Vissel Kobe facts for kids
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| Full name | Vissel Kobe | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Ushi (cows) | ||
| Founded | 1966 (as Kawasaki Steel SS) | ||
| Stadium | Noevir Stadium Kobe Hyōgo-ku, Kōbe, Hyōgo |
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| Stadium capacity |
30,134 | ||
| Owner | Rakuten | ||
| Chairman | Yuki Chifu | ||
| Manager | Takayuki Yoshida | ||
| League | J1 League | ||
| 2022 | J1 League, 13th of 18 | ||
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Vissel Kobe (ヴィッセル神戸, Visseru Kōbe) is a professional football club from Japan. The team is based in Kobe, a city in Hyōgo Prefecture. They play in the J1 League, which is the top football league in Japan. Vissel Kobe is currently the champion of the J1 League.
The club's main home is Noevir Stadium Kobe in Hyōgo-ku. However, they sometimes play home games at Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium in Suma-ku.
Contents
History of Vissel Kobe
How the Club Started
The club began in 1966 as the Kawasaki Steel Soccer Club. It was a semi-professional team in Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture. In 1986, they moved up to the Japan Soccer League Division 2. They stayed in that league until it ended in 1992. Because of their performance, they were placed in the Japan Football League Division 2. This was a new third-tier league. They played there until 1994, when the leagues were combined into one second-tier league.
Moving to Kobe and Becoming Professional
In 1995, the city of Kobe made a deal with Kawasaki Steel. The plan was to move the club to Kobe and rename it Vissel Kobe. The goal was to join the professional J.League. The name Vissel combines "victory" and "vessel." This name honors Kobe's history as an important port city.
Vissel Kobe started playing in the Japan Football League in 1994. This league was below the J.League. A supermarket chain called Daiei was supposed to be the main investor. But after the Great Hanshin earthquake, the economy struggled. Daiei had to pull out, and the city of Kobe took over running the club.
Even though Vissel finished 2nd in the JFL in 1996, they were promoted to the J.League. The team that won the JFL, Honda FC, chose not to become a professional club. So, Vissel Kobe started playing in Japan's top football league in 1997. However, the club had money problems and couldn't find enough investors. This meant they struggled to compete for the league title. In December 2003, the club faced big financial losses and had to file for bankruptcy protection.
The Crimson Group Era (2004–2014)
In January 2004, Vissel Kobe was sold to the Crimson Group. This group owns the online shopping company Rakuten. The president of Rakuten, Hiroshi Mikitani, is from Kobe. Vissel's first new player under Mikitani was İlhan Mansız. He was famous from the 2002 FIFA World Cup. However, the Turkish forward only played three games before leaving due to a knee injury.
When Mikitani bought the team, he changed the uniform colors. The team's old colors were black and white stripes. He changed them to crimson, which is the color of his company, Crimson Group. It is also the color of his old school, Harvard Business School. Other sports teams owned by Rakuten, like the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (baseball) and Rakuten Monkeys (baseball), also wear crimson.
Vissel finished 11th in the league in 2004, the same as the year before. In 2005, they finished last (18th place). This meant they were moved down from J1 (the top league) to J2. This was Vissel's first time in J2 after nine years in the top league. In 2006, they finished 3rd in J2. They then returned to J1 after beating Avispa Fukuoka in the promotion play-offs.
From 2007 to 2011, Vissel always finished in the bottom half of the J1 league. In 2012, they finished 16th, which meant they were moved down to J2 again. In 2013, Vissel finished second in J2, just 4 points behind Gamba Osaka. This secured their return to J1 for the 2014 season. On December 6, 2014, Rakuten Inc. bought the team from the Crimson Group.
Rakuten Years and First Big Wins (2015–Present)
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In 2017, Vissel signed Lukas Podolski, a player who won the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He was the first big international player Vissel had signed since Michael Laudrup in 1996. Soon after, in May 2018, Vissel signed another World Cup winner, Andrés Iniesta, from FC Barcelona. In December 2018, Vissel Kobe also signed David Villa from New York City. The Spanish striker scored 13 goals in 28 games. With Sergi Samper and Andrés Iniesta, Villa was the third Spanish player on the team that season. They helped Vissel Kobe win the 2019 Emperor's Cup.
