FC Machida Zelvia Tryouts
Football Club Machida Zelvia (FC町田ゼルビア, Efu Shi Machida Zerubia) is a Japanese football club based in Machida, Tokyo.
FC Machida Zelvia Youth Development System
Academy
At FC Machida Zelvia Academy, we will carry on the belief of the late club founder Sadao Shigeta and “pursue beautiful and creative football.” Then, we will produce players who are active in the top team from the academy, and further develop players who are active on the world stage.
Based on the basic principle of “pursuing beautiful and creative football,” the
club’s unique training guidelines consist of play styles, profiles, curriculum, methods, and so on.
ZELVIA KITCHEN
Youth and junior youth athletes eat at the club’s “Zelvia x Kitchen”, which is about 5 minutes by bicycle from the practice area. As a general rule, eat a hot and well-balanced meal after practice.
With the menu created by a registered dietitian dedicated to Zelvia x Kitchen, you can quickly get the energy required for practice and games, build a body that strengthens muscles and bones, recover from fatigue and condition.
Academy Recruitment
Please click here to visit the official academy news section for the latest academy tryout dates.
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Soccer School
Soccer is one of the most beloved sports in the world, whether it’s raining or snowing, on bumpy soil, incomprehensible, boys, girls, adults or children … Anyone can enjoy it with just one ball anywhere.
And FC Machida Zelvia Football School has professionals who enjoy soccer as staff. Why don’t you aim to improve your technical, physical and mental skills while having fun at the football school? ??
Contribute to the development of sports environment such as sports facility development by promoting and enlightening sports centered on soccer and training athletes, instructors, etc. for all local residents regardless of gender, age, and disability. By doing so, we aim to contribute to the healthy development of young people, the maintenance and promotion of health, and the revitalization of the region.
Classes
| STANDARD CLASS General class. This class is open to anyone from those who want to start playing soccer to those who usually play soccer. We will teach you the basic skills of soccer according to each level. In addition, we aim to create a “foundation” as a person by learning to “challenge,” “do not give up,” and “dialogue” through soccer. | SPECIAL CLASS Selection class. This class is for players selected by the selection. Discovering and training players who will play an active role in the FC Machida Zelvia top team in the future, and “Machida to the world! 』Aim to achieve the goal. We will improve our level by holding regular practice games centered on weekly training. Of these, 10 players join the FC Machida Zelvia Academy every year. | ADVANCE CLASS Strengthening class. The entry condition is that you must be a member of a team such as the Boy Scouts. This is a class where you can learn the skills and individual tactics you want to acquire in the junior age with your colleagues who have improved skills. We aim to further improve our skills in more practical training than in the standard class while refining individual skills. There is no selection like a special class. | MOVEMENT CLASS A class aimed at improving “speed,” “agility,” and “quickness.” We mainly train “movement skills” necessary for various sports activities as well as soccer such as “running”, “stopping”, and “starting to move”. Recommended for those who want to improve their “movement skills”, such as those who want to speed up their legs and want to be able to change directions smoothly! |
| GK CLASS Goalkeeper specialty class. FC Machida Zelvia Academy coach will carefully guide you on the basic skills and ideas as a goalkeeper. In addition to basic training, we will share some activities with the special classes held at the same venue to provide more practical specialized training. In the future, we will develop human resources who will protect the goals of Zelvia’s top team. | GIRL CLASS A class for girls. This is a class for girls who love soccer, love exercising, but think it’s a little bit to be with boys. “Enjoy class” is a class for children who kick the ball for the first time and who have little soccer experience. “Step-up class” is a class for children who want to improve even a little and who want to continue playing soccer even if they become junior high school students. | SATURDAY CLASS Class held on Saturday. On weekdays, we open a school on Saturday mornings for children and lower grades of elementary school for those who have difficulty attending due to lessons or work of parents. In addition to “Futsal Park School”, which also holds schools on weekdays, “Shibahiro School”, which is about a 10-minute walk from Machida Station, is also open. The school is held once or twice a month, so you can attend without difficulty. | KICK OFF CLASS Introductory class. This is a beginner’s class for children who want to start playing soccer now! This class is for children who are not good at exercising but want to play soccer, and children who like soccer but feel uneasy about belonging to a team or club. You can enjoy learning from the basics. Some children kicked off soccer in this class and went to the standard class. |
Venue Information
Application / Enrollment
We also offer experiences for children who are interested in football school and those who are considering joining.
History
Because football is so popular in Machida, the city is sometimes referred to as the “Brazil of Tokyo.” In fact, Machida’s football school is responsible for producing the second-highest number of J. League players of any school in Japan. This school is well-known for its development of youthful talent into professional players.
It was initially created in 1977 by Machida’s football association and has been in operation ever since. In 1989, F.C. Machida founded its own top squad, which at the time competed in the Tokyo Prefecture League. This was done with the intention of retaining as much talent as possible in the local area.
They won the Tokyo Prefectural League in 2005, which led to their promotion to the Kanto League the following year. In 2003, they changed their name to Athletic Club Machida and became a polideportivo (First Division). They won the Kanto league’s Second Division the following season, earning them promotion to the First Division, where they remained until winning the Regional Promotion Playoff Series in 2008 and earning promotion to the Japan Football League.
In 2009, they decided to go by their current nickname, Zelvia, which is a mashup of the Portuguese terms zelkova (which is the tree that represents Machida city) and salvia (a grassy plant commonly used in football pitches). In the same year, the club announced that it had the goal of gaining promotion to the second tier of the J. League, and the J. League granted it official approval as a semi-affiliate team.
However, the J. League’s requirements for home stadium capacity and illumination specifications were not met by Zelvia, the team’s final position of sixth place did not allow for promotion to the J. League, and the average attendance did not reach three thousand people. In 2010, Machida Zelvia selected Naoki Soma, a former star player who competed in the FIFA World Cup in 1998, to serve as the club’s new head coach. Soma played in the tournament.
Both the stadium lights and the club’s roster have been updated, and the club has added several players from the J. League. In addition, Zelvia made the announcement that it will be forming a collaboration with D.C. United of Major League Soccer. This will be the first cooperation of its kind between a Japanese and American football team.
The rebuilt team was successful in the Emperor’s Cup, when they defeated their bitter rivals from the J. League, Tokyo Verdy; nevertheless, they were eliminated by Albirex Niigata in the third round. At the conclusion of the season, Soma resigned, and his position was taken over by Ranko Popovi, who had previously coached for Oita Trinita.
Because the stadium’s capacity and conditions did not yet meet the requirements set forth by the J. League, the club undertook yet another refurbishment between the end of the 2010 season and the beginning of the 2011 season. Machida Zelvia finished the 2011 season in third place after defeating Kamatamare Sanuki in the final match of that season.
This victory earned them promotion to the J. League’s Second Division; however, the following season they finished in last place and were demoted. They returned to J2 as runners-up in 2015 after defeating Oita Trinita in the promotion/relegation playoff and became one of the initial J3 clubs after finishing in fourth place in the 2014 JFL season. In addition, they became one of the first J3 clubs.