Vegalta Sendai

Vegalta Sendai
ベガルタ仙台
Full nameVegalta Sendai
NicknamesVega, Brummell
Short nameVEG
Founded1988 (1988)
GroundYurtec Stadium Sendai
(Izumi-ku, Sendai)
Capacity19,694
ChairmanHideki Itabashi
ManagerYoshiro Moriyama[1]
LeagueJ2 League
2025J2 League, 7th of 20
Websitevegalta.co.jp

Vegalta Sendai (ベガルタ仙台, Begaruta Sendai) is a Japanese professional football club based in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. They currently play in J2 League, the Japanese second tier of professional football.

Vegalta won their only major honours in which they won the J2 League title in the 2009 season.

History

Foundation and early development (1988–1998)

Founded in 1988 as Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc. Soccer Club, the company team of Tohoku Electric Power, Vegalta Sendai joined the J-League in 1999 after playing a few seasons in the JFL, with the nickname Brummell Sendai, to which they had been promoted in 1994 from the Tohoku Regional League. In the mid-1990s, the club began transitioning into a community-based professional club as part of the expanding structure of the J.League. In 1999, the club adopted the name Vegalta Sendai as a homage to the famous Tanabata festival in Sendai and joined the newly established J2 League.

Promotion to J1 and early top-flight years (2001–2003)

Vegalta achieved promotion to the J1 League in 2001 after finishing near the top of the J2 standings. The promotion marked the first time the club competed in Japan’s top division.

Vegalta performed strongly in its debut season and secured a respectable mid-table finish. However, the club went back down to J2 League due to the inconsistent performance.

Rebuilding and return to J1 (2004–2019)

Following relegation, Vegalta spent several years rebuilding in the J2 League while strengthening its squad and youth development system. The club gradually improved its performances and became a strong promotion contender.

In 2009, Vegalta won the J2 League title thus securing promotion back to the J1 League for the 2010 season.

In 2011, despite the earthquake and tsunami, Vegalta achieved their highest position up to that time, 4th place in the top division.

In 2012, despite leading the table for most of the season, Sanfrecce Hiroshima's challenge proved too strong, and losing the penultimate week game to relegation battler Albirex Niigata cost them the title, rendering them runners-up in the league which is Vegalta best-ever league finish in the top flight division.

In 2018, Vegalta reached the final of the 2018 Emperor's Cup, however, lost 1–0 to Urawa Red Diamonds.[2]

Recent seasons (2020–present)

After twelve years spent in the J1 League, Vegalta returned to the J2 in 2022, after being relegated from the J1 at the end of 2021. After finishing in seventh place in the 2022 J2 League, thus failing to reach the promotion play-offs. Ryang Yong-gi, a symbol of Sendai, retired at the end of the 2023 season.

For the 2024 season, Yoshiro Moriyama, who has a track record of developing players at Sanfrecce Hiroshima's training age group and the U17 Japan National Team, was appointed as Manager.

Team image

Name origin

The name “Vegalta” is derived from the names of two stars in the constellation Orion—Vega and Altair—a reference to the famous Tanabata festival held annually in Sendai. The names of the two celestial stars of the Tanabata legend, Vega and Altair were combined to form Vegalta.[3]

Supporters

As with most football clubs, fans in Sendai sing and dance during matches. However, most of the songs used by fans from other clubs are avoided due to the more eclectic set. Club themes sung before each game are Take Me Home, Country Roads, and during the game. Toy Dolls, Blitzkrieg Bop and other Kiss and Twisted Sister songs.

Since Sendai is the hometown of Hirohiko Araki, who wrote JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, fans often wave flags with the same motifs of characters portrayed in Araki's manga.

Rivalries

Michinoku Derby

Vegalta's traditional rivals are Montedio Yamagata from Yamagata Prefecture. The two have been rivals since meeting in the Tohoku Football League in 1991. Among the Tohoku derbies, this match is famous as the Michinoku derby.

Tohoku Derby

This is the derby played by the Tohoku region teams, currently the most important match is that of Vegalta Sendai and Montedio Yamagata. Other teams included in this classic include Blaublitz Akita, Iwate Grulla Morioka, Iwaki FC.

