Europe's cut-price raid on J.League talent exposes monetization gap
Spurs' 5m-pound deal for Kota Takai shows how Japan undervalues rising stars
Kawasaki Frontale's Kota Takai takes on Al Nassr's Cristiano Ronaldo in the semifinal of the Asian Champions League in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on April 30. Takai's 5 million-pound transfer to Tottenham is the highest for a J. League player moving abroad. © Reuters
DAN ORLOWITZ
TOKYO -- Newly signed Tottenham center back Kota Takai isn't merely carrying high expectations as the Premier League's latest Japanese import: The 20-year-old's transfer fee of 5 million pounds ($6.7 million) is a record for a Japanese player moving abroad, breaking the 4.5 million pounds set by Kyogo Furuhashi when he moved from Vissel Kobe to Celtic in the summer of 2021.
The Yokohama native's transfer is being hailed as a watershed moment for the J.League (Japan Professional Football League) -- and in particular for Kawasaki Frontale, where Takai spent about a decade.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Mainichi
2 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Japan negotiator to depart for 8th round of tariff talks in US
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's top tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa will visit Washington from Monday for an eighth round of trade talks, with the deadline for U.S. President Donald Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs looming on Aug. 1. Akazawa's trip through Thursday takes place as Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba comes under greater pressure to make a deal, with his ruling Liberal Democratic Party failing to retain its coalition majority in Sunday's House of Councillors election. A detailed meeting schedule is still being arranged, but Akazawa aims to hold talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Akazawa has pledged to prioritize the national interest and said before the election that the outcome "will not have any particular impact" on the talks. Japan has so far failed to win tariff concessions from the United States. Among tariff measures proving a sticking point in bilateral negotiations, and already implemented by Trump, is a 25 percent levy on imports of vehicles to the United States. It is seen as a serious blow to the Japanese economy's growth-driving auto sector.
Asahi Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Asahi Shimbun
Yen takes Japan election in stride even as uncertainty beckons
Shigeru Ishiba, Japan's prime minister and president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), listens to a question from a journalist at the LDP headquarters, on the day of Upper House election, in Tokyo on July 20. (Pool via REUTERS/File Photo) SINGAPORE--The yen firmed on Monday after Japan's ruling coalition lost its majority in the Upper House as investors braced for a period of policy paralysis and market disquiet in the world's fourth-largest economy ahead of a deadline on U.S. tariff negotiations. The Japanese markets are closed for the day leaving the yen as an indicator of investor angst, with trading so far suggesting the results were mostly priced. The yen firmed to 148.44 per dollar, but stayed close to the 3-1/2-month low it hit last week as investors fretted about Japan's political and fiscal outlook. The yen nudged higher against the euro to 172.64 and against sterling to 199.03. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party returned 47 seats, short of the 50 seats it needed to ensure a majority in the 248-seat upper chamber in an election where half the seats were up for grabs. While the ballot does not directly determine whether Ishiba's administration will fall, it heaps political pressure on the embattled leader who also lost control of the more powerful Lower House in October. Carol Kong, currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said markets likely priced in a much worse outcome for the ruling coalition heading into the election and doubted that the yen could sustain its strength. "It remains unclear whether Ishiba can indeed survive as the prime minister... and what it means for Japan's trade negotiations with the U.S. Prolonged political uncertainty will be negative for Japanese assets, including the yen." The election result, while not entirely a shock to markets, also comes at a tricky time for a country trying to get a tariff deal with U.S. President Donald Trump before an Aug. 1 deadline. Japanese government bonds plunged last week, sending yields on 30-year debt to an all-time high, while the yen slid to multi-month lows against the U.S. dollar and the euro. If Ishiba resigns, the political maelstrom could be a trigger for foreign investors to sell Japanese shares and the yen, analysts said. Ishiba though vowed to stay on in his role even as some of his own party discussed his future and the opposition weighed a no-confidence motion. The increased political fragility is likely to constrain the Bank of Japan's ability to tighten monetary policy in the near term, said David Chao, global market strategist for Asia Pacific at Invesco. "It (BOJ) may be reluctant to add further pressure to an already volatile landscape." TARIFF UNCERTAINTY Investor focus has been firmly on Trump's global tariff salvos, with a Financial Times report last week indicating the U.S. president was pushing for steep new tariffs on European Union products. