There are more Japanese players in the Women’s Super League than ever before and it is easy to see why. For years, Japanese players were something of a rarity in English women’s football, now they are becoming almost impossible to miss.
There are 23 Japanese players in the WSL for the 2026/27 season, spread across clubs from the title contenders to teams fighting to establish themselves in the division. That number is striking in itself. But the more interesting story is what those players are actually doing.
They are not simply filling squad places. They are starting matches, winning trophies, scoring decisive goals and increasingly, becoming some of the most important players at their clubs.
Yui Hasegawa has established herself as one of Manchester City’s leading midfielders. Ayaka Yamashita helped City to the WSL title last season and has now been nominated for the 2026 Ballon d’Or Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award. Tōko Koga was named in the WSL Team of the Season after an outstanding debut campaign at Tottenham.
At Aston Villa, goalkeeper Akane Okuma made an extraordinary first impression, producing a superb display against Chelsea to help her side secure a historic point at Stamford Bridge.
And that is before you get to players such as Aoba Fujino, Hinata Miyazawa, Riko Ueki, Fuka Nagano, Kiko Seike and Moeka Minami. Japanese players are no longer an interesting side story in the WSL. They are becoming a defining part of it.
Why Japan?
The rise of Japanese players in England is not the result of a sudden improvement in the country’s women’s game. Japan have been producing elite footballers for decades. They became world champions in 2011, defeating the United States on penalties in the World Cup final. They reached another final four years later, won silver at the 2012 Olympics and have repeatedly competed deep into major international tournaments.
Beneath the senior team, Japan has also developed an exceptionally strong youth system. The country won the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in 2018 and has reached the final of the competition in three consecutive editions. Japan also won the Under-17 World Cup in 2014.
The talent has always been there. What has changed is the ability of those players to take it overseas. At the 2008 Olympics, none of Japan’s players were based abroad. By the 2015 World Cup, that figure had increased only slightly. Now, European and American clubs are increasingly part of the pathway. The WSL has become one of the biggest beneficiaries.
The appeal of the WSL:
There is an obvious footballing reason for the migration. Japanese players are technically excellent, comfortable in possession and generally highly tactically educated. They are accustomed to quick combinations, positional rotations and playing through pressure.
But the WSL offers something they cannot replicate by staying at home: the chance to test themselves against different styles of football and greater physical demands every week. The pace and physicality of the English game provide a different challenge, forcing players to adapt, compete and develop areas of their game that may be tested less often in Japan.
For players with ambitions of competing at the highest level internationally, that experience matters. Facing different opponents, playing in a new environment and competing week after week in one of the world’s strongest leagues can only add to their development. The objective is not to leave Japan simply for the sake of leaving. It is to become better footballers and the WSL is giving them the opportunity to do that.
Yui Hasegawa: the clearest example
If there is one player who demonstrates the impact Japanese footballers can have on the WSL, it is Yui Hasegawa. She joined Manchester City in 2022 after a spell at West Ham, having previously played for AC Milan and Nippon TV Beleza.
Since arriving in Manchester, she has developed into one of the league’s outstanding midfielders. Hasegawa has been named in the PFA WSL Team of the Year in each of her first four seasons at City, while she was also named the club’s Player of the Season for 2024/25.
Her value goes beyond goals and assists. Hasegawa’s greatest strength is perhaps what she does when the game becomes chaotic. She can receive the ball under pressure, turn away from opponents and immediately find a forward pass. Her ability to escape pressure allows City to control matches from midfield.
Her influence goes beyond simply being a successful Japanese player in England. Hasegawa has become one of the best midfielders in the world. She is no longer an exception but instead she is becoming the standard.
Manchester City are a perfect example:
City’s Japanese contingent shows just how diverse the talent pool has become. Alongside Hasegawa is goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita, who arrived in 2024 with a huge collection of domestic honours from Japan. Yamashita quickly demonstrated that she could transfer that success to England. She kept ten clean sheets in 22 appearances during her first campaign and was then part of the City side that won the 2025/26 WSL title and FA Cup. Her performances have now taken her into the conversation among the world’s best goalkeepers, with Yamashita nominated for the 2026 Ballon d’Or Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award.
Then there is Aoba Fujino. Still only in her early twenties, Fujino arrived from Tokyo Verdy Beleza after establishing herself as one of Japan’s brightest young attackers. She is fast, technically gifted and capable of playing on either side of the attack. Her first City season produced four goals and nine assists, while she scored in the League Cup final and later found the net in the FA Cup final.
Three Japanese players, three very different positions, but all capable of making a difference at one of the biggest clubs in Europe.
The next generation is already here:
Perhaps the most significant development is that Japanese players are no longer arriving in England only after establishing themselves for years at home. Increasingly, clubs are recruiting younger players and betting on their potential.
Chelsea’s signing of Manaka Matsukubo in 2026 is an obvious example. Matsukubo had already established herself in the NWSL, winning Midfielder of the Year with North Carolina Courage, before moving to London on a five-year contract. She had scored 11 goals during the 2025 season and had already added five more in nine appearances in 2026 before joining Chelsea. Her pathway is revealing. Japan, United States, and now England. The modern Japanese player is no longer necessarily moving directly from the WE League into Europe.
