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Fagiano Okayama
ファジアーノ岡山
Fagiano Okayama logo.svg
Full name Fagiano Okayama
Nickname(s) Fagi (ファジ)
Founded 2004; 21 years ago (2004)
Stadium JFE Harenokuni Stadium
Okayama, Okayama
Stadium
capacity
15,479
Chairman Shinya Kitagawa
Manager Takashi Kiyama
League J2 League
2022 J2 League, 3rd of 22

Fagiano Okayama (ファジアーノ岡山) is a Japanese football club. They are based in Okayama, the capital city of Okayama Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the highest level of football in Japan.

What Does the Name "Fagiano" Mean?

The name Fagiano means "pheasant" in Italian. This name was chosen because of a local legend. In this story, a character named Momotarō had a pheasant as a friend.

The club's mascot is named Fagimaru. He is based on the green pheasant, a type of pheasant found in Japan.

The History of Fagiano Okayama

How the Club Started

The club began in 1975. It was formed by former players of the Kawasaki Steel Mizushima F.C. team. That old team had moved to Kobe and became Vissel Kobe.

The players who stayed behind created a new club. They called it the "River Free Kickers" (RFK). For many years, this club played in their local prefectural league.

Rising Through the Ranks

In 2003, the club changed its name to Fagiano Okayama. After this, they started to move up in the football leagues.

  • In 2005, Fagiano Okayama moved up to the Chugoku Regional League.
  • By July 2007, they made history. They became the first club to join the J.League Associate Membership while still playing in a lower division.
  • On December 2, 2007, Fagiano won their regional playoff games. This earned them a spot in the JFL (Japan Football League).

Joining the J.League

In 2008, Fagiano Okayama finished 4th in the JFL. This allowed them to join the J.League Division 2. On December 1, 2008, their promotion was made official. Fagiano Okayama started playing in J.League Division 2 in the 2009 season.

On December 7, 2024, Fagiano Okayama achieved a big goal. They won their promotion play-off final against Vegalta Sendai 2–0. This victory meant they were promoted to the J1 League for the first time ever. They had spent 16 years in the J2 League before this big step up.

Club Sponsors

Okayama Gas is the main sponsor of Fagiano Okayama. The Sanyo Shinbun, a local newspaper in Okayama, sponsors the back of their jerseys.

Where Fagiano Okayama Plays

Home Stadiums

Fagiano Okayama's main home stadium is JFE Harenokuni Stadium in Okayama City. Sometimes, they also play home matches at Tsuyama Stadium in Tsuyama.

Training Grounds

The team trains at Masada Soccer Stadium and Prefecture Kanzakiyama Park Athletics Stadium. Both of these training grounds are located in Okayama City.

Team Achievements

Fagiano Okayama has won several titles over the years:

Fagiano Okayama honours
Honour No. Years
Okayama Football League 1 3 2001, 2003, 2004
Chugoku Football League 2 2006, 2007
Japanese Regional Leagues 1 2007
J2 League Promotion play-off winner 1 2024

Meet the Current Squad

As of 8 July  2025 (2025 -07-08).

No. Position Player
2 Japan DF Yūgo Tatsuta
3 Japan MF Kaito Fujii
4 Japan DF Kaito Abe
5 Japan DF Yasutaka Yanagi (vice-captain)
7 Japan MF Ryō Takeuchi (captain)
8 Japan MF Ataru Esaka (vice-captain)
13 Japan GK Junki Kanayama
14 Japan MF Ryo Tabei (vice-captain)
15 Japan DF Kōta Kudō (on loan from Urawa Red Diamonds)
16 Japan MF Yoko Iesaka
17 Japan MF Rui Sueyoshi
18 Japan DF Daichi Tagami
19 Japan MF Hiroto Iwabuchi
21 Japan GK Kohei Kawakami
22 Japan FW Kazunari Ichimi
23 Japan MF Riku Saga
24 Japan MF Ibuki Fujita
No. Position Player
26 Japan MF Haruka Motoyama (on loan from Vissel Kobe)
27 Japan MF Takaya Kimura
28 Japan MF Masaya Matsumoto
30 Japan FW Kanshiro Suemune Type 2
31 Japan DF Ryo Senda Type 2
33 Japan MF Yūta Kamiya
39 Japan MF Ryunosuke Sato (on loan from FC Tokyo)
41 Japan MF Eiji Miyamoto (on loan from Albirex Niigata)
43 Japan DF Yoshitake Suzuki
45 Japan MF Noah Kenshin Browne
49 Germany GK Svend Brodersen
50 Japan DF Hijiri Katō
77 Japan GK Goro Kawanami
88 Japan DF Takahiro Yanagi
98 Brazil FW Werik Popó (on loan from Red Bull Bragantino)
99 Brazil FW Lucão

Players on Loan

These players are currently playing for other teams:

No. Position Player
6 Japan MF Yūji Wakasa (at Renofa Yamaguchi)
11 Japan FW Ryunosuke Ota (at Tochigi SC)
20 Japan DF Seiga Sumi (at Singapore Tampines Rovers)
29 Japan FW Keita Saitō (at Tochigi City)
No. Position Player
Japan DF Yota Fujii (at Kamatamare Sanuki)
Japan MF Yūdai Tanaka (at Ventforet Kofu)
Japan MF Koju Yoshio (at Kagoshima United)

Coaching Staff

Here are the coaching officials for the 2025 season:

Position Name
Manager Japan Takashi Kiyama
Assistant manager Japan Masanori Kizawa
Japan Yuki Kosaka
Japan Hiromasa Suguri
Goalkeeper coach Japan Hiroshi Yoshioka
Physical coach Japan Jun Sato
Assistant coach Japan Kenji Yamamoto
Chief trainer Japan Takahiro Chiba
Trainer Japan Tetsuya Furuta
Japan Takuya Tsuji
Interpreter (Portuguese) Japan Fernando Aizawa
Interpreter (English) & Enhancement coach Japan Kosuke Maruyama
Chief manager Japan Atsuki Shimada
General affairs Japan Nao Inamoto
Japan Fumikazu Sato

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Fagiano Okayama para niños

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