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Sunday he was confident the U.S. can secure a trade deal with the European Union, but said August 1 was a hard deadline for tariffs to kick in. The euro was steady at $1.16317, while sterling last fetched $1.13417. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six others, was at 98.381. The European Central Bank is due to meet this week and is expected to hold its rates steady after a string of cuts, while investor attention has been on whether the Federal Reserve succumbs to pressure from Trump to cut interest rates. Trump appeared near the point of trying to fire Fed Chair Jerome Powell last week, but backed off with a nod to the market disruption that would likely follow. The U.S. central bank is widely expected to hold rates steady in its July meeting. Traders are pricing in a rate cut in October with the odds of a second rate cut this year not fully priced in yet. The New Zealand dollar eased 0.18% to $0.5951 after consumer inflation accelerated in the second quarter but stayed below economists' forecasts, leading markets to raise the chance of a rate cut next month given the broader economic weakness. In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin was 0.18% higher at $118,338, holding below a record $123,153 reached last week.
The Mainichi
2 hours ago
- The Mainichi
After Japan election reflects popular will, it's time to seek politics that shares hope
Diverse popular opinion at times offers a certain direction through the lens of an election. In the latest House of Councillors poll, where the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito lost a significant number of seats, an end to a political system premised on the "LDP hegemony" is brought to mind. One of the key issues in the race was high prices. There were no signs of people's slide into poorer circumstances abating. The question was what prescriptions were on offer. Opposition parties called for a consumption tax reduction. This does not seem an efficacious remedy for the Japanese economy, though it could alleviate frustrations. Furthermore, it raises concerns over side effects such as increases in deficit-covering government bonds and cuts in social security spending. The LDP, on the other hand, promised cash handouts to all residents. This also raises fiscal resource questions. Yet the LDP has the Ministry of Finance on its side. The selling point was that the handouts could get to people quickly. If the race was to be a pork-barreling contest, it was considered that the ruling bloc would have an edge, but the opposition camp was declared the victor. Behind this apparently lie strong frustrations toward the LDP as a political group that transcend the pros and cons of its policies. After campaigning for the upper house election officially got underway, the LDP was increasingly put on the backfoot. This made me feel the party's waning presence as a voting target. The LDP stayed in power by meticulously accommodating the requests of interest groups and local communities. Post-Cold War, the party, facing significant demands from abroad, could no longer retain its single-party rule. Yet it has since mostly maintained its hegemony by shifting its coalition partners at times. The LDP was a party whose mission lay in keeping its ruling party status. After the party stabilized its organization, institutionalization progressed and futile internal conflicts decreased. This gave rise to the party's system to distribute key positions to figures in mainstream internal factions. On the other hand, the party grew increasingly rigid. This became evident in the LDP slush fund scandal involving faction fundraising parties. While being aware of public sentiment over politicians engaging in extremely unfair activities, the party prioritized maintaining internal order, turning its back on efforts to get to the bottom of the problem. The LDP also postponed a review of corporate and organizational donations to political parties. Organizations cannot survive unless they transform themselves. The reason why Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's administration could remain in power despite low approval ratings was because, as some pointed out, "there were no alternatives." It appears the party is experiencing an organizational apoptosis. The other side of the coin from the LDP's loss of hegemonic ability was the seat growth of opposition party Sanseito. Japanese politics, clad in a robe of instability, is ushering in a new era. What is required in pursuing the form of politics are visions for the future. The power to create the future does not lie in populism inciting anxiety. Now is the time to seek politics that shares hope. (Japanese original by Hirotomo Maeda, Executive Editor)