Mascot

  • VEGATTA (Brother)
    • He has won "the J League mascot general election" many times and is quite popular.
    • The eagle, which is also used in the club emblem as a symbol of victory in Greek mythology, is associated with the Aquila constellation, to which Hikoboshi (Altair) belongs, which is the origin of the club's name. The name was decided by public submission. Vegatta's SNS (BLOG, Twitter), which is updated daily, is loved and popular among soccer fans in Japan, as the mascot loves mischief, and is by some fans, hard to believe it is a mascot.
  • LTAANA (Sister)
    • From the Sendai summer tradition "Sendai Tanabata", which is the origin of the team name, "Luta" for Vega (Orihime) and Altair (Hikoboshi), and "Tana" for Tanabata, it was named as a girlish name by combining "na", on a 7 August, which is the date of the event and the birthday. Sometimes she tweet with [#ルターナ] (LTAANA written phonetically on Katakana) on Sendai's official Twitter.
    • When Vegalta wins any match, she expresses her joy on Twitter.

Cheerleaders

  • The Vegalta Cheerleaders mainly support "Vegalta Sendai", participate in many events, and continue to work as a cheering group for people who are doing their best in the area. She has the longest history as a cheerleader for a professional sports team in Sendai, and has been active since 2003.

Stadium

Yurtec Stadium Sendai

Vegalta plays its home matches at Yurtec Stadium Sendai, a football-specific stadium located in Izumi-ku, Sendai. Opened in 1997, the stadium has a seating capacity of around 19,134 spectators and is known for its compact design, with stands positioned close to the pitch, creating an intense matchday atmosphere. The stadium has served as the club’s primary home ground since Vegalta joined the professional structure of the J.League. Its intimate atmosphere and passionate supporters make it one of the most recognizable football venues in the Tōhoku region.

Miyagi Stadium

In addition to Yurtec Stadium Sendai, the club occasionally uses the Miyagi Stadium. a much larger multi-purpose stadium located in the town of Rifu, just outside Sendai. It is typically used for selected high-profile matches and major event. Opened in 2000, the venue has a capacity of over 49,000 and was one of the stadiums used during the 2002 FIFA World Cup where It was also used by the Italian national football team as their basecamp during the tournament.

Due to its significantly larger capacity, Miyagi Stadium is sometimes used for high-profile fixtures, major events, and matches expected to attract larger crowds. While Yurtec Stadium Sendai remains the club’s main and traditional home ground, Miyagi Stadium serves as an alternative venue that allows the club to accommodate bigger audiences for important games.

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors

Kit evolution

Players

First-team squad

As of 1 March 2026.[4]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  JPN Daiki Hotta
2 DF  JPN Sena Igarashi
3 DF  JPN Masayuki Okuyama
4 MF  JPN Azuri Yutani
5 DF  JPN Masahiro Sugata
6 MF  JPN Renji Matsui
7 FW  JPN Shunta Araki
8 MF  JPN Hidetoshi Takeda
9 FW  JPN Ko Miyazaki
10 MF  JPN Hiromu Kamada
11 FW  JPN Kokoro Kobayashi
14 MF  JPN Ryunosuke Sagara
15 MF  JPN Sota Minami
17 MF  JPN Aoi Kudo
18 FW  JPN Tsubasa Umeki
19 DF  BRA Mateus Moraes
20 FW  JPN Yu Nakada
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 DF  JPN Ryota Takada
23 MF  JPN Keito Arita
24 DF  JPN Taiga Nagai
26 MF  JPN Sota Yokoyama
27 MF  JPN Hiroto Iwabuchi
29 GK  JPN Koki Matsuzawa
30 FW  JPN Minto Nishimaru
33 GK  JPN Akihiro Hayashi
34 FW  JPN Ayumu Furuya
37 MF  JPN Yota Sugiyama
38 GK  JPN Kosei Watanabe Type 2
40 FW  JPN Takumi Yasuno
41 GK  JPN Ippei Takahashi
42 DF  JPN Hayata Ishii
44 DF  JPN Shion Inoue
55 DF  KOR Han Ho-gang

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF  JPN Tetsuya Chinen (at Tochigi City)
— GK  JPN Riku Umeda (at FC Ryukyu)
— FW  BRA Gustavo (at Brazil Botafogo PB)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF  JPN Manato Kudo (at Kochi United)
— FW  JPN Ryunosuke Sugawara (at FC Osaka)

Management and staff

For the 2026 season.[5]

