Japan at the World Cup 2026 | Squad, Fixtures & Odds

World Cup 2026 group and fixtures

Japan were drawn into Group F at World Cup 2026 alongside Netherlands, Sweden and Tunisia. The Netherlands opener at AT&T Stadium in Arlington is the headline group game; Tunisia in Monterrey is the most-winnable on paper; the Sweden closer back at AT&T is likely to decide who tops the group. Top two and the eight best third-placed sides advance under the 48-team format.

Japan World Cup 2026 squad

The squad below reflects the most-recent senior selections under Hajime Moriyasu — the March 2026 friendly wins at Hampden and Wembley. The European-based core is the deepest Japan have ever taken into a major tournament: Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Brighton, Real Sociedad and Eintracht Frankfurt all represented. The final 26-man tournament squad will be confirmed in May / June 2026.

Goalkeepers (provisional, as of March 2026)

Defenders (provisional, as of March 2026)

Midfielders (provisional, as of March 2026)

Forwards (provisional, as of March 2026)

How Japan will play

Moriyasu has settled on a 4-2-3-1 as his go-to tournament shape, with the option to flick into a back three when chasing or protecting a lead — exactly the in-game switch that famously turned the 2022 group games against Germany and Spain. Endo and Sano sit in front of the back four; Doan plays as a free No 10; Mitoma and Junya Ito stretch the pitch on the flanks; Ueda leads the line. Kubo is the wildcard in reserve — a starter when Doan drops or when Moriyasu wants a second creator.

The strength is European pedigree. This is the most top-five-leagues squad Japan have ever assembled — Liverpool’s midfield anchor, Bayern’s left-sided centre-back, Brighton’s most direct dribbler, Frankfurt’s captain-in-waiting. Japan beat both Scotland (1-0 at Hampden) and England (1-0 at Wembley) inside four days in March, and put three past Brazil in Tokyo last October. Big-game pressing and quick transitions are now baked in.

The weakness is the No 9 spot. Ueda has the gig but isn’t an elite finisher; the bench depth behind him (Kamada operating false-9, Kubo as a roaming forward) is creative rather than penalty-box. Set-piece defending also wobbles when teams target the smaller centre-backs — exactly the dynamic Sweden’s Gyökeres will have circled. Japan’s tournament ceiling depends on whether Ueda or Mitoma can score 4-5 goals between them.

Predicted XI (4-2-3-1)

Predicted starting XI — 4-2-3-1. Captain: Wataru Endo.

Manager: Hajime Moriyasu

Moriyasu has been Japan head coach since July 2018, the longest-serving manager in the men’s senior team’s history and the first Japanese coach to take the side to two World Cups. The 57-year-old won three J-League titles with Sanfrecce Hiroshima before adding Olympic and senior responsibilities, and signed an extension through 2026 after the Doha campaign. Tactically conservative, defensively organised, ruthless on transitions — the antithesis of glamour, but Japan have never qualified more comfortably than under his stewardship.

Captain: Wataru Endo

Endo took the armband from Maya Yoshida after Qatar 2022 and has worn it through 50-plus internationals since. The Liverpool midfielder is the spiritual heart of the side — a tireless ball-winner who reads the game two passes ahead and whose influence is greater than his goals tally suggests. An ankle issue picked up at Liverpool means Ritsu Doan deputised for the March friendlies, but Endo is expected to be fit and starting against the Netherlands.

Japan players to watch at World Cup 2026

Kaoru Mitoma — Left winger, Brighton

Japan’s headline attacker. The most direct dribbler in the squad and the man who scored the late winner against England at Wembley in March. Brighton’s main creative outlet for two seasons running and a name worth a punt at long odds in the Golden Boot market.

Takefusa Kubo — Forward / attacking midfielder, Real Sociedad

The boy once on Barcelona’s books has matured into Sociedad’s talisman. Comfortable as a right-sided forward or a roaming No 10, he gives Moriyasu a second creator when matches need to be unlocked. Carries the heaviest individual expectation of any Japanese player.

Wataru Endo — Defensive midfielder / captain, Liverpool

The captain and tactical anchor. Started 30+ Premier League games for Liverpool last season, and his ability to break play up against elite midfields is the single biggest reason Japan can match Group F’s seeded sides.