On January 1, 2020, Vissel Kobe played in their first 2019 Emperor's Cup final. They beat Kashima Antlers at the new National Stadium. This was the first major title in the club's history. Before this, Kobe's best result in the Emperor's Cup was reaching the semi-finals in 2000 and 2017. This match was also Spanish striker David Villa's last professional game. Winning the cup also meant Vissel qualified for the 2020 AFC Champions League for the first time.
On February 8, 2020, Vissel beat Yokohama F. Marinos in a penalty shootout after a 3–3 draw. This won them their first Japanese Super Cup title, which was their second national title ever. On February 12, 2020, Vissel played their first AFC Champions League match. They won 5–1 against Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta'zim at home. Keijiro Ogawa scored three goals in that game. The club had a great run in the competition, reaching the semi-finals. They lost 2–1 in extra time to the eventual winners, Korean club Ulsan Hyundai.
In 2021, Vissel achieved a historic third-place finish in the league. This allowed them to qualify for the 2022 AFC Champions League again. They had another good run in this tournament, reaching the quarter-finals. However, they lost 3–1 to Korean club Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors.
On September 3, 2023, Vissel signed former Spanish international midfielder, Juan Mata. While his presence was good for the players and fans, injuries kept him from playing much. On November 25, 2023, Vissel Kobe became the 2023 J1 League champions for the first time ever. They secured the title with a 2–1 win over Nagoya Grampus. Kobe became the first Japanese football champion to be promoted to the top league after the J.League started. They were also the first to play in the third division (the old Japan Football League Division 2) before winning the top title.
On February 17, 2024, Vissel played in their second Japanese Super Cup. They lost 1–0 to Kawasaki Frontale, the 2023 Emperor's Cup winner. Vissel also qualified directly for the new 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite tournament. On November 23, 2024, Vissel won their second 2024 Emperor's Cup in club history. They beat their regional rivals Gamba Osaka in the Kansai Derby.
Club Stadium
Since 2003, Vissel Kobe's home stadium has been Noevir Stadium Kobe. The stadium can hold 30,132 people.
Current Team Squad
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Players on Loan
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Vissel Kobe Under-18 Team
The main U-18 team for Vissel Kobe plays in the Prince Takamado U-18 Premier League. This is the top league for U-18 clubs in Japan. Only players officially registered for this competition are listed below.
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Club Officials
Here are the club officials for 2024.
| Position | Name |
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| Manager |  Takayuki Yoshida |
| Assistant manager | Tomo Sugawara Kunie Kitamoto |
| Young player development coach | Yuji Miyahara |
| Goalkeeper coach |  Sidmar |
| Analytical coach | Tatsuro Takenaka Daichi Matsumoto |
| Physical coach | Akira Umeki Hikaru Fujii |
| Interpreter | Eiji Kumon Daisuke Kawashima |
| Chief trainer | Yoshio Shibata |
| Trainer | Masaaki Morita Ryota Matsuda Minoru Onogawa Naoto Nakayama |
| Dietitian | Rika Kawabata |
| Chief side manager | Shusuke Sasagawa |
| Equipment manager | Takuya Arai Tomoki Ishiguro |
| Side manager | Yuto Kato |
Club Managers Through the Years
| Manager | Nationality | Time with Club | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Finish | ||
| Stuart Baxter |  Scotland |
1 February 1995 | 31 January 1998 |
| Benito Floro |  Spain |
1 February 1998 | 24 September 1998 |
| Harumi Kori |  Japan |
25 September 1998 | 31 January 1999 |
| Ryoichi Kawakatsu | Japan |
1 February 1999 | 25 July 2002 |
| Hiroshi Matsuda | Japan |
1 July 2002 | 31 January 2003 |
| Hiroshi Soejima | Japan |
1 February 2003 | 31 January 2004 |
| Ivan Hašek |  Czech Republic |
1 February 2004 | 30 September 2004 |
| Hiroshi Kato | Japan |
1 October 2004 | 31 January 2005 |
| Hideki Matsunaga | Japan |
1 February 2005 | 19 April 2005 |
| Émerson Leão | Brazil |
19 April 2005 | 14 June 2005 |
| Pavel Řehák | Czech Republic |
15 June 2005 | 31 January 2006 |
