# 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 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 | Teamvte | 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 | — |

## League and cup record

| Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Promoted | Relegated |
| League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | League | J.League Cup | Emperor's Cup | AFC Champions League |
| Year | Division | Tier | Pos. | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | Attendance/G | J.League Cup | Emperor's Cup | AFC Champions League |
| 1992 | former JFL Div. 2 | 3 | 5th | 18 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 26 | 29 | -3 | 28 | | Not eligible | | Not eligible |
| 1993 | former JFL Div. 2 | 3 | 9th | 18 | 6 | - | 12 | 15 | 37 | -22 | - | | Not eligible | | Not eligible |
| 1994 | former JFL | 2 | 14th | 30 | 9 | - | 21 | 36 | 74 | -38 | - | | Not eligible | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 1995 | former JFL | 2 | 9th | 30 | 14 | - | 16 | 54 | 54 | 0 | 43 | | Not eligible | | Not eligible |
| 1996 | former JFL | 2 | 11th | 30 | 11 | - | 19 | 50 | 56 | -6 | 33 | | Not eligible | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 1997 | former JFL | 2 | 6th | 30 | 19 | - | 11 | 59 | 41 | 18 | 52 | | Not eligible | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 1998 | former JFL | 2 | 4th | 30 | 22 | - | 8 | 74 | 40 | 34 | 59 | | Not eligible | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 1999 | J2 | 2 | 10th | 36 | 5 | 4 | 27 | 32 | 85 | -53 | 18 | 1,469 | 1st round | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 2000 | J2 | 2 | 11th | 40 | 5 | 3 | 32 | 31 | 84 | -53 | 18 | 1,850 | 1st round | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2001 | J2 | 2 | 12th | 44 | 8 | 2 | 34 | 38 | 98 | -60 | 25 | 3,130 | 1st round | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 2002 | J2 | 2 | 7th | 44 | 16 | 10 | 18 | 51 | 55 | -4 | 58 | 4,914 | Not eligible | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 2003 | J2 | 2 | 5th | 44 | 19 | 12 | 13 | 58 | 46 | 12 | 69 | 5,796 | Not eligible | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 2004 | J2 | 2 | 7th | 44 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 51 | 46 | 5 | 58 | 6,370 | Not eligible | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2005 | J2 | 2 | 3rd | 44 | 19 | 12 | 13 | 78 | 64 | 14 | 69 | 6,931 | Not eligible | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2006 | J1 | 1 | 15th | 34 | 12 | 6 | 15 | 42 | 64 | -22 | 42 | 12,211 | Group Stage | Quarter Finals | Not eligible |
| 2007 | J1 | 1 | 17th | 34 | 7 | 6 | 21 | 33 | 65 | -32 | 27 | 13,734 | Quarter Finals | 5th round | Not eligible |
| 2008 | J2 | 2 | 7th | 42 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 56 | 47 | 9 | 59 | 10,354 | Not eligible | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2009 | J2 | 2 | 4th | 51 | 28 | 13 | 10 | 76 | 46 | 30 | 97 | 11,059 | Not eligible | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2010 | J2 | 2 | 2nd | 36 | 19 | 13 | 4 | 71 | 40 | 31 | 70 | 12,431 | Not eligible | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 2011 | J1 | 1 | 16th | 34 | 9 | 19 | 6 | 42 | 63 | -21 | 33 | 12,106 | 1st round | 3rd round | Not eligible |
| 2012 | J2 | 2 | 1st | 42 | 24 | 4 | 14 | 63 | 35 | 28 | 86 | 10,407 | | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 2013 | J1 | 1 | 15th | 34 | 8 | 13 | 13 | 30 | 41 | -11 | 37 | 12,614 | Group Stage | Quarter Finals | Not eligible |
