On the 21st, at Yono Hachioji Ground, the "Urawa Reds Future Goalkeeper Project" was held, where professional training was provided by Urawa Reds goalkeeper coaches for highly motivated male elementary school students in the fourth and fifth grades who are aiming to become Urawa Reds goalkeepers in the future, with the aim of helping them experience the fun of soccer and the fun of being a goalkeeper.
The Urawa Reds Future Goalkeeper Project, which began in 2013 with the support of Bunka Shutter, is now in its 13th year.



This year's event was held over two days, on Friday, November 14th and Friday, November 21st, with 21 elementary school students participating. They received expert instruction from junior youth goalkeeper coaches Sugio Kazunori, Yamamoto Kaito, and Taguchi Akio, junior goalkeeper coach.
On the second day, Goalkeeper coach Hitoshi Shiota and Assistant Goalkeeper coach Yasuto Hoshiko from the top team participated, along with special guests Shusaku Nishikawa, Ayumi Niekawa, Matsuyama Kenta, and current Partner Sales Representative and Academy Role Model Coach Shinzo Koroki.







The children were excited when Nishikawa, Segawa, and Matsuyama appeared, but as soon as the coach began his explanation, they listened intently, and after a warm-up, training began.

During the training, which focused on basic saving movements and catching, Nishikawa, Segawa, and Matsuyama actively gave advice using their own experiences, and instructed the children by showing them how to play up close.
Players and coaches were busy exchanging comments such as, "Imagine attacking the ball more," and "Nice!", and the children listened intently to the advice they received after each play.









The training gradually became more difficult, with Shinzo Koroki even going after the loose ball after saving a player's kick. However, the children still showed good play throughout, and it was clear that they had grown even in the short time they had spent there.



After the training, a commemorative photo was taken with everyone and participants were presented with commemorative gifts, marking the end of the "Urawa Reds Future Goalkeeper Project."








[Kenta Matsuyama]
"It's been a while since I've been able to participate in an event where I could interact with children, and it really energized me. I'm always energetic, but the children have given me energy, and I feel even more energetic now. Seeing the children innocently go after the ball inspired me to be even more innocent, even though I thought I was doing the same thing on a regular basis."

[Ayumi Niekawa]
"By interacting directly with the children and playing together, I was able to go back to my roots and get a new sense of what I need to keep in mind as a goalkeeper. Seeing everyone trying their best was very inspiring, and more than anything, I hope the children enjoyed themselves and make use of today's experience."

[Shusaku Nishikawa]
"I participated again this year, as I did last year. The children were delighted, and it was great to see them having fun. I hope that one day one of these players will play at Saitama Stadium wearing the Urawa Reds emblem, and that they will say that they practiced with Nishikawa. Having participated today, I once again felt that this project, which is being continued with the cooperation of Bunka Shutter, is truly significant. I am very grateful to Bunka Shutter for their support both on and off the pitch, and I hope that they will continue to work together with us in the future to create Urawa Reds."

[Tomoyuki Takano, Manager of the Sales Planning Department, Bunka Shutter]
"Among the children who participated in the Urawa Reds Future Goalkeeper Project, I was delighted to see some blocking the shots of Urawa Reds players who participated as special guests, and some immediately putting into practice what they learned today. This project was started with the hope that more children will aspire to become Urawa Reds goalkeepers in the future. I hope that the children who participated will use what they learned today as a lesson and continue to practice hard so that they can take to the pitch at Saitama Stadium. At Bunka Shutter, our key concepts are eco and disaster prevention, and as a company that specializes in "prevention," we hope that "preventing" goals will also help raise awareness of disaster prevention. We look forward to continuing to work on various activities together with Urawa Reds."

[Yukari Noguchi, Sales Planning Department, Bunka Shutter]
"I have the opportunity to see this project every year, and I'm excited to see the high level of the children and their instruction by professional soccer players. I hope that some of them will seriously aim to become Urawa Reds goalkeepers in the future. In soccer, field players, especially those in the front line, are prominent, so I'm very pleased to be able to hold an event focusing on goalkeepers together with Urawa Reds. I look forward to the day when the children who participated today will play on the pitch at Saitama Stadium."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]