Blaublitz Akita
History. The club based in Nikaho, Akita, was founded in 1965. They were promoted to the Tohoku Regional League in 1982. They played in the Japan Soccer League Division 2 in 1985 and 1986. They were the only club in Tohoku region competing in the JSL. In 2006, they won the Tohoku Regional League championship for the fifth straight year. They were automatically promoted to the Japan Football League after they won the National Regional League Playoffs. The team has announced that it would separate from its parent company and join the J. League if the club's  final yearly standing should ever allow promotion. In May, 2009, TDK announced that the football club will become independent for the 2010 season and be based around Akita. Later in 2010 the club's name was changed to "Blaublitz Akita". "Blau" and "Blitz" mean "blue" and "lightning" in German respectively. The club moved to Akita City and entered the J3 League for the 2014 season. The club finished 8th in each of its first two years in the professional competition. In the 2017 season, their fourth, they won the title, however due to their lacking a license to play upper -tier football, they were not promoted, becoming the first professional third-tier champion not to be promoted. However, Akita acquired the J2 license on September 27, 2018, after which they won the title again in the 2020 season, returning to the second tier for the first time in 34 years. Current squad. "As of 8 January 2022".