| 2014 | J1 | 1 | 13th | 34 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 27 | 31 | -4 | 41 | 12,171 | Group Stage | Round of 16 | Not eligible |
| 2015 | J1 | 1 | 13th | 34 | 10 | 17 | 7 | 26 | 43 | -17 | 37 | 11,612 | Group Stage | 4th round | Not eligible |
| 2016 | J1 | 1 | 14th | 34 | 7 | 17 | 10 | 32 | 58 | -26 | 31 | 10,833 | Group Stage | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 2017 | J1 | 1 | 16th | 34 | 7 | 16 | 11 | 23 | 39 | -16 | 32 | 10,829 | Group Stage | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 2018 | J2 | 2 | 9th | 42 | 16 | 15 | 11 | 56 | 46 | 10 | 59 | 7,384 | Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals | Not eligible |
| 2019 | J2 | 2 | 5th | 42 | 20 | 11 | 11 | 64 | 40 | 24 | 71 | 8,273 | Not eligible | Quarter Finals | Not eligible |
| 2020 † | J2 | 2 | 4th | 42 | 16 | 17 | 9 | 50 | 41 | 9 | 65 | 2,485 | Not eligible | Did not qualify | Not eligible |
| 2021 † | J2 | 2 | 3rd | 42 | 23 | 11 | 8 | 65 | 38 | 27 | 80 | 4,325 | Not eligible | 2nd round | Not eligible |
| 2022 | J2 | 2 | 18th | 42 | 11 | 15 | 16 | 47 | 54 | -7 | 48 | 4,930 | Not eligible | Winner | Not eligible |
| 2023 | J2 | 2 | 8th | 42 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 60 | 50 | 10 | 64 | 7,485 | Not eligible | Round of 16 | Round of 16 |
| 2024 | J2 | 2 | 14th | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 54 | 57 | -3 | 45 | 8,274 | Quarter final | 2nd round |
| 2025 | J2 | 2 | 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 26 February 2025.
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 |
| 1 | GK | JPN | Kohei Kawata |
| 2 | DF | JPN | Miki Inoue |
| 3 | DF | KOR | Taiga Son |
| 4 | DF | JPN | Hideomi Yamamoto |
| 5 | DF | JPN | Taiju Ichinose |
| 6 | MF | JPN | Iwana Kobayashi (vice-captain) |
| 7 | MF | JPN | Sho Araki (vice-captain) |
| 8 | MF | JPN | Riku Nakayama |
| 9 | FW | JPN | Kazushi Mitsuhira |
| 10 | MF | JPN | Yoshiki Torikai |
| 11 | MF | JPN | Kotatsu Kumakura |
| 13 | FW | JPN | Yukito Murakami |
| 14 | MF | JPN | Yudai Tanaka (on loan from Fagiano Okayama) |
| 16 | MF | JPN | Koya Hayashida |
| 17 | MF | JPN | Takumi Tsuchiya (on loan from Kashiwa Reysol) |
| 18 | MF | JPN | Yoshifumi Kashiwa |
| 19 | FW | JPN | Jumma Miyazaki |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 20 | MF | JPN | Hikaru Endo |
| 21 | MF | BRA | Renato Augusto |
| 22 | DF | JPN | Yuta Koide |
| 24 | DF | JPN | Keisuke Sato |
| 25 | MF | JPN | Yuto Hiratsuka |
| 26 | MF | JPN | Kazuhiro Sato |
| 29 | FW | JPN | Koki Oshima |
| 30 | GK | JPN | Kei Ishikawa |
| 31 | GK | KOR | Lee Min-ki |
| 35 | MF | JPN | Taiyo Yoneda |
| 39 | MF | JPN | Hokuto Matsuyama |
| 40 | DF | BRA | Eduardo Mancha |
| 44 | FW | JPN | Yamato Naito |
| 47 | MF | JPN | Tomoki Hosaka |
| 77 | FW | BRA | Matheus Leiria |
| 97 | GK | JPN | John Higashi |

### Out on loan

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 |
| — | GK | JPN | Kodai Yamauchi (at Kagoshima United) |
| — | DF | JPN | Riku Nozawa (at FC Gifu) |
| — | DF | JPN | Yuzuki Yamato (at FC Ryukyu) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | FW | JPN | Riku Iijima (at Fukushima United) |
| — | FW | JPN | Hayata Mizuno (at Kochi United) |

## 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 | Tenure |
| Manager | Nationality | 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 | 1 July 2024 |
| Shinji Otsuka | Japan | 2 July 2024 | 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 | 2025 - |
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 | 2025 - | | |
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 | | | | |