	56	46	10	59	7,384	Quarter Finals	Quarter Finals
2019			5th	42	20	11	11	64	40	24	71	8,273	Not eligible	Quarter Finals
2020 †			4th	42	16	17	9	50	41	9	65	2,485		Did not qualify
2021 †			3rd	42	23	11	8	65	38	27	80	4,325		2nd round
2022			18th	42	11	15	16	47	54	-7	48	4,930		Winner
2023			8th	42	18	10	14	60	50	10	64	7,485		Round of 16	Round of 16
2024			14th	38	12	9	17	54	57	-3	45	8,274	Quarter final	2nd round
2025			TBA	38									TBD	TBD

Key

• Pos. = Position in league; P = Games played; W = Games won; D = Games drawn; L = Games lost; F = Goal scored; A = Goals conceded; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points gained
• † 2020 & 2021 seasons attendances reduced by COVID-19 worldwide pandemic
• Attendance/G = Average home league attendance
• Source: J.League Data Site

Honours

Ventforet Kofu honours

Honour	No.	Years
Kantō Soccer League	2	1969, 1970
J2 League	1	2012
Emperor's Cup	1	2022

League history

• Kanto League: 1967–71 (as Kofu Club)
• Division 2 (JSL Div. 2): 1972–91 (as Kofu Club)
• Division 3 (former JFL Div. 2): 1992–93 (as Kofu Club)
• Division 2 (former JFL): 1994–98 (Kofu Club until 1994, Ventforet Kofu since 1995)
• Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 1999–05
• Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2006–07
• Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2008–10
• Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2011
• Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2012
• Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2013–2017
• Division 2 (J.League Div. 2): 2018–

Current squad

As of 21 August 2024.

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	JPN	Kohei Kawata
3	DF	KOR	Taiga Son
4	DF	JPN	Hideomi Yamamoto
6	MF	JPN	Iwana Kobayashi (vice-captain)
7	MF	JPN	Sho Araki (vice-captain)
8	MF	JPN	Kosuke Taketomi
9	FW	JPN	Kazushi Mitsuhira
10	MF	JPN	Yoshiki Torikai
11	FW	BRA	Macula
13	FW	JPN	Yukito Murakami
14	MF	JPN	Riku Nakayama
15	FW	JPN	Riku Iijima
16	MF	JPN	Koya Hayashida
18	MF	JPN	Naoto Misawa
19	FW	JPN	Jumma Miyazaki
21	MF	BRA	Renato Augusto
23	DF	JPN	Masahiro Sekiguchi (captain)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
24	DF	JPN	Takahiro Iida (on loan from Kyoto Sanga)
26	MF	JPN	Kazuhiro Sato
29	DF	JPN	Kaito Kamiya
30	FW	JPN	Kotatsu Kumakura DSP
31	GK	JPN	Kakeru Miyashita Type 2
32	GK	KOR	Koh Bong-jo (on loan from Sagan Tosu)
33	GK	JPN	Kodai Yamauchi
34	MF	JPN	Takuto Kimura (on loan from Yokohama F. Marinos)
35	DF	JPN	Taiju Ichinose DSP
40	DF	BRA	Eduardo Mancha
41	MF	JPN	Miki Inoue
44	FW	JPN	Yamato Naito
51	MF	BRA	Adaílton
88	GK	JPN	Tsubasa Shibuya
99	FW	NGA	Peter Utaka

Out on loan

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
20	MF	JPN	Hikaru Endo (at Tegevajaro Miyazaki)
22	DF	JPN	Riku Nozawa (at FC Gifu)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
28	FW	JPN	Hayata Mizuno (at Iwate Grulla Morioka)

Club officials

Position	Name
Manager	Yoshiyuki Shinoda
Assistant managers	Shinji Otsuka Katsutomo Oshiba Yuji Yokoyama
Goalkeeper coach	Yuji Nakagawa
Physical coach	José Fernando
Analysis coach	Yoshiki Hara Kanta Yonekura
Chief trainer	Hiroaki Maeda
Trainer	Masaya Tanaka Taku Hirai
Physiotherapist	Taiki Saito
Athletic trainer	Shigeru Asahina
Competent	Yoshiki Tsuruta
Side affairs	Tetsuro Ajisawa
Interpreter	Bruno Iwasaki

Managerial history

Manager	Nationality	Tenure
		Start	Finish
Susumu Katsumata	Japan	1 January 1994	31 January 1995
Yūji Tsukada	Japan	1 February 1995	31 January 1999
Susumu Katsumata	Japan	1 February 1999	31 January 2000
Yūji Tsukada	Japan	1 February 2000	31 January 2001
Luis dos Reis	Brazil	1 February 2001	31 January 2002
Takeshi Ōki	Japan	1 February 2002	31 January 2003
Hideki Matsunaga	Japan	1 February 2003	31 January 2005
Takeshi Ōki	Japan	1 February 2005	31 January 2008
Takayoshi Amma	Japan	1 February 2008	31 January 2010
Kazuo Uchida	Japan	1 February 2010	31 January 2011
Toshiya Miura	Japan	1 February 2011	7 August 2011
Satoru Sakuma	Japan	8 August 2011	31 December 2011
Hiroshi Jōfuku	Japan	1 February 2012	31 January 2015
Yasuhiro Higuchi	Japan	1 February 2015	13 May 2015
Satoru Sakuma	Japan	13 May 2015	31 December 2016
Tatsuma Yoshida	Japan	1 February 2017	30 April 2018
Nobuhiro Ueno	Japan	1 May 2018	31 January 2019
Akira Itō	Japan	1 February 2019	31 January 2022
Tatsuma Yoshida	Japan	1 February 2022	31 January 2023
Yoshiyuki Shinoda	Japan	1 February 2023	Current

Kit evolution

Home kits - 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 kits - 2nd
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 -

Third kits
2015 Summer	2016 Summer	2017 Summer	2018 Summer	2019 Summer
2020 Summer	2021 Summer	2022 Limited	Special for Champions League Home	Special for Champions League Away
2024 SUMMER Vivid × Vital

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)