Position Name
Manager Japan Yoshiro Moriyama
First-team coach Japan Koichiro Katafuchi
Japan Akira Konno
Japan Yōsuke Nishi
Goalkeeper coach Japan Motoki Ueda
Physical coach Japan Makoto Muraoka
Analyst & coach Japan Takuma Deguchi
Chief trainer Japan Yakuya Matsuda
Trainer Japan Tomoki Takeda
Japan Taisuke Ikoma
Physiotherapist Japan Masaaki Taira
Interpreter Brazil Rodrigo Simões
Competent Japan Shinya Naganuma
Deputy officer Japan Yutaro Miura
Japan Hiroki Ito

Honours

Type Honours Titles Season
League J2 League 1 2009
Tohoku Soccer League 1 1994
Japanese Regional Football League Competition 1 1984

Bold is for those competition that are currently active.

Records and statistics

As of 25 April 2026.

Top 10 all-time appearances
Rank Player Years Club appearance
1 North Korea Ryang Yong-gi 2004–2019,

2022–2023

617
2 Japan Shingo Tomita 2005–2022 518
3 Japan Naoki Sugai 2003–2018 442
4 Japan Naoki Chiba 1996–2010 430
5 Japan Kunimitsu Sekiguchi 2004–2012,

2018–2021

413
6 Japan Takuto Hayashi 2007–2013 284
7 Japan Koji Hachisuka 2012–2023 279
8 Japan Takayuki Nakahara 2003–2014 230
9 Japan Yasuhiro Hiraoka 2016–2022 224
10 Japan Jiro Kamata 2010–2015 220
Top 10 all-time goalscorer
Rank Player Club appearance Total goals
1 North Korea Ryang Yong-gi 617 83
2 Brazil Marcos 73 56
3 Brazil Wilson 162 51
4 Japan Shingo Akamine 163 48
5 Japan Naoki Sugai 442 43
6 Japan Yuki Nakashima 201 38
7 Japan Hisato Satō 81 33
8 Japan Takayuki Nakahara 230 31
9 Japan Takuma Nishimura 143 30
10 Japan Kunimitsu Sekiguchi 413 30
  • Biggest wins: 11–0 vs Matsuyama University (3 November 1996)
  • Heaviest defeats: 0–7 vs Urawa Red Diamonds (7 April 2017)
  • Youngest ever debutant: Manato Kudo ~ 16 years 11 months 11 days old (On 18 April 2018 vs Albirex Niigata)
  • Oldest ever player: North Korea Ryang Yong-gi ~ 41 years 10 months 5 days old (On 12 November 2023 vs Machida Zelvia)
  • Youngest goal scorers: Kenta Miyawaki ~ 17 years 3 months 14 days old (On 18 April 2018 vs Albirex Niigata)
  • Oldest goal scorers: Serbia Slobodan Dubajić ~ 37 years 6 months 8 days old (On 27 August 2000 vs Mito HollyHock)

Award winners

As of the end of the 2025 season.

Managerial history

Manager Period Honours
Japan Takekazu Suzuki 1 July 1990–31 December 1995 – 1994 Tohoku Soccer League
Japan Choei Sato 1 January 1996–31 December 1996
Slovenia Branko Elsner 1 February 1997–31 December 1997
Japan Toshiya Miura 1 January 1998–31 January 1998
Japan Takekazu Suzuki (2) 1 February 1998–24 July 1999
Japan Hidehiko Shimizu 27 July 1999–14 September 2003
Japan Hajime Ishii 15 September 2003–20 September 2003
Slovenia Zdenko Verdenik 21 September 2003–31 December 2004
Japan Satoshi Tsunami 1 January 2005–30 November 2005
Brazil Joel Santana 1 December 2005–31 December 2006
Japan Tatsuya Mochizuki 1 January 2007–31 December 2007
Japan Makoto Teguramori 1 February 2008–14 November 2013 – 2009 J2 League
Australia Graham Arnold 14 November 2013–9 April 2014
Japan Susumu Watanabe 10 April 2014–31 January 2020
Japan Takashi Kiyama 1 February 2020–31 January 2021
Japan Makoto Teguramori (2) 1 February 2021–22 November 2021
Japan Masato Harasaki 23 November 2021–5 September 2022
Japan Akira Ito 6 September 2022–12 July 2023
Japan Takafumi Hori 13 July 2023–13 November 2023
Japan Yoshiro Moriyama 1 January 2024–present

