Japan coach Hajime Moriyasu will continue in his role until the end of the 2027 Asian Cup, when he will replaced by Go Oiwa.
Moriyasu said after Japan’s last-32 exit at the 2026 World Cup that he would take time to consider his future.
And it has been confirmed he will not lead the Samurai Blue into the 2030 tournament.
Next year’s Asian Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia, where Japan will attempt to mark Moriyasu’s final competition in charge by winning it for the fifth time and the first time since 2011.
Oiwa, the coach of the Under-21 team, will then take over. He will also continue in his role with the U21s and the Under-23 side as Japan attempt to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games.
The Samurai Blue had high hopes of winning a World Cup knockout game for the first time in their history at the 2026 World Cup but, after finishing as runners-up in their group behind the Netherlands, they suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Brazil to end their tournament one round shy of the last 16.
Japan led through Kaishu Sano’s 29th-minute strike, but a Casemiro header levelled things for Brazil, who then completed the turnaround with a 95th-minute winner from Gabriel Martinelli.
Moriyasu took charge in July 2018 following their last-16 exit in the World Cup finals in Russia. He led them to the 2019 Asian Cup final, which they lost to Qatar, before guiding Japan to wins over Germany and Spain as they won their World Cup group in 2022 before going out on penalties to Croatia.
With Japan’s performance in North America coming three years on from a disappointing quarter-final exit at the Asian Cup, Moriyasu came under scrutiny for a defensive approach in attempting to protect Japan’s lead against Brazil.
Moriyasu will have the chance to go out on a high at the Asian Cup, in which Japan have been drawn alongside Qatar, Thailand and Indonesia in Group F.
