Tochigi City Football Club (栃木シティフットボールクラブ, Tochigi Shitî Futtobōrukurabu), commonly known as Tochigi City (栃木シティ, Tochigi Shitî Efushi) is a Japanese professional football club based in Tochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture. The club is set to play in the J2 League from 2026–27, the second tier of the Japanese football league system, after promotion from the J3 League in 2025.
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| Full name | Tochigi City Football Club | ||
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| Founded | 1947 as Hitachi Tochigi Soccer Club | ||
| Stadium | City Football Station Tochigi, Tochigi | ||
| Capacity | 5,129 | ||
| Chairman | Takashi Ōkuri | ||
| Manager | Naoki Imaya | ||
| League | J2 League | ||
| 2025 | J3 League, 1st of 20 (champions, promoted) | ||
| Website | tochigi-city | ||
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Origin name
editIn 2006, Tochigi was adopted the moniker Uva (meaning "grape" in Italian, Portuguese and Spanish). Grapes are a specialty in the area of Ohira Town.[1]
History
editThe club was formed in 1947 as Hitachi Tochigi Soccer Club, the works team of the local Hitachi, Ltd. affiliate. After finishing as a runners-up in the local Kanto Soccer League in 2009 season, they were promoted to the 2010 Japan Football League through the All Japan Regional Football Promotion League Series. Prior to their first season in the JFL, the club has dropped Hitachi prefix in its name and changed the reference to sport from "soccer" to "football". From the 2019 season, the club has adopted the new name as Tochigi City.[2][3]
Promotion to Japan Football League
editIn 2023, Tochigi City secured promotion to the Japan Football League after defeating Tsukuba by 4–0 in final day of the 2023 Japanese Regional Football Champions League. They became the champions of the Japanese Regional Football Champions League for the first time, due to finishing second in Kanto Soccer League.
Promotion to J. League
editOn 24 September 2024, Tochigi City announced that it was officially granted a J3 League club license.[4] On 17 November 2024, Tochigi City secured the 2024 Japan Football League championship and promotion to the J3 League for the first time in history after defeating Atletico Suzuka by 6–0, returning to the third tier after 11 years.[5][6][7] Tochigi City would also compete in the Tochigi Derby against Tochigi SC. On 25 September 2025, Tochigi City announced a J2 League club license.[8] On 23 November 2025, Tochigi City secured promotion to the J2 League for the first time in their history after defeating Nagano Parceiro by 3–0.[9]
League and cup record
edit| Champions | Runners-up | Third place | Promoted | Relegated |
| League | Emperor's Cup |
J. League Cup | Shakaijin Cup | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Div. | Tier | Teams | Pos. | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||||
| Hitachi Tochigi Soccer Club | ||||||||||||||||
| 2003 | Kanto Division 2 | 5 | 8 | 6th | 14 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 25 | 55 | -30 | 12 | Did not qualify | Not eligible | - | |
| 2004 | 4th | 14 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 24 | 19 | 5 | 21 | Did not qualify | ||||||
| 2005 | 3rd | 14 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 28 | 18 | 10 | 25 | 1st round | ||||||
| Hitachi Tochigi Uva SC | ||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Kanto Division 2 | 5 | 8 | 2nd | 14 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 35 | 18 | 17 | 30 | Did not qualify | Not eligible | – | |
| 2007 | Kanto Division 1 | 4 | 8 | 2nd | 14 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 33 | 17 | 16 | 27 | Did not qualify | |||
| 2008 | 2nd | 14 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 24 | 19 | 5 | 26 | 3rd round | ||||||
| 2009 | 2nd | 14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 30 | 16 | 14 | 31 | Did not qualify | ||||||
| Tochigi Uva | ||||||||||||||||
| 2010 | Japan Football League | 3 | 18 | 15th | 34 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 41 | 75 | -34 | 31 | 1st round | – | Ineligible | |
| 2011 | 17 | 10th | 33 | 12 | 9 | 12 | 40 | 43 | -3 | 45 | 2nd round | |||||
| 2012 | 17 | 17th | 32 | 4 | 10 | 18 | 36 | 70 | -34 | 22 | Did not qualify | |||||
| 2013 | 18 | 17th | 34 | 9 | 3 | 22 | 34 | 64 | -32 | 30 | 2nd round | |||||
