Japan has qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup! It is their eighth straight year of qualifying for this elite tournament. With qualification achieved, the Japan national football team now shifts its focus to a more ambitious goal: winning the World Cup. The Japan Football Association (JFA) has adopted a bold long-term vision. Their JFA Pledge includes a goal of becoming world champions by 2050.
The 2026 World Cup will be a historical triumph for Japan, as one of the 2026 hosts, it fits their hope to be global football power. Japan’s most recent World Cup trip ended in the round of 16 at last year’s 2022 tournament held in Qatar. After enduring a heartbreaking defeat to Croatia in the semifinals on penalties, they left empty-handed. Japan has been one of the strongest sides throughout the qualifiers. They lack the ability to carry that momentum through the latter stages, as they frequently fail to continue on past the round of 16.
"It is true that we have never advanced to the quarterfinals," said Japan's coach, Hajime Moriyasu.
We have worked incredibly hard as a team to continue to push past these obstacles and improve upon previous years. Based on the potential that he’s seen from the team, Moriyasu is staying positive and he thinks that the 2022 World Cup provided a learning experience.
"But at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, we only lost via a penalty shootout to Croatia. Our journey stopped there as a result but I felt we really had an opportunity to advance from the round of 16," he added.
Japan's commitment to improving their performance aligns with the JFA's pledge to be world champions by 2050.
"Also, the JFA has made a commitment that Japan will be [world] champions by 2050. That is already a public statement," Moriyasu emphasized.
The team fully understands that they need to start being more competitive in these next few games. How they perform will decide who takes the second automatic ticket out of Group C and advances to the fourth round. Though he has learned from his previous failures, Moriyasu is committed to developing the team before sharpening their edge.
"Maybe there will be doubters but we will have our opportunities. We just have to keep improving in every aspect," Moriyasu stated.
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