Although acceptance of LGBTQ+ people is increasing in Japan, one area where activism and visibility is less prevalent is in sports. As in many other countries around the world, the sporting world still considers queer people to be taboo. However, Japanese soccer has recently had two major breakthroughs that highlight progress in the sport, and in sports generally.
National Soccer Player Comes Out as Transgender
One of the first major announcements in the Japanese transgender community in 2026 was that Marumi Yamazaki announced, on New Year’s Day, that he is transgender. He told his followers on Instagram that he had officially changed his gender on the family register, and that he was married to a woman.
Yamazaki, who retired from soccer in 2023, let his followers know that he had done this over a year ago, but had decided to announce publicly what his friends and family knew privately. Indeed, he said that he retired from soccer in order to do this, live as his true self, and marry his wife: as readers may know, same-gender marriage is still not permitted in Japan.
“I know there will still be mixed reactions and some people will disagree, but I hope it will broaden someone’s perspective, be a guidepost for someone, or give courage and hope to someone,” he said.
“In the past, when it came to marriage, I thought I couldn’t get married because I had to consider not only my partner, but also their parents and family.
Just as this feeling changed one day, I hope I can change the feelings of even one person and spread the word to make the world a more comfortable place for even one person.”
Yamazaki is not the first person involved in Japanese soccer to come out as transgender. Sayato Nakata also announced his transition in the early 2020s, and after working for EY for years he started working for the SPORTS X LGBTQ Network, where he works to promote understanding of queer people in sports. He and his organisation have also recently had a major success.
Fukushima United Wins Gold in the PRIDE Index
Nakata, in addition to working for the SPORTS X Network, is the operations manager at Fukushima United FC. The club, founded in 2006, and which plays in the J3 League — also known as the third division of the J.League — became the first club in the history of the J.League to be awarded the PRIDE Index’s Gold rating.
The PRIDE Index, which was developed by Work With Pride in 2016, is an evaluation system to let both potential employees and customers — and in this case, fans — know how active and effective places of employment are at welcoming and supporting LGBTQ+ people.
“Through football, we are working to deepen understanding of diversity and human rights both within and outside the club,” Fukushima United FC announced.
“We have established systems for same-sex partners and transgender individuals, and LGBTQ-related training is conducted by LGBTQ-identified employees.”
While there is a long way to go for LGBTQ+ representation — and even recognition — in Japan within the world of sports, these developments in the beautiful game are more than welcome. Indeed, while Fukushima United FC might be in the third division, now they are champions.
