Avispa Fukuoka facts for kids
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| Full name | Avispa Fukuoka | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Avi, Hachi (Hornet, in Japanese), Meishu | ||
| Founded | 1982 as Chūō Bōhan SC | ||
| Stadium | Best Denki Stadium Hakata-ku, Fukuoka |
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| Stadium capacity |
22,563 | ||
| Chairman | Takashi Kawamori | ||
| Manager | Shigetoshi Hasebe | ||
| League | J1 League | ||
| 2022 | J1 League, 14th of 18 | ||
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Avispa Fukuoka (アビスパ福岡, Abisupa Fukuoka) is a Japanese professional football club. They are based in Hakata, Fukuoka. The team plays in the J1 League, which is the top football league in Japan.
Contents
- History of Avispa Fukuoka
- Early Days in Fujieda
- Moving to Fukuoka (1994)
- Becoming JFL Champions (1995)
- Avispa Fukuoka in J.League (1996–1998)
- Staying in J1 (1999–2001)
- Years in J2 (2002–2005)
- Back to J1 (2006)
- More Time in J2 (2007–2010)
- Back to J1, then J2 again (2011–2014)
- Promotions and Relegations (2015–2017)
- Recent Success (2021–Present)
- Current players
- Club Officials
- Kit and Colours
- Honours
- Affiliated Clubs
- See also
History of Avispa Fukuoka
Early Days in Fujieda
The club started in Fujieda, Shizuoka in 1982. It was first called Chūō Bōhan SC. Workers from a security company named Chuo Bohan created the team. They joined the Japan Soccer League Division 2 in 1991. In 1992, they played in the new Japan Football League Division 2. They moved up to Division 1 in 1993. The club then changed its name to Fujieda Blux. They hoped to join the J.League. However, it was hard to find a stadium that met the J.League rules. Also, there were already many football fans in Shizuoka. This was because of other popular teams like Júbilo Iwata and Shimizu S-Pulse.
Moving to Fukuoka (1994)
Because of these challenges, the club moved to Fukuoka in 1994. The people in Fukuoka really wanted a J.League team. The club changed its name again to Fukuoka Blux. They became a partner club of the J.League.
Becoming JFL Champions (1995)
In their first year in Fukuoka, the team won the JFL championship. They had help from Argentine player Hugo Maradona. This win meant they could join the J.League. After winning the 1995 Japan Football League as Fukuoka Blux, the team joined the J.League in the 1996 season.
Avispa Fukuoka in J.League (1996–1998)
Fukuoka Blux decided to change their name to Avispa Fukuoka. "Avispa" means "wasp" in Spanish. The club brought in experienced players. These included former Japanese international Satoshi Tsunami. They finished 15th in the 1996 season.
They finished last in the league for two years in a row (1997 and 1998). But they managed to avoid being sent down to a lower league. This was because the J.League was creating a new second division, J.League 2, for 1999. So, no teams were directly relegated. Instead, there were play-off games. Avispa played in these games and stayed up. Around this time, players like Yoshiteru Yamashita and Chikara Fujimoto were chosen for the Japanese national team.
Staying in J1 (1999–2001)
In 1999, Avispa made their team stronger. They added former international players Nobuyuki Kojima and Yasutoshi Miura. They also got Yugoslavian player Nenad Maslovar. They fought hard and stayed in the top league. In 2000, Argentine player David Bisconti and Romanian player Pavel Badea joined. The team finished a club-record 6th in the second part of the season. In 2001, they got former Korean international Noh Jung-Yoon. But they finished 15th and were sent down to J2.
Years in J2 (2002–2005)
In 2002, Avispa kept their experienced players. They finished 8th out of 10 teams. In 2003, with a new manager, Hiroshi Matsuda, they focused on training young players. These players came from local high schools. The team struggled at first but then played well. They finished 4th. In 2004, they finished 3rd. This meant they could play in the promotion play-offs. But Kashiwa Reysol beat them, so they didn't get promoted. In 2005, they finished 2nd. This earned them an automatic promotion back to J1. Avispa players Hokuto Nakamura and Tomokazu Nagira played for Japan in the 2005 World Youth Championship.
