; formerly known as is a Japanese

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club that plays in the

J1 League The , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

, and have for all but one season since the inauguration of the league, following promotion from the

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yasud ...

in 2017. Based in

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region of Japan. It is the list of cities in Japan, fourth-most populous city in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020, and the principal city of the Chūkyō metropolitan area, which is the List of ...

Aichi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,461,111 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the ...

and founded as the company team of the Toyota Motor Corp. in 1939, the club shares its home games between

Mizuho Athletic Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan. It was formerly known as Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletics Stadium (). Since April 2015, it has been called Paloma Mizuho Stadium in accordance with naming rights. The stadium will be rebuil ...

(capacity 27,000 and the J.League's oldest serving stadium) and the much larger Toyota Stadium in the city of

Toyota is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is the List of manuf ...

(capacity 45,000). Grampus had its most successful season up to 1996 when it was managed by

Arsène Wenger Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger (born 22 October 1949) is a French former association football, football Manager (association football), manager and football player, player who is currently serving as FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development. ...

, well known for his subsequent exploits at

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

. They won the

Emperor's Cup , commonly known as or Japan FA Cup, and rebranded as The JFA Emperor's Cup from 2024 onwards, is a Japanese annual football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formatio ...

and finished second in the J.League, with their

FR Yugoslavia The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

captain Dragan Stojković being named J.League MVP. The 1995 success was eclipsed on November 20, 2010, when the club won its first J.League trophy, under the management of Stojković. The team's name was derived from two prominent symbols of Nagoya. The first is the ''

shachihoko A – or simply – is a sea monster in Japanese folklore with the head of a dragon or tiger or lion and the body of a carp covered entirely in black or grey scales.Joya. ''Japan and Things Japanese.'' Taylor and Francis, 2017;2016;, Accordi ...

'' (tiger-headed carp) statues atop

Nagoya Castle is a Japanese castle located in Nagoya, Japan. Nagoya Castle was constructed by the Owari Domain in 1612 during the Edo period on the site of an earlier castle of the Oda clan in the Sengoku period. Nagoya Castle was the heart of one of the ...

, also called ''shachi''; this word is a homophone with the Japanese word for

orca The orca (''Orcinus orca''), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. The only extant species in the genus '' Orcinus'', it is recognizable by its black-and-white-patterned body. A cosmopol ...

, a species formerly referred to as "grampus". The second is the ''maru-hachi'' (circle-eight), Nagoya's official emblem. The team's mascot is Grampus-kun, an orca.

History

Japan Soccer League era

Toyota Motor SC was overshadowed by its colleague Toyota Automated Loom Works SC (founded in 1946 and which was one of the founding members of the

Japan Soccer League ; JSL) was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League. JSL Cup, JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professi ...

). When Toyota ALW were relegated to regional leagues in 1968, Toyota Motor saw an opportunity to rise at their expense. In

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

, the club was founding members of the JSL's Second Division and its inaugural champions. They remained in the JSL until the J.League's founding in 1993. They were relegated to the JSL Division 2 in

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

. In 1990, the club name was changed to "Nagoya Grampus Eight". After a brief return in 1987–88, they were promoted for good in 1989–90 and remained in the top flight for 26 years, until

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

J.League era

Grampus Eight was an original member (''"Original Ten"'') of the J.League in 1993. In 1996, future

manager

led Grampus to the 1996

and a runners-up finish in the J.League, the club's best finish. The team's name "Nagoya Grampus Eight" was changed to just "Nagoya Grampus" at the start of the 2008 season. In 2008, Nagoya appointed former player Dragan Stojković as manager. They finished in third place and qualified for the

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League Elite (abbreviated as the ACL Elite) is an annual continental club association football, football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's List of top-division football clubs i ...

for the first time. Stojković has since led the club to winning the J.League in the 2010 season, featuring a squad consisting of Marcus Tulio Tanaka,

Mu Kanazaki is a Japanese professional footballer who plays for club Verspah Oita. He scored the two goals that won the 2016 J1 League final for Kashima Antlers over Urawa Red Diamonds. Club career On 25 March 2020, Kanazaki returned to Nagoya Grampus o ...

Seigo Narazaki is a Japanese former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played for Japan national team. Narazaki is the second highest number of J.League all-time appearances in history with 631 appearances. Club career Yokohama Flüg ...