Notable players and coaches

International convention

National Team
FIFA Confederations Cup
EAFF E-1 Football Championship
  • 2015
    • Japan Yuji Rokutan (2015–2016)
  • 2022
Under National Team
AFC U-23 Asian Cup
  • 2016
    • Japan Makoto Teguramori
      ※Winner
  • 2020
    • Australia Graham Arnold
      ※3rd place
Toulon Tournament (U-22)
  • 2019
    • Japan Keiya Shiihashi (2016–2020)
      ※Runner up, Best XI
FIFA U-20 World Cup (Manager)
  • 2023
    • South Korea Kim Eun-jung (2003)

Best Match

① and ② were selected as "that game I want to see again" on the J League official YouTube channel, and 2 was also selected as "10 Best Matches" by J Chronicle Best. ② was also selected as the "Best Match" of the J30 Best Awards.

J Chronicle Best

This is a project to select the J.League "Best Eleven", "Best Goal" and "Best Match" over the past 20 years. A project held in 2013 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Japan Professional Soccer League. The mentioned two game is often featured as a legendary game in each media.

J30 BEST AWARDS

A project to select the "MVP", "Best Eleven", "Best Goal", "Best Match", and "Best Scene" of the J League over the past 30 years. An award hosted by the J.League to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the J.League in 2023.

Even in "Soccer Digest" (Japan's famous football media), the two were selected as "the best 3 selected J.League matches" by the reporter in charge of Sendai. Sendai's Yoshiaki Ota, who scored the equalizing goal against Kawasaki, said, "I think it was a goal that everyone worked together, including the thoughts of my teammates."

*The notation of the match card and the stadium where the match was held is at the time of the match.

Game Date/Stadium Overview Match data
① 2001 J League Division 2 Round 44

Kyoto Purple Sanga FC 0-1 Vegalta Sendai

November 18, 2001

Takebishi Stadium Kyoto

The long-awaited J1 first promotion match.

Head-to-head competition between leader Kyoto and 3rd place Sendai in the final round.

The first promotion to J1 as a club in the Tohoku region is decided.

Official record
② 2011 J League Division 1 Round 7

Kawasaki Frontale 1-2 Vegalta Sendai

April 23, 2011

Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium

The first match after the suspension of the league match due to the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Sendai, who suffered severe damage to the club itself, came from behind to win. Recorded the club's first victory with Todoroki Stadium.

