Japanese seniors get a kick out of over-80s football league

High-contact sports such as football were once considered off-limits for the elderly due to their injury risk. But in Japan, where people aged 65 and older represent nearly a third of the country's population, more active, relatively healthy seniors are changing perceptions of what older people can do.

"I think it's just like the structure of Japanese society. It may be an ageing society, but people can still enjoy doing this kind of thing. I think it's a really good example of this," says Yutaka Ito, secretary-general of Soccer For Life, an organisation responsible for setting up Tokyo’s senior football leagues.

It is part of a team that set up an over-60 football league in 2002. When it started, there were only four teams for players aged 70 years and older. This year, there are 18, including those that are part of the over-80's league and the number is projected to grow to 26 by 2026.

The average age of players in the three over-80 teams that make up the league ranges between 82 and 84 years old. At 93, former racing car designer and goalkeeper for the White Bear team Shingo Shiozawa is the oldest man on the field.

"It must be around 30 years since I was the goalkeeper in a match. More than 30 years," he says, switching to English to emphasise his point.

For Ito, the league's expansion over the last two decades is an encouraging sign of Japan's greying population. Playing soccer offers seniors more than just exercise. It's also a chance to socialise and make new friends from different backgrounds.

"People's spirits and their physical health are being enriched. People are trying a lot of things so that's why even if society ages, the elderly are healthy and this is a good direction to be headed in," he says.

Meet the Japanese soccer player still playing at 83

Mutsuhiko Nomura has been playing football for 70 years and he's still going strong - something he finds surprising.

"When I was a child, men in their 50's and '60s were considered grandpas. Nowadays, all of us are doing this (soccer) in our 80's. It's quite a shock," said the 83-year-old, whose modest demeanour belies an illustrious soccer career.

Nomura, who began his journey with football in middle school, played in Japan's top domestic football league - the predecessor to the current J1 League - with the then-Hitachi Soccer Club, now known as Kashiwa Reysol, before being drafted for the national football team.

With the support of his family, Nomura now takes part in an over-80 soccer league in Tokyo to keep fit.

"I want to be like him in the future, to keep playing (soccer) when I'm older," said Nomura's daughter Yuriko, 48.

She regularly visits her parents at their home with her daughter to play football.

"One time he injured himself (while playing soccer) and he had to get major surgery. But he got better and he's back to his energetic self, even though he's over 80," said Nomura's wife Junko, who takes Nomura's blood pressure daily to keep it in check.

"I think soccer is the best thing for his health," she says in a room with a wall displaying Nomura's football memorabilia.

Despite his previous injuries and the risk that comes with the sport, Nomura hopes to play as long as he possibly can.

Reuters