Honda FC

Honda FC (ホンダFC, Honda Efu Shī) is a Japanese professional football club based in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka. They play in the Japan Football League.

This article is about the football club. For the concept car, see Honda FC Sport.

Honda Football Club
Full nameHonda Motor Football Club
Founded1971 (1971)
GroundHonda Miyakoda Soccer Stadium
Hamamatsu, Shizuoka
Capacity4,000
OwnerHonda Motor Company
ChairmanMasaaki Miyaji
ManagerYoshitaka Maeda
LeagueJapan Football League
20204th
WebsiteClub website

History

The club was founded as Honda Motor, Honda works team in 1971. They were promoted to the Japan Soccer League Division 2 in 1975 and to the JSL Division 1 in 1981; the closest they came to the title was in 1985–86 and 1990–91 seasons, when they finished in third place. In 1991 they also made the finals of both the Japan Soccer League Cup and Konica Cup, but lost both times. They also made the Emperor's Cup semi-finals in 1990 and 1991. They stayed in the top flight until the conclusion of the league in 1992.

In the early 1990s, the club considered the possibilities of turning professional and participating in J. League. They sought the merger with their sister club Honda Motor Sayama F.C. and Urawa was chosen as a possible hometown. However, they failed to persuade the owner Honda Motor who insisted they should abide by their principle to concentrate on their core business of automobile manufacturing.

As a result of this decision, many players left the club. They played in the newly formed Japan Football League Division 1 in 1992 and finished 9th out of 10. They were relegated to Division 2 where they won the championship in 1993. The 2 divisions of the JFL were merged in 1994 and the club joined the league.

In 1996, they won the championship in the JFL. Around that time, the club made the second effort to be a professional club. They acquired associate membership in J. League under new name Acute Hamamatsu but the inadequate stadium and insufficient local support (the closest professional club is Júbilo Iwata, formerly part of Yamaha Motor Corporation), forced them to give it up. Iwata was a common derby foe in the JSL and their fixtures were known as Tenryu-side Derby (天竜川決戦).

In 1999, the JFL was reorganised as the new JFL. They have been playing in the league since its inception.

J's Gatekeeper

Honda F.C. does not intend to be promoted to the J. League due to the mandatory loss of corporate backing, although they have been always considered as one of the JFL title contenders. They provide a big hurdle for those independent sides (such as Gainare Tottori or F.C. Ryūkyū) who wish to gain promotion. In order to achieve this goal, these teams need to finish in the top four in the league. Honda perennially occupying one of these spots makes their challenge even more difficult. Supporters of these clubs have dubbed Honda F.C. as J's Gatekeeper (the Gatekeeper of J. League) with respect and some resentment.[1]

Honda F.C., having played in the old Japan Soccer League in the past but never contending for the title, has in 2007 given some J1 teams a run for their money in the Emperor's Cup, reaching the quarterfinals after disposing of former champions Kashiwa Reysol and top contenders Nagoya Grampus (their first quarterfinals since 1991). They were nevertheless defeated by J1 champions Kashima Antlers on 22 December.[2] The 2008 cup did not go well for them, as they were eliminated by Sagan Tosu 4–0 in the third round, but they still won the JFL championship.

Stadium
Miyakoda Soccer Stadium

The club's home arena is the Honda Miyakoda Soccer Stadium located in Kita-ku, Hamamatsu. It is owned by Honda Motor Company. The stadium was redeveloped in 1996. This reconstruction included the building of a new mobile platform (1,000 seats) and corner floodlights. The stadium now holds 4,000 spectators.[3]

League & cup record
League League Cup Emperor's Cup
SeasonDivisionTierTeamsPositionGPWDLPts
1971Western Shizuoka 1st–Did not qualify
1972Shizuoka 1st –Did not qualify
1973 Tōkai 81st14121125–3rd round
1974 1st1393121–2nd round
1975 JSL Div.2 2 10 4th18102622–Did not qualify
1976 4th1869321Quarter-final1st round
1977 7th18801029Semi-final2nd round
1978 1st18140457Quarter-final2nd round
1979 4th181107442nd round2nd round
1980 1st181323281st round2nd round
1981 JSL Div.1 1 6th1854914Quarter-final2nd round
1982 9th1846814Quarter-final1st round
1983 8th1846814Quarter-finalQuarter-final
1984 5th1875619Semi-finalQuarter-final
1985–86 12 3rd22812228Semi-final2nd round
1986–87 9th2268820Semi-finalSemi-final
1987–88 8th2268820Semi-finalQuarter-final
1988–89 9th22769272nd roundQuarter-final
1989–90 6th2210210221st round2nd round
1990–91 3rd22108438Semi-finalSemi-final
1991–92 10th2258923FinalSemi-final
1992 JFL (former) Div.1 10 9th18441016–2nd round
1993 JFL (former) Div.2 2 1st181503–Did not qualify
1994 JFL (former) 3 16 9th3012018–Did not qualify
1995 7th301601449–1st round
1996 1st30250575–3rd round
1997 4th30230765–3rd round
1998 5th301901154–4th round
1999 JFL 3 9 2nd24181550–3rd round
2000 12 2nd22170549–3rd round
2001 16 1st30225371–3rd round
2002 18 1st17132241–3rd round
2003 16 2nd30214567–3rd round
2004 2nd30195662–4th round
2005 5th30175856–4th round
2006 18 1st34265383–4th round
2007 5th341610858–Quarter-final
2008 1st34228474–3rd round
2009 7th341312951–2nd round
2010 4th341851159–2nd round
2011 6th341571152–Did not qualify
2012 17 5th321651153–Did not qualify
2013 18 5th341411953–Did not qualify
2014 JFL 4 14 1st26165553–Did not qualify
2015 16 3rd30215468–Did not qualify
2016 18 1st30187561–Round of 16
2017 1st30217270–2nd round
2018 1st30254179–2nd round
2019 16 1st30196563–Quarter-final
2020 4th1557322–

Source: JFL, Honda FC website

Honours

Current squad

As of May 4, 2020.[4] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  JPN Yuki Kusumoto
2 DF  JPN Daiki Ikematsu
3 DF  JPN Masafumi Miura
4 MF  JPN Yuya Tomita
5 DF  JPN Yuya Suzuki (captain)
6 DF  JPN Toya Nakamura
7 MF  JPN Kazuki Matsumoto
8 MF  JPN Kenta Yamafuji
9 FW  JPN Shogo Omachi
10 FW  JPN Tatsuya Furuhashi
11 MF  JPN Hayato Horiuchi
13 FW  JPN Yuki Okazaki
14 MF  JPN Hayato Kawabata
No. Pos. Nation Player
15 FW  JPN Kai Harada
16 MF  JPN Tappei Kawanami
17 DF  JPN Koshi Onodera
18 FW  JPN Reon Kodama
19 DF  JPN Yuta Hachinohe
20 GK  JPN Fuma Shirasaka
21 GK  JPN Hirotaka Takamura
22 MF  JPN Kazuki Ishida
23 MF  JPN Kosuke Shimizu
24 MF  JPN Toshiki Sasaki
25 MF  JPN Riku Suzuki
26 MF  JPN Takaya Hirakawa

References
  1. Utsunomiya, Tetsuichi (13 October 2009). "Emperor's Cup 2009 report" (in Japanese). Y's Sports Inc. Archived from the original on 21 October 2009. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  2. Shizuoka Shimbun. "The 90th Emperor's Cup: Prefectural finals winners" (in Japanese). JFA. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  3. "Stadium guide" (in Japanese). Honda FC. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  4. "選手・スタッフ紹介". www.honda-fc.gr.jp. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
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