Official record

Season by season record

Champions Runners-up Third place Promoted Relegated
League J.League Cup Emperor's Cup
Season League Tier Teams Pos. P W (OTW / PKW) D L (OTL) F A GD Pts Attendance
Brummell Sendai
1995 Former JFL 2 16 15th 30 9 - 21 40 79 -39 27 2nd round
1996 16 6th 30 18 - 12 67 52 15 56 3rd round
1997 16 8th 30 12 (1 / 2) - 15 37 43 -6 40 Group stage 2nd round
1998 16 7th 30 1 (5 / 3) - 12 55 53 2 43 Group stage 4th round
Vegalta Sendai
1999 J2 2 10 9th 36 7 (3) 4 18 (4) 30 58 -28 31 7,470 1st round 2nd round
2000 11 5th 40 15 (4) 2 15 (4) 60 69 -9 55 8,885 1st round 1st round
2001 12 2nd 44 24 (3) 5 9 (3) 78 56 22 83 14,011 1st round 3rd round
2002 J1 1 16 13th 30 9 (2) 1 18 40 57 -17 32 21,862 Group stage 4th round
2003 16 15th 30 5 9 16 31 56 -25 24 21,646 Group stage 3rd round
2004 J2 2 12 6th 44 15 14 15 62 66 -4 59 16,198 Not eligible 4th round
2005 12 4th 44 19 11 14 66 47 19 68 15,934 4th round
2006 13 5th 48 21 14 13 75 43 32 77 14,453 4th round
2007 13 4th 48 24 13 11 72 54 18 83 14,685 3rd round
2008 15 3rd 42 18 16 8 62 47 15 70 14,080 4th round
2009 18 1st 51 32 10 9 87 39 48 106 12,951 Semi final
2010 J1 1 18 14th 34 10 9 15 40 46 -6 39 17,332 Quarter final 2nd round
2011 18 4th 34 14 14 6 39 25 14 56 15,656 2nd round 4th round
2012 18 2nd 34 15 12 7 59 43 16 57 16,603 Quarter final 3rd round
2013 18 13th 34 11 12 11 41 38 3 45 14,866 Quarter final Quarter final
2014 18 14th 34 9 11 14 35 50 -15 38 15,173 Group stage 2nd round
2015 18 14th 34 9 8 17 44 48 -4 35 14,907 Group stage Quarter final
2016 18 12th 34 13 4 17 39 48 -9 43 15,050 Group stage 2nd round
2017 18 12th 34 11 8 15 44 53 -9 41 14,746 Semi final 2nd round
2018 18 11th 34 13 6 15 44 54 -10 45 15,408 Round of 16 Runners up
2019 18 11th 34 12 5 17 38 45 -7 41 14,971 Play-off stage 4th round
2020 † 18 17th 34 6 10 18 36 61 -25 28 4,163 Group stage Not eligible
2021 20 19th 38 5 13 20 31 62 -31 28 5,926 Group stage 2nd round
2022 J2 2 22 7th 42 18 9 15 67 59 8 63 8,991 Not eligible 3rd round
2023 22 16th 42 12 12 18 48 61 -13 48 11,215 3rd round
2024 20 6th 38 18 10 10 50 44 6 64 13,331 1st round 2nd round
2025 20 7th 38 16 14 8 47 36 11 62 13,760 1st round 2nd round
2026 10 TBD 18 N/A N/A
2026-27 20 TBD 38 TBD TBD
  • Pos. = Position in league; P = Games played; W = Games won; D = Games drawn; L = Games lost; F = Goals scored; A = Goals conceded; GD = Goals difference; Pts = Points gained
  • Attendance = Average home league attendance
  • † 2020 & 2021 seasons attendances reduced by COVID-19 worldwide pandemic
  • Source: J.League Data Site

Continental record

AFC Champions League

Sendai also participated in the ACL for the first time in 2013.

It was a tournament with many challenges other than matches, such as long-distance travel, overcrowded schedule with the J.League and local climate, but they did not lose in the extreme cold of Nanjing and the intense heat of Thailand and the final match was a draw or better in the qualifying.

It was a good point to leave the possibility of breaking through.

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2013 AFC Champions League Group E Thailand Buriram United 1–1 1–1 4th
China Jiangsu Sainty 1–2 0–0
South Korea FC Seoul 1–0 2–1

Asian clubs ranking

As of 16 May 2024.[6]
Current Rank Country Team Points
175 Lebanon Nantong Zhiyun FC 1290
176 China Qingdao Jonoon 1290
177 Hong Kong Kitchee 1290
178 Iran Pas Hamedan 1288
179 Japan Vegalta Sendai 1288
180 Japan V-Varen Nagasaki 1288

Vegalta House

"Shichigashuku Town's Empty House Revitalization Project: Let's Build a Vegalta House" will start in July 2021 with the support of 143 crowdfunding people and a total of 78 local workers.[7] It is involved in a social collaboration activity, in line with Goal 11 "Sustainable cities and communities" and Goal 17 "Partnership for the goals" of the SDGs basic guidelines.[8][9][10]

References

  1. ^ "森山佳郎監督就任のお知らせ". www.vegalta.co.jp (in Japanese). Vegalta Sendai. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  2. ^ "仙台、天皇杯準優勝は新時代の幕開け。渡邉体制6年目はサポーターの望むタイトル獲得へ". フットボールチャンネル (in Japanese). 10 December 2018. Archived from the original on 2018-12-10. Retrieved 2021-03-15.
  3. ^ "GET TO KNOW J.LEAGUE: Vegalta Sendai". YouTube.
  4. ^ "トップチーム選手・スタッフ" (in Japanese). Vegalta Sendai. Retrieved 9 March 2025.
  5. ^ "Team staff for 2024". vegalta.co.jp. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Asia Football / Soccer Clubs Ranking 2024". footballdatabase.com. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  7. ^ "Vegalta House Recent Report". 2022-11-07.
  8. ^ "みなさん、おばんです。" (in Japanese). 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  9. ^ "Introducing clubs that received a lot of RT response". 2022-11-07.
  10. ^ "You can stay at Vegalta House!". 2022-11-07.
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