Wataru Endo said Japan can win the 2026 World Cup after becoming the first team to qualify and the Liverpool ace urged fans to buy into the ambitious target.
Japan beat Bahrain 2-0 on Thursday to punch their ticket to next year’s tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico after a dominant run in qualifying.
The four-time Asian champions have never gone beyond the last 16 at a World Cup but captain Endo addressed fans on the pitch after the game and urged them to believe they can lift the trophy next summer.
“I thought it was good for them to hear me say it,” said the midfielder.
“Qualifying for the World Cup is an important point so I wanted to share our target with the fans, not just the players.”
Daichi Kamada and Takefusa Kubo scored second-half goals to give Japan six wins and one draw from seven games so far in the third round of Asian qualifiers.
The result sent them through to their eighth straight World Cup and Endo said fans now think they will qualify “as a matter of course”.
“If they think we’re going to qualify then we just have to meet those expectations,” he said.
“Our goal isn’t just to qualify for the World Cup but to make an impact there, and that’s the next level for Japan.
“I want people to have those expectations of us.”
Japan play another qualifier at home to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday before rounding off their campaign with games against Australia and Indonesia in June.
Crystal Palace forward Kamada said the team needs to keep improving to make a splash next summer in North America.
“We need to make the most of our individual ability,” said the 28-year-old, who gave Japan the lead three minutes after coming on as a substitute.
“We have some great players but we can still get better. The more we improve individually, the closer we’ll get to achieving our goal.”
Kamada said Japan’s squad has strength in depth and “the competition for places is really good”.
“Games are longer these days and it’s about more than just 11 players,” he said.
“Of course I want to play from the start but there are also good things about coming off the bench.”