| 2014 | 4 | 14 | 13th | 26 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 16 | 37 | -21 | 19 | 1st round | ||||
| 2015 | 16 | 16th | 30 | 5 | 4 | 21 | 29 | 61 | -32 | 19 | 1st round | |||||
| 2016 | 16 | 15th | 30 | 5 | 1 | 24 | 34 | 77 | -43 | 16 | 1st round | |||||
| 2017 | 16 | 16th | 30 | 5 | 9 | 16 | 22 | 56 | -34 | 24 | 2nd round | |||||
| 2018 | Kantō Soccer League Division 1 | 5 | 10 | 1st | 18 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 55 | 14 | 36 | 52 | Did not qualify | |||
| Tochigi City FC | ||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Kantō Soccer League Division 1 | 5 | 10 | 3rd | 18 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 30 | 15 | 15 | 32 | 1st round | – | 2nd round | |
| 2020 † | 10 | 1st | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 6 | 19 | 23 | 1st round | Competition cancelled | ||||
| 2021 | 12 | 4th | 22 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 45 | 26 | 19 | 46 | 2nd round | |||||
| 2022 | 10 | 1st | 18 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 33 | 14 | 19 | 37 | Did not qualify | Quarter final | ||||
| 2023 | 10 | 2nd | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 54 | 24 | 30 | 36 | 2nd round | 1st round | ||||
| 2024 | Japan Football League | 4 | 16 | 1st | 30 | 19 | 7 | 4 | 66 | 35 | 31 | 64 | 2nd round | Ineligible | ||
| 2025 | J3 League | 3 | 20 | 1st | 38 | 23 | 8 | 7 | 69 | 37 | 32 | 77 | Did not qualify | 1st round | ||
| 2026 | J2 League | 2 | 10 | TBD | 18 | N/A | ||||||||||
| 2026–27 | 20 | TBD | 38 | TBD | TBD | |||||||||||
- Key
- Pos. = Position in league; P = Games played; W = Games won; D = Games drawn; L = Games lost; F = Goals scored; A = Goals conceded; GD = Goals difference; Pts = Points gained
- † Number of games played reduced by COVID-19 worldwide pandemic
Honours
edit| Honour | No. | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Tochigi Prefecture Division 1 | 10 | 1967, 1968, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1980, 1983, 1999, 2002 |
| Tochigi Prefecture 2nd Division A | 2 | 1989, 1990 |
| Tochigi Prefecture Division 2 | 1 | 1991 |
| Tochigi Prefectural Football Championship Emperor's Cup Tochigi Prefectural Qualifiers |
11 | 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021 |
| Kantō Soccer League | 3 | 2018, 2020, 2022 |
| Japanese Regional Football Champions League | 1 | 2023 |
| Japan Football League | 1 | 2024 |
| J3 League | 1 | 2025 |
Current squad
edit- As of 7 April 2026[10]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
editNote: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Club staff
edit- As of February 2025
| Position | Staff[11] |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Naoki Imaya |
| Assistant manager | Takuma Tsuda |
| Assistant manager | Atsushi Izawa |
| Goalkeeper coach | Yuki Takita |
| Strengthening coach | Nobuaki Sekimura |
| Analyst | Eishiro Hashiya Kazuki Yokoyama Kentaro Yoshihara |
| Kitman | Masateru Hata |
| Doctor | Hideyuki Sanuma Masataka Hasue Akinori Kimura Tsuneari Takahashi Takahiro Higashi Yasuhiro Higai Yuya Ogawa Taisuke Sato |
Kit evolution
edit| Home kits 1st | ||||
          2019 |
     2020 |
  2021 |
  2022 |
    2023 |
    2024 |
     2025 - | |||
| Away kits 2nd | ||||
     2019 |
     2020 |
     2021 |
  2022 |
    2023 |
    2024 |
     2025 - | |||
References
edit- ↑ "Grape picking in Ohira, Tochigi". visit-tochigi.com. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
- ↑ mainichi.jp
- ↑ sankei.com
- ↑ "2025シーズン Ｊ３クラブライセンス交付のお知らせ" (Press release). 栃木シティFC. 2024-09-25. Retrieved 2024-09-28.
- ↑ "Ｊリーグ入会（Ｊ３）について：Ｊリーグ公式サイト（J.LEAGUE.jp）". Ｊリーグ.jp（日本プロサッカーリーグ） (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-11-17.
- ↑ "Ｊ３昇格決定のお知らせ" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2024-11-17.
- ↑ "2025シーズン 年間対戦カード決定のお知らせ" (in Japanese). 2024-12-13. Retrieved 2024-12-22.
- ↑ "2026特別シーズン Ｊ２クラブライセンス交付のお知らせ". 栃木シティFC OfficialSite (in Japanese). 25 September 2025. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ↑ "栃木シティを応援いただくすべての皆さまへ". 栃木シティFC OfficialSite (in Japanese). 23 November 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
- ↑ "Tochigi City FC". Tochigi City FC. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
- ↑ "Club staff 2025". tochigi-city.com. Retrieved 6 April 2025.
External links
edit- Official website (in Japanese)
- Tochigi Uva FC U-15 U-12 Football School (archived)