On Friday the 12th, Shusaku Nishikawa participated in the closing ceremony of the "Three Schools Friendly Soccer Tournament" held between three elementary schools in Saitama City (Misonokita Elementary School, Noda Elementary School, and Shinwa Elementary School).

This activity was carried out as part of Urawa Reds' hometown activities, and aims to pass on the history and culture rooted in Urawa, the "city of soccer," to the next generation, as well as to teach children the joy of sports and the importance of having dreams.



This tournament is being held against the backdrop of the elementary school soccer culture that has supported Urawa as the "soccer town" for many years. Formerly, the "Saitama City Elementary School Athletics Federation (Kotairen) Urawa Branch Soccer Tournament" was held for over 50 years, with 45 elementary schools in the former Urawa City area participating as classes. This tournament saw children compete in serious matches through school preliminaries, regional tournaments, and national tournaments.

Although the tournament sadly came to an end in 2023, soccer tournaments are still held at individual schools and local levels under the policy of preserving school soccer tournaments, and this three-school friendly soccer tournament was held within that context. Urawa Reds continue to support and encourage school soccer tournaments in an effort to pass on Urawa's soccer culture.



This "Three Schools Friendly Soccer Tournament" took place at three elementary schools in the Misono area, on Saitama Stadium's fourth ground. A teacher who watched the tournament told the students, "This tournament was only possible because our schools are in the Misono area and Saitama Stadium is so close by. This is a special time that you can only experience because you live here."



The children chased the ball with all their might together with their teammates and played with all their might until the very end. It was clear that each child was cherishing every moment on this stage as they faced soccer.



At the closing ceremony after the tournament, Shusaku Nishikawa made a surprise appearance, eliciting loud cheers and cries of surprise from the children.



Nishikawa delivered a message to the children from the three schools about the importance of enjoying soccer and working together with teammates. The children listened intently as he spoke, touching on the value of living daily in the area where Saitama Stadium is located.





Afterwards, a rock-paper-scissors tournament was held and a commemorative photo taken with Nishikawa was also held, providing an opportunity to deepen interactions with local children amidst smiles and applause.







After the closing ceremony, Nishikawa visited Saitama City Misonokita Elementary School. During lunch time, he appeared on the school's internal broadcasting system, something he had always dreamed of doing as a child, and introduced the day's menu. He then went to a sixth-grade classroom and interacted with the students over lunch.



This school lunch exchange project was born out of a conversation Nishikawa had with the Saitama City Board of Education last year when he visited the organization to present the balls, during which he said to the chairman, "I want to have school lunch with the children and create an opportunity to interact with them directly." With this in mind, and with the cooperation of the Board of Education, it was decided to hold the event at Misonokita Elementary School.





In the classroom, the children initially seemed nervous about interacting with Nishikawa, but gradually opened up as Nishikawa asked them a variety of questions, from soccer to everyday life. Nishikawa answered each one carefully, enjoying interacting with the children, and the classroom was filled with smiles and gasps of surprise at Nishikawa's answers throughout the event.





The tournament, which was held in the Misono area where Saitama Stadium is located, as well as Shusaku Nishikawa 's surprise appearance and the school lunch interaction, were an opportunity to convey that "Urawa, the city of soccer," is right there in the children's daily lives.

Urawa Reds will continue to support children's dreams and challenges while cherishing their connections with the local community through hometown activities.



[Shusaku Nishikawa]
"The impetus for this school lunch exchange came from the fact that I loved eating school lunches when I was a student, and I wanted to know how school lunches have changed today.
The food was actually very delicious, and I was able to communicate with the children while eating lunch, so I had a really enjoyable time.
Saitama Stadium is located next door, so I was happy that the children there knew me and supported me. Perhaps one of the children I met today will become a player for Urawa Reds in the future, and even if they don't become a soccer player, they may become someone who leads the cheering from the very center of the goal. I'm very happy that, thanks to their parents, the children feel close to Urawa Reds.

The reaction to the Three Schools Friendly Soccer Tournament was better than I expected, and I honestly feel so glad that I came. We really value opportunities to interact with local children, so we were given this wonderful opportunity again, and I'm glad to see the children so happy.
I would like to continue to have exchanges with the local community, and I think there is meaning in continuing to do so. I would like to involve not just myself, but the other players as well, and increase the opportunities for people to know the names of the players through these exchanges. I would like to continue creating such opportunities in the future."

[Urawa Reds Official Media (URD:OM)]