| Stuart Baxter | Scotland |
1 February 2006 | 4 September 2006 |
| Hiroshi Matsuda | Japan |
5 September 2006 | 11 December 2008 |
| Caio Júnior (interim) | Brazil |
11 December 2008 | 30 June 2009 |
| Masahiro Wada (interim) | Japan |
1 July 2009 | 5 August 2009 |
| Toshiya Miura | Japan |
5 August 2009 | 11 September 2010 |
| Masahiro Wada | Japan |
11 September 2010 | 30 April 2012 |
| Ryo Adachi (interim) | Japan |
1 May 2012 | 21 May 2012 |
| Akira Nishino | Japan |
22 May 2012 | 8 November 2012 |
| Ryo Adachi (interim) | Japan |
9 November 2012 | 31 December 2012 |
| Ryo Adachi | Japan |
1 January 2013 | 31 January 2015 |
| Nelsinho Baptista | Brazil |
1 February 2015 | 15 August 2017 |
| Takayuki Yoshida | Japan |
16 August 2017 | 16 September 2018 |
| Kentaro Hayashi (interim) | Japan |
17 September 2017 | 3 October 2018 |
| Juan Manuel Lillo | Spain |
4 October 2018 | 16 April 2019 |
| Takayuki Yoshida | Japan |
17 April 2019 | 8 June 2019 |
| Thorsten Fink |  Germany |
9 June 2019 | 21 September 2020 |
| Marcos Vives | Spain |
22 September 2020 | 23 September 2020 |
| Atsuhiro Miura | Japan |
24 September 2020 | 20 March 2022 |
| Lluís Planagumà (interim) | Spain |
21 March 2022 | 7 April 2022 |
| Miguel Ángel Lotina | Spain |
8 April 2022 | 29 June 2022 |
| Takayuki Yoshida | Japan |
30 June 2022 | current |
Vissel Kobe's League Journey
- Chugoku Soccer League: 1978–85 (as Kawasaki Steel Mizushima)
- Division 2 (Japan Soccer League Div. 2): 1986–91 (Kawasaki Steel Mizushima until 1987; Kawasaki Steel afterwards)
- Division 3 (Old JFL Div. 2): 1992–93 (as Kawasaki Steel)
- Division 2 (Old JFL): 1994–96 (Kawasaki Steel 1994; Vissel Kobe since 1995)
- Division 1 (J.League): 1997–2005
- Division 2 (J.League Division 2): 2006
- Division 1 (J.League Division 1): 2007–12
- Division 2 (J.League Division 2): 2013
- Division 1 (J1 League): 2014–present
Total (as of 2024): 26 seasons in the top league, 11 seasons in the second league, 2 seasons in the third league and 8 seasons in regional leagues.
Vissel Kobe's Achievements
| Award | Number of Wins | Years Won |
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| All Japan Senior Football Championship | 1 | 1976 |
| Chūgoku Soccer League (as Kawasaki Steel Mizushima) | 5 | 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985 |
| Emperor's Cup | 2 | 2019, 2024 |
| Japanese Super Cup | 1 | 2020 |
| J1 League | 1 | 2023 |
Continental Football Record
This table shows how Vissel Kobe has performed in major Asian football competitions.
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate |
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| 2020 | AFC Champions League | Group G |  Johor Darul Ta'zim |
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1st |
 Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
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 Guangzhou Evergrande |
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| Round of 16 | Shanghai Port |
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| Quarter-finals | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
(7–6 p) |
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| Semi-finals | Ulsan Hyundai |
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| 2022 | AFC Champions League | Play-off round |  Melbourne Victory |
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| Group J | Shanghai Port |
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 Kitchee |
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1st | |||
 Chiangrai United |
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| Round of 16 | Yokohama F. Marinos |
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| Quarter-finals | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors |
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Kit Designs Through the Years
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| Away kit - 2nd | ||||
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| Alternative Kit - 3rd | ||||
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     10th Anniversary Crimson FC |
     Club's 20th anniversary |
    Kobe Port's 150th Anniversary |
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     Club's 25th Anniversary |
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See also
In Spanish: Vissel Kobe para niños