Back to J1 (2006)
In 2006, Avispa was in a fight to avoid relegation from the start. They finished 16th. They were sent back to J2 after play-off games against Vissel Kobe. Both games ended in a tie.
More Time in J2 (2007–2010)
After being relegated, a new manager, Pierre Littbarski, joined the team in 2007. He brought in some experienced players. But Avispa finished 7th in 2007. Littbarski was replaced by former Avispa player Yoshiyuki Shinoda in 2008.
In 2009, many young players from local universities joined the team. Avispa had a tough season and finished lower in the J2 table. Their hopes for promotion were gone for another year.
In 2010, manager Shinoda added more players from local universities. The season started slowly, but then the team played much better. They won 17 of their next 25 games. This included a big win against promotion rivals JEF United. Avispa secured promotion back to J1 with two games left in the season.
Back to J1, then J2 again (2011–2014)
In 2011, Avispa made some big changes to their team for J1. But the players struggled to play well together. They didn't win any points in their first 13 games. Manager Shinoda left the club. Tetsuya Asano took over. Results improved, but the club couldn't get out of the relegation zone. They finished 17th and were sent back to J2. Koji Maeda became the new manager.
In 2012, the team hoped to return to J1 quickly. But they had their worst season ever. They finished 18th, winning only 9 games. Maeda left the club.
In 2013, Marijan Pusnik from Slovenia became the manager. He focused on helping young players grow. The team's results got better. They finished 14th. In 2014, Avispa finished 16th. Pusnik's contract was not renewed.
Promotions and Relegations (2015–2017)
In 2015, Masami Ihara became the new coach. The team finished third in J2. They won the promotion play-offs and went back to J1.
In 2016, Avispa finished 18th in J1 and were relegated back to J2.
In 2017, Avispa finished fourth in J2. They won their semi-final play-off game against Tokyo Verdy 1–0. But in the final game, they tied 0-0 with Nagoya Grampus. This meant Avispa could not be promoted to J1.
Recent Success (2021–Present)
In 2020, Avispa finished second in the 2020 J2 League. This meant they returned to the J1 League in 2021 for the first time since 2016.
On November 4, 2023, Avispa won the J.League Cup! They beat two-time winners Urawa Red Diamonds 2–1 in the final. This was the first major trophy in the club's history.
On October 31, 2024, the club announced that head coach Shigetoshi Hasebe would retire. He had led Avispa for five years.
Current players
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Club Officials
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Shigetoshi Hasebe |
| Assistant manager | Ryotaro Tanaka |
| Goalkeeping coach | Hideki Tsukamoto |
Kit and Colours
Avispa Fukuoka has different sponsors for their jerseys. These sponsors help the club financially.
| Season(s) | Main Shirt Sponsor | Collarbone Sponsor | Additional Sponsor(s) | Kit Manufacturer | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | FJ. Fukuoka Estate |
Hakata Green Hotel (Left) | - | Shin Nihon Seiyaku | PIETRO | Hakata Nakasu Fukuya | BIKEN TECHNO | Before the ban is lifted | YONEX |
| 2019 | |||||||||
| 2020 | Plantel EX | PIETRO | |||||||
| 2021 | Shin Nihon Seiyaku | Japan Park (Right) | DMM Hoken | Yupiesu | -/ BYBIT |
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| 2022 | DMM Hoken | BYBIT | KIRIN Beverage | ||||||
| 2023 | Agekke | DMM TV | Hakata Nakasu Fukuya | ||||||
| 2024 | APAMAN | ||||||||
Honours
Avispa Fukuoka has won several important titles throughout its history:
| Honour | No. | Years |
|---|---|---|
| All Japan Senior Football Championship | 2 | 1989, 1990 |
| Japan Football League Division 2 (third tier) | 1 | 1992 |
| Japan Football League (second tier) | 1 | 1995 |
| J.League Cup | 1 | 2023 |
Affiliated Clubs
Avispa Fukuoka has partnerships with other football clubs:
Sint-Truidense (Belgium)
Port FC (Thailand)
See also
In Spanish: Avispa Fukuoka para niños