They are gaining experience across different football cultures and arriving in England with an increasingly sophisticated understanding of the international game.
Liverpool’s signing of Mao Itamura provides another example. The attacking midfielder joined from Feyenoord after being named Women’s Eredivisie Player of the Year at the end of the 2025/26 season. At just 20, she was already accustomed to European football.
Toko Koga and her debut season:
Perhaps the most powerful evidence of the impact Japanese players are having comes from Tottenham. Toko Koga arrived in England as a teenager after playing for Feyenoord. There were no guarantees that a 19-year-old defender would immediately adapt to the WSL. Instead, she flourished. Koga made 26 appearances in all competitions during 2025/26, scored twice and was named in the WSL Team of the Season. She also won Tottenham’s Adults Supporters’ Player of the Season award.
For a player making her first full season in English football, those achievements are significant. Koga quickly established herself as a reliable presence in Tottenham’s defence and showed that young Japanese players can arrive in the WSL and make an immediate impact. Her debut season is another example of the quality coming out of Japan and why more clubs are looking there for talent.
The goalkeeper who announced herself at Stamford Bridge:
If Koga represented a successful first season, Akane Okuma’s WSL debut showed just how quickly a Japanese player can make an impact. The 21-year-old goalkeeper joined Aston Villa from INAC Kobe Leonessa after helping the club win the 2025/26 WE League title.
Her first WSL appearance could hardly have been more difficult. Villa travelled to Chelsea. The defending champions dominated possession and produced 32 shots, with 57 touches inside Villa’s penalty area. Yet Villa escaped with a 1-1 draw and Okuma was central to that result.
She made a series of important saves, including a late intervention to deny Lauren James, helping Villa secure their first-ever WSL point against Chelsea after 12 consecutive league defeats in the fixture. It was only one game, but it was a statement. The message was clear: another Japanese player had arrived in England and she was ready.
Not just the big clubs:
One of the most interesting aspects of Japan’s growth in the WSL is its spread across the division. Everton now have a particularly strong Japanese contingent, with Rion Ishikawa, Honoka Hayashi, Hikaru Kitagawa and Yuka Momiki all representing the club.
West Ham have brought in experienced Japan international Saki Kumagai, while Riko Ueki remains an important part of their attack.
Brighton have Kiko Seike and Moeka Minami, while Crystal Palace have Fuka Tsunoda on loan from Brighton.
Birmingham have also added Japanese talent to their squad. This is important, as the Japanese presence is no longer restricted to Champions League contenders. It is becoming a league-wide phenomenon. That creates a virtuous circle, the more Japanese players succeed in England, the easier it becomes for the next player to make the move.
The importance of a support network:
Moving from Japan to England is not easy. The language is different. The football culture is different. The weather is different. Players are living thousands of miles from their families. That is why the growing Japanese community within the WSL matters.
Japan national-team staff are increasingly travelling to England to watch players, attend training sessions and help them adapt. Kim Blayney, who has spent considerable time around Japan’s players in England, has spoken about the importance of simply providing a familiar face.
Clubs are also becoming better at supporting international players. Translation services, English lessons and cultural support are becoming increasingly common. Manchester City have even incorporated Asian-themed meals into their preparation for matchdays and have allowed their Japanese players greater flexibility around the winter break so they can spend New Year with their families.
These might appear to be small details, but they are not. For a player moving halfway around the world, they can make the difference between feeling like an outsider and feeling like part of a team.
Japan’s success is no coincidence:
The growth of Japanese players in the WSL is part of a much bigger picture. Japan remain one of the strongest nations in women’s football, and their recent international success shows that the quality of the talent coming through is no coincidence.
Japan won the 2025 SheBelieves Cup before following it up with victory at the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. Their Asian Cup campaign was particularly impressive, with Japan winning all six matches, scoring 29 goals and keeping five clean sheets before beating Australia 1-0 in the final.
Those results reflect the depth of talent available to the national team. Players based in England are now an important part of that group, while others are gaining experience in different leagues and footballing environments around the world.
The WSL therefore sits within a wider success story for Japanese women’s football. The players arriving in England are not coming from a system that is still trying to prove itself. They are coming from a country that continues to produce international winners and players capable of competing at the highest level.
For the players themselves, playing in England adds another dimension to that experience. They face different tactical approaches, greater physical demands and some of the best players in the world every week.
That combination of international success and overseas experience is helping keep Japan at the highest level of the women’s game.
A chance to shine:
The quality of Japanese players in the WSL deserves greater recognition. They have shown that they can adapt to the pace and physicality of English football while bringing the technical quality and tactical intelligence that have long been associated with the Japanese game.
For the players themselves, the WSL provides an opportunity to test themselves against some of the best in the world and continue developing at the highest level. For the clubs, it provides access to a pool of players who can make an immediate impact.
That is already being seen across the league. Japanese players are playing pivotal roles for their sides, from established internationals competing for trophies to younger players making their mark in their first seasons in England.
The WSL is a good place for them to shine. They have the quality to succeed here, and increasingly, they are being given the platform to show it. They deserve more than simply being recognised as Japanese players in the WSL. They deserve to be recognised for what they are doing on the pitch.
