In the Bundesliga, Japanese soccer representatives Endo Hikari (pictured left) and Kamata Ochi battled it out.
The issue of athletes' salaries is often a difficult one that cannot be bypassed in reviews exploring sporting events. Our national soccer team has long been under a high level, and there are voices that suggest that high salaries are a key factor hindering their advancement. However, is this really the case? What about the salary situation of Japanese professional players?
The 20 teams in Japan's J1 League recently announced their respective salary expenses, with Kobe Victory topping the list with a whopping 4,712.4 million yen (Rs. 270 million), more than four times the 1,079.6 million yen (Rs. 60 million) spent by its rival, Kawasaki Frontale.
Since the Rakuten Group became the team's majority shareholder in late 2014, the team's owner, Hiroshi Mikitani, has been known for his big spending, bringing in a succession of international stars such as Lukas Podolski, Villa, Iniesta and Vermaelen. But the move has not led to an inflated bubble in Japanese soccer, nor has it affected the overseas development of Japanese players. Even Iniesta enjoys a very high salary in Japan.
J-League stars' earnings revealed
Based on the J-League's published team and player salary figures for the 2021 season (excluding recent transfers), Kobe Victory are undoubtedly and unquestionably the biggest payroll spenders among the 20 teams.
