The Asahi Shimbun supports and sponsors various sports events.

The Asahi Shimbun is a match sponsor for games featuring Japanese national teams.

The Asahi Shimbun became an official newspaper for The 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup Tournament, and published extras for every game, thus playing a part in the tournament’s great success. With this as a starting point and hoping to keep the nation’s interest in soccer alive, the company has subsequently been working on various programs to support soccer. The company has become a J-League 100-Year Plan Partner, secured official sponsorship of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and co-sponsors the Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (Under 18) Football Championship. And by adding another major pillar to the effort and becoming a match sponsor for Japanese national teams, The Asahi Shimbun now supports various generations of soccer players including young boys and girls, tournaments for college students and women, and matches played by the national team, the pinnacle of soccer players.

Recently, as official AFC sponsor, The Asahi Shimbun supported Asian zone qualifiers for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany and the Asian Cup soccer tournament in 2007, covering the games as official newspaper. The company will continue to support and sponsor important tournaments and matches including J-League and qualifying rounds in the Asian region for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The Asahi Shimbun has been putting a lot of effort into nurturing the younger generation.

The Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (Under 18) Football Championship, which The Asahi Shimbun co-sponsors with the Japan Football Association, is where Japan’s best under-18 high school football team is decided. The tournament helps nurture future J-Leaguers and players for the national team.

As a partner of the J-League 100 Year Plan, we work towards realizing its goal, “to create a new sports culture by encouraging sports clubs with close links to local communities.” As a partner with J-League athletes, The Asahi Shimbun promotes grass surfaces in schools, and supports various sports events, not limited to soccer, which are organized by J-League clubs.

The Asahi Shimbun supports soccer classes taught by former J-League players.

The Soccer Promotion Committee supports sports activities which are centered around soccer tournaments, thus helping create stronger ties among our readers, soccer fans and The Asahi Shimbun. “Junior Soccer Schools” and “Family Soccer Classes” are held regularly across the nation, with instructions given by former national team representatives and J-League players. These have become popular events. The Asahi Shimbun’s Internet-based membership service Aspara Club offers full set of tickets to all J-League games as gifts for their members, taking part in promoting the sport.

We are working toward becoming recognized as “The Asahi Shimbun for Soccer.” We hope to continue contributing to the sports in every aspect.