Women’s football club denied league status due to playing on artificial pitch

A WOMEN’S football club in Japan has been denied league status because they currently play on an artificial pitch.

On Monday, August 15, Nankatsu SC WINGS, the women’s football side of Nankatsu SC, said that their application to join the 2023 Nadeshiko League Division 2 had been refused due to the club is currently playing its football on an artificial pitch and not one made of natural grass.

The club, which is owned by Japanese mango cartoonist Yoichi Takahashi, announced the news via a statement .

“Nankatsu SC WINGS had applied for the 2023 Nadeshiko League Division 2 membership, but as a result of the examination of documents and interviews, the main reason was that it was difficult to secure a natural turf ground. I am sorry to inform you that I could not advance to the competition.

It added: “It was a very disappointing result, but as a club, we will take the result seriously, and look forward and work hard on our daily activities. In addition, with the cooperation of Katsushika Ward, we will continue to work on the realization of a natural grass stadium.

“Thank you for your continued support and encouragement.”

Mana Iwabuchi, who plays for FA Women’s Super League club Arsenal, responded to the news, writing on Twitter: “A natural pitch would be best for the players, but even in some of the world’s top leagues there are artificial pitches. Regardless of their reasons, I think that artificial pitches can help promote and develop the women’s game.”

He added: “Since coming to Arsenal I’ve realised how wonderful it is to have a team in my city I can train under, grow with and play for. Whether it’s a big or small club, what matters is having a nearby environment that will let you do what you love.

“I don’t know anything about this (Nankatsu) situation, but I personally hope more playing fields like theirs can emerge for WOSO (Women’s Soccer) players! And for that to happen we in the community have to step up and do more than ever before.”

もちろん選手からしたら天然芝がベストだけど、世界のトップリーグでも人工芝でやってる所はあるんです。その国の天候だったりっていう理由はあるにせよ、女子サッカーの普及、発展っていう面から考えると、個人的には人工芝でもいいのかなと思う。
女子サッカー選手、みんなーどう思う？ https://t.co/N1rIuWXrNn

— Mana Iwabuchi 岩渕真奈 (@buchi_mana) August 15, 2022

Nankatsu SC WINGS player Yamazaki Kaori wrote: “It was a very disappointing result. It’s very frustrating that I can’t even challenge myself because I’ve been fighting with this year’s team believing that I can be promoted. However, the team’s activities are not over, so we will do our best to deliver good results at the Empress’s Cup Kanto qualifiers to be held in September, so please continue to support us.”

非常に残念な結果となりました。
今年のチームなら昇格できると信じて戦い続けてきたからこそ挑戦することすらもできないのがとても悔しい。
ただ、チームの活動が終わった訳ではないので9月に開催される皇后杯関東予選では良い結果をお届けできるように頑張りますので引き続き宜しくお願い致します。 https://t.co/hU0RMzt5yy

— Yamazaki kaori (@zakkkkkki0816) August 15, 2022

People on Twitter have commented on the situation.

“When there was an old challenge league, wasn’t there a team that held all home games on artificial turf? Was there a standard that would question the ratio of events held at venues with natural turf? Currently, even international A matches are held at venues with artificial turf, so I think the standards themselves should be reviewed.”

昔のチャレンジリーグがあった時には、全ホームゲームを人工芝で開催というチームもあったのでは？
天然芝の会場で行われる比率が問われるような基準ができたのでしょうか？
現在では、国際Aマッチでさえ人工芝の会場で行われていることから、その基準自体を見直すべきではないかと思いますよ。

— EachGoneCowG (@g_each) August 15, 2022

One person wrote: “The reason is natural turf, and it’s sad that no matter how hard the players try, they can’t reach it. It reminded me of Blaublitz Akita in 2017. Despite being in the top ranks of J3, J2 license is stadium NG. But I ran to the end and won J3 🏆 .
From the next year onwards, the involvement of public opinion and the speed of administrative movements were amazing 🔥”

理由は天然芝、選手たちの努力がいくらあっても届かないところ、切ないですね…。

2017年のブラウブリッツ秋田を思い出しました。J3上位に居ながら、J2ライセンスはスタジアムNG。でも最後まで走り切ってJ3優勝🏆。
翌年以降の、世論の巻き込み、行政の動きの速さ、すごかったです🔥 https://t.co/CKTRcZLBMU

— wdstk1 (@bigear23052001) August 15, 2022

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