Ritsu Doan — Attacking midfielder, Eintracht Frankfurt

Stand-in skipper through Endo’s injury and the man who occupies the No 10 role. Scored Japan’s winner against Germany in 2022 — the kind of big-game bottle that decides knockout football.

Ayase Ueda — Striker, Feyenoord

The first-choice No 9. Quoted at 125/1 for the Golden Boot — long odds for a striker walking into a winnable group with elite supply lines either side.

How Japan qualified for World Cup 2026

Japan ran away with AFC third-round Group C: P8 W7 D1 L0 GF24 GA3, sealing qualification in March 2025 with a game to spare and finishing seven points clear of second. It was statistically the cleanest AFC campaign of the cycle. Takumi Minamino top-scored with five goals; the only dropped points were a 0-0 in Saudi Arabia. Japan became the first nation in the world — outside the three hosts — to qualify for the 2026 finals.

Japan’s World Cup history

Japan have appeared at seven previous World Cups since their 1998 debut, reaching the round of 16 four times — 2002 (as co-hosts), 2010, 2018 and 2022. The Samurai Blue have never gone further. The 2026 tournament is their eighth in eight cycles, the longest unbroken streak by any Asian nation, and the squad they will field is widely judged the strongest of the lot.

Two moments define the modern era. The Doha Miracle in 2022 — Japan beat Germany 2-1 and Spain 2-1 inside ten days to top a group containing two former champions, with Doan and Tanaka the unlikely match-winners. And, on the other side of the ledger, Belgium 3-2 in Rostov in 2018 — Japan went 2-0 up in the round of 16 with 21 minutes left and were undone by a Lukaku dummy and Chadli’s stoppage-time counter, a sequence that has been replayed at every Japanese training camp since.

Japan’s recent form

Last five senior internationals (most recent first):

• 31 Mar 2026 — England — 1-0 W — Friendly (Wembley) — Mitoma late winner
• 28 Mar 2026 — Scotland — 1-0 W — Friendly (Hampden) — Junya Ito
• 18 Nov 2025 — Bolivia — 3-0 W — Friendly (Tokyo)
• 14 Nov 2025 — Ghana — 2-0 W — Friendly (Toyota)
• 14 Oct 2025 — Brazil — 3-2 W — Friendly (Tokyo) — first-ever win over Brazil

Five wins from five — including first-ever wins over Brazil and on English soil — is the best pre-tournament run any Japan side has ever taken into a World Cup. The friendly schedule was deliberately stacked with serious opponents and Japan came through it without conceding more than two.

Japan World Cup 2026 odds

Japan are 100/1 with bet365 to win the World Cup outright — long but not unreasonable given group-stage form, and shorter than several seeded sides. The Samurai Blue are mid-board on the World Cup winner odds. Group F is the more interesting market: 10/11 to qualify in the top two reflects genuine confidence after the March friendly results, and 5/2 to top the group is well within range if Endo is fit.

Odds correct as of 29 April 2026 and subject to change. For the full World Cup 2026 outright market, group winners and golden-boot specials, see our World Cup 2026 betting hub.

Head-to-head record

Japan vs Netherlands

Played five times; Japan have never beaten the Dutch. The most recent meeting was a 1-0 friendly defeat in Geneva in June 2024, settled by a Memphis Depay goal. The 14 June 2026 opener at AT&T Stadium is the first competitive fixture between the two nations.

Japan vs Sweden

Three previous senior meetings, all Japan defeats — most recently a 2-1 friendly loss in 2018. The Samurai Blue have never scored more than once in the fixture, and Sweden’s physicality under Jon Dahl Tomasson will pose a different test from the Dutch one in matchday one.

Japan vs Tunisia

Two prior meetings, one of each. Japan won 2-0 at the 2002 World Cup group stage in Osaka (Suzuki, Nakata) but were beaten 3-0 in the 2022 Kirin Cup final on home soil — a result Moriyasu has repeatedly cited as a wake-up call. The 20 June rematch in Monterrey is the most-winnable game on paper.

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