“Yet journeys like this rarely end at the final whistle. They leave behind questions that follow you home. As I reflected on the passion and identity Indonesia showed, one thought kept returning to me: when will Singapore truly have its own national futsal team again?
Not a temporary squad formed out of necessity. Not a last-minute selection before a tournament. But a real and continuous programme built with intention”
“Toby Tan is one of those rare creatives whose work hits you instantly—bold, expressive, full of personality. But long before “Tobyato” became a staple in Singapore’s creative and street culture scene, he was just another Bukit Batok kid sprinting across neighbourhood courts, squeezing every minute of playtime out of the day”
“The summer sun in Tokyo was unforgiving, beating down from 10.30am to 12.15pm as players from Tokyo Verdy and Ventforet Kofu went through their warm-ups on a proper, well-maintained natural grass pitch. A few staff members wiped the sweat from their brows, while the sharp sound of passes and the bark of instructions cut through the heavy morning air. On one touchline stood two familiar figures in green — Ratna Suffian and Miur Rafik Taha — deep in discussion with their fellow Tokyo Verdy coaches. On the opposite side, dressed in Kofu colours, was Nazri Nasir, watching intently as his side moved through tactical drills. It wasn’t a packed stadium or a high-profile match, but for Junpiter Futbol, this was a rare and meaningful sight — all three Singaporean coaches, plying their trade in Japan, on the same pitch”
“The atmosphere was more than just football. It was memory. It was gratitude. It was joy. For one night, we weren’t just spectators, we were time travelers, transported back two or three decades to the moment we first fell in love with the J.League”
“The city itself is deeply steeped in football tradition. Many of Japan’s football legends—like Hidetoshi Nakata, Shinji Ono, Shinji Okazaki, Masashi Nakayama and the timeless King Kazu—hail from Shizuoka. Schools in this region have also dominated the prestigious National High School Football Championship, reinforcing the city’s status as a talent factory. As football lovers, visiting Shizuoka had always been a dream”
The JFA has seen significant success lately, and when asked what’s behind this achievement, Miyamoto pointed to the solid youth training system established in Japan since the late seventies. To him, Japan has a really good youth training system and dedicated coaches worked hard to align their training methods, helping to develop young players. Miyamoto claimed that he was one of the lucky ones who benefited from the system in Japan. And he believes the foundation laid decades ago continues to pay off, with players showcasing their skills on European stages today”
Despite their enthusiasm, the transition into Japanese football culture was fraught with challenges. “It took us nearly two months to break into the team culture,” Isa explained. “The language barrier and various other factors were quite frustrating. However, we are incredibly grateful to Hiroshi Yofuko, the club’s head coach, who took the time to understand us and gradually introduced us to the team.”
“We can talk about a huge country like Brazil, where it is common for footballers play both, but definitely not us in Japan. So yes, it’s certainly not an easy task if you ask me. Since now I’m in this position, the management trusts me, I will do my best to lead the league”
“You must realise that you must push yourself to the next level to accomplish anything. You always have to believe that you can, and then you will be able to do it. It’s all up here (pointing to the head). Understand that football is not played with the feet; the feet are just tools. It is here (pointing to the head). It’s all mentality”
“Japan missed the 1994 World Cup in the United States with just seconds remaining. And for the 1998 World Cup in France, Japan won the playoffs with a golden goal. It was because of these two ‘hells’ (Doha-1993, where the Japanese cried) and ‘heaven’ (Johor Bahru-1997, where we got our revenge and cried tears of joy) that Japanese football improved drastically.
Southeast Asian countries will also soon experience their own ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’ as Southeast Asia will play one of the most exciting, if not the most exciting, World Cup Qualifiers in the World Cup”
“The UEFA Champions League theme song went off, and the match between Barca and FC Porto kicked off in nearly 40,000 packed Stadium. Instead of focusing on the exciting match, we were literally “marked out” of the game by the entertaining football ultras’ singing and the ten over thousands of mini Barca flags given to the fans for free upon entry, waving in the air. It was nothing impressive when only a few hundred flags moved in the air. But when it’s ten over thousands with singing, it is a sight”
