This page contains a list of the greatest Japanese Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 16,923 Soccer Players, 4,052 of which were born in Japan. This makes Japan the birth place of the most number of Soccer Players.
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Japanese Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Japanese Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Japanese Soccer Players.
With an HPI of 70.66, Hisataka Okamoto is the most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages on wikipedia.
Hisataka Okamoto (岡本 久敬, Okamoto Hisataka, born December 14, 1933) is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.61, Kunishige Kamamoto is the 2nd most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 60 different languages.
Kunishige Kamamoto (釜本 邦茂, Kamamoto Kunishige, born April 15, 1944) is a former Japanese football player, manager and politician. He won the bronze medal with the Japan national team at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, finishing as the tournament's top scorer with seven goals, and is the all-time leading goalscorer for Japan. He served as a member of the House of Councillors between 1995 and 2001.
With an HPI of 70.41, Akira Kitaguchi is the 3rd most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 55 different languages.
Akira Kitaguchi (北口 晃, Kitaguchi Akira, born March 8, 1935) is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.27, Tsukasa Hosaka is the 4th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.
Tsukasa Hosaka (保坂 司, Hosaka Tsukasa, March 3, 1937 – January 21, 2018) was a former Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.21, Takashi Kasahara is the 5th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages.
Takashi Kasahara (笠原 隆, Kasahara Takashi, born March 26, 1918) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.18, Yasuo Takamori is the 6th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.
Yasuo Takamori (高森 泰男, Takamori Yasuo, March 3, 1934 – ?) (former name; Yasuo Kageyama, 景山 泰男) was a Japanese football player and manager. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.18, Yozo Aoki is the 7th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages.
Yozo Aoki (青木 要三, Aoki Yōzō, April 10, 1929 – April 23, 2014) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.12, Yasukazu Tanaka is the 8th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 52 different languages.
Yasukazu Tanaka (田中 雍和, Tanaka Yasukazu, born June 15, 1933) is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 70.08, Saizo Saito is the 9th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages.
Saizo Saito (斎藤 才三, Saitō Saizō, September 24, 1908 – 2004) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
With an HPI of 69.97, Hiroaki Sato is the 10th most famous Japanese Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 53 different languages.
Hiroaki Sato (佐藤 弘明, Satō Hiroaki, February 5, 1932 – January 1, 1988) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Pantheon has 4,052 people classified as soccer players born between 1891 and 2002. Of these 4,052, 3,946 (97.38%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living soccer players include Hisataka Okamoto, Kunishige Kamamoto, and Akira Kitaguchi. The most famous deceased soccer players include Tsukasa Hosaka, Yasuo Takamori, and Yozo Aoki. As of October 2020, 1167 new soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Keiichiro Nuno, Kim Jong-song, and Tsuyoshi Otsuki.
1933 - Present
HPI: 70.66
1944 - Present
HPI: 70.61
1935 - Present
HPI: 70.41
1918 - Present
HPI: 70.21
1933 - Present
HPI: 70.12
HPI: 69.72
HPI: 69.48
1934 - Present
HPI: 69.43
HPI: 69.38
1899 - Present
HPI: 69.36
HPI: 69.19
HPI: 69.15
1937 - 2018
HPI: 70.27
1934 - 2016
HPI: 70.18
1929 - 2014
HPI: 70.18
1908 - 2004
HPI: 70.08
1932 - 1988
HPI: 69.97
1917 - 2000
HPI: 69.96
1918 - 1944
HPI: 69.92
1934 - 2015
HPI: 69.68
1900 - 1970
HPI: 69.60
1926 - 2002
HPI: 69.54
1909 - 1996
HPI: 69.41
1900 - 1984
HPI: 69.40
1960 - Present
HPI: 48.76
1964 - Present
HPI: 47.53
1972 - Present
HPI: 45.34
1966 - Present
HPI: 44.78
1967 - Present
HPI: 44.47
1996 - Present
HPI: 44.04
1970 - Present
HPI: 43.88
1969 - Present
HPI: 43.66
1963 - Present
HPI: 43.55
1987 - Present
HPI: 43.47
1974 - Present
HPI: 43.31
1963 - Present
HPI: 43.01
Which Soccer Players were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 25 most globally memorable Soccer Players since 1700.