- Address: 1-1 Nagai-koen, Osaka
- Country: Japan
- Capacity: 47,000
- Opened: 1964
- Main use: Football, rugby union
- Tenants: Red Hurricanes (rugby union)
Extra stadium info – Yanmar Stadium Nagai
The stadium, which was known as the Osaka Nagai Stadium, opened with a football match for the Games of the Olympiad. Its initial capacity was 23,000. In 2002, the venue hosted FIFA World Cup matches for England, Japan, Nigeria, Senegal, Tunisia and Türkiye. The first-ever FIFA World Cup game at the stadium took place on 12 June 2002. The game between Nigeria and England ended in a goalless draw in front of 44,000 spectators. The Red Hurricanes use the venue named Yanmar Stadium Nagai for home games. The rugby union club was founded in 1993.
Cerezo Osaka and Gamba Osaka
Cerezo Osaka played numerous home matches at the Yanmar Stadium Nagai. The club was founded in 1957 under a different name. They won the Japanese top-flight football league various times. In 2018, Cerezo Osaka won the Japanese super cup for the first time in their history. They drew an average home league attendance of 17,000 that year. Gamba Osaka are known as the arch-rivals of Cerezo Osaka. In 2008, Gamba Osaka were crowned Asian football champions for the first time in their history. They became one of the first Japanese clubs with an Asian football championship title.
Shinji Kagawa
Shinji Kagawa, one of the first Asian football players with 1 million followers on his main social media page, is one of the former players of Cerezo Osaka. In 2008, he played its first game for the national football team of Japan. The midfielder scored numerous goals for Japan. Kagawa left Cerezo Osaka for the German side Borussia Dortmund in 2010. He won the German top-flight football league twice during his first two years with Borussia Dortmund. One year later, Shinji Kagawa won the Premier League with the English football club Manchester United.
