On the 17th, the last day of the Obon holiday, "Natsuomo 2025 - Let's make the best memories of this summer!" was held at Reds Land.

Reds Land is a sports facility that was established in Sakura Ward, Saitama City in 2005, based on the J.League's "100-Year Vision," and is a community-based facility. This summer's event was the first for Reds Land, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in July of this year.

Natsushi is an event that began in 2009 as "Let's make summer memories! in Reds Land" and has continued to this day despite being forced to cancel due to bad weather and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Many parents and children look forward to this event every year, and the number of participants recruited in advance quickly exceeded the capacity. Over 100 participants, both adults and children, gathered to enjoy the day.



After the opening ceremony, the first thing that happened was the traditional Summer Festival, the "Full Power Water Festival."
A total of 5,502 water balloons were prepared in advance, in keeping with the play on words of Go! Go! REDS! Participants, including parents and children, mixed together and sprayed water at each other using water balloons and water guns, bringing smiles to the faces of participants and onlookers alike.








After the first half of the water-throwing event, a full-power water-throwing festival, the second half of the event saw the first-ever "Water Battle" event, which was carried out with the support of Soramame Kids Adventure, a new nurturing partner.

Participants were divided into teams and then strapped their "life" - poi (paper used for scooping goldfish) to their heads. They competed in a team match, firing water guns at the opposing team's poi. In order to shoot through the poi, which was surprisingly hard to break, the participants got close to each other and sprinted at full speed. The heated competition was so intense that it literally blew away the heat.







After enjoying the water-throwing event, which lasted a total of about 90 minutes in two halves, just like soccer, the children replenished their energy by cooking in mess kits that they had made themselves.
The rice was provided by JA Group Saitama, an official partner of Urawa Reds, and the fire was started by the Boy Scouts of Saitama South District Council. We were able to enjoy delicious rice at its most delicious, just cooked.







In addition, the Saitama City Children's Dining Network, which always supports Reds Land events, will be offering a wide variety of rice dishes and side dishes at a "Donburi Festival."
From fried chicken that kids love to authentic green curry that adults will be impressed with, there were many dishes lined up from the food trucks, and everyone couldn't stop having seconds. Although a lot of food was prepared, there was no food waste and everyone was left full and very satisfied.









And at the end of the day, everyone lit hand-held fireworks. It seems that it has become difficult to enjoy fireworks in public places in recent years, but on this day everyone gathered in a circle and set off lots of fireworks, bringing the day to a colorful close.







It wasn't just the participants who gave it their all on this day. In addition to the sponsorship of 24 Reds Land Nurturing Partners, there was also Urawa Reds Supporters Association, which is also a sponsor of Reds Land, the stewards (volunteers who support the home games on a daily basis), and event collaborators from Soramame Kids Adventure, Saitama City Children's Cafeteria Network, and the Boy Scouts Saitama South District Council, with over 70 members gathering to support the event. Each member used their own unique experience and skills to provide support in their own way, making this day the best it could be.









We spoke to Yokota of Soramame Kids Adventure, one of the participants, who was taking part in the event for the first time, about how he came to take part and his thoughts on the event. The company was originally part of the Group Holdings of Kokudai Seminar, an official partner of Urawa Reds, and part of its children's business became independent, becoming a local company celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. The partnership between the club and Kokudai Seminar led to this connection.
Yokota said, "We haven't had much success giving back to the local community, so from now on, we'd like to get really close to the community and continue to hold events like this."



The temperature on this day was over 35 degrees, a scorching heat that is symbolic of this summer. Many people were seen wiping away sweat with the face towels that had been distributed to everyone at the previous day's home game event. Medical staff were on hand in case of an emergency, but everyone was able to cool down by encouraging people to drink water and splashing water on each other, and no one got sick, so the event came to a fun end.

This was the first event since Reds Land turned 20, and it was sure to be a memorable summer experience for the children, as it was one opportunity to put into practice the "provision of a healthy recreational space" that is part of its mission statement.



[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]