, Yoshizumi Ogawa, Keiji Tamada and

Joshua Kennedy Joshua Blake Kennedy (born 20 August 1982) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as a striker for the Australia national soccer team. At club level, he played mostly for soccer clubs in Germany and Japan. Kennedy is kno ...

. After a poor 2016 season, Grampus were relegated to

for the first time in their history. Boško Gjurovski left his post as manager. On 4 January 2017, Yahiro Kazama was appointed as the club's new manager. On 3 December 2017, Grampus drew 0–0 against

Avispa Fukuoka is a Japanese professional football club based in Hakata, Fukuoka. They currently compete in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. History Earlier years in Fujieda The club were originally based in Fujieda, Shizu ...

in the promotion playoff final, securing promotion back to

at the first time of asking due to their higher regular season position than Avispa Fukuoka. On 23 September 2019,

Massimo Ficcadenti Massimo Ficcadenti (born 6 November 1967) is an Italian football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Playing career Ficcadenti was born in Fermo. He started his playing career with Sambenedettese, where he played from 1985 to ...

was appointed as the club's new manager. The Italian manager led the club the winner of the J.League Cup in 2021. However, Grampus didn't renew a contract with Ficcadenti, and appointed Kenta Hasegawa as their new manager.

Kashima Soccer Stadium curse

Since Grampus were dealt a 5–0 defeat by the

Kashima Antlers The are a professional association football, football club based in Kashima, Ibaraki, Japan. They currently play in the J1 League, the top tier of Japanese professional football leagues. The club has financial backing from Mercari, a Japanese ...

at the

Kashima Soccer Stadium is a Association football, football stadium in the city of Kashima, Ibaraki, Kashima, in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. It is the home stadium of the Kashima Antlers, a team in the J1 League. The stadium has a capacity of 37,638.

Out on loan

Club officials

Club Staff for 2024

Manager history

''Information correct as of match played 6 January 2025. Only competitive matches are counted.'' *Notes:

Personnel awards

* J.League Player of the Year :* Dragan Stojković (1995) :*

(2010) * J.League Top Scorer :* Ueslei (2003) :*

(2010, 2011) :* Jô (2018) * J.League Best Eleven :* Dragan Stojković (1995, 1996, 1999) :* Ueslei (2003) :*

(2003, 2008, 2010, 2011) :* Marques (2004) :* Yoshizumi Ogawa (2008) :*

(2010, 2011) :*

Danilson Córdoba Luis Danilson Córdoba Rodríguez is a retired Colombian footballer. Club career On 5 January 2010 Nagoya Grampus have signed the Colombian midfielder on loan from Consadole Sapporo until the remainder of the current season. In November 2015, he ...

(2010) :* Marcus Tulio Tanaka (2010, 2011, 2012) :* Takahiro Masukawa (2010) :* Jungo Fujimoto (2011) :* Jô (2018) :*

Mitchell Langerak Mitchell James Langerak ( ; born 22 August 1988) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Melbourne Victory. Club career Melbourne Victory Langerak signed his first professional contract in February 2007, with A-Le ...

(2021) * J.League Rookie of the Year :* Yoshizumi Ogawa (2008) * J.League Manager of the Year :*

(1995) :* Dragan Stojković (2010)

World Cup players

The following players have been selected by their country in the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

, while playing for Nagoya Grampus: * Takashi Hirano (

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

) * Dragan Stojković (

) *

(

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

) * Keiji Tamada (

) *

(

) * Marcus Tulio Tanaka (

)

Record as J.League member

;Key

Honours

As Toyota Motor SC (1939–1991) and as Nagoya Grampus (1991–present)

League history

*Regional League ( Tokai Adult Soccer League): 1966–71 *Division 2 ( JSL Div. 2): 1972 *Division 1 (JSL Div. 1): 1973–77 *Division 2 (JSL Div. 2): 1978–86 *Division 1 (JSL Div. 1): 1987 *Division 2 (JSL Div. 2): 1988–89 *Division 1 (JSL Div. 1): 1990–91 *Division 1 ( J.League Div. 1): 1992–2016 *Division 2 (

): 2017 *Division 1 (J.League Div. 1): 2018 : 33 seasons in the top tier, 12 seasons in the second tier and 6 seasons in the Regional Leagues.

Notes

References

External links

*
Fans' account
on X {{Authority control Association football clubs established in 1991 1991 establishments in Japan J.League clubs Japan Soccer League clubs Football clubs in Japan Sports clubs and teams in Nagoya Emperor's Cup winners Japanese League Cup winners