Japan competed in one of the toughest groups of the 2022 World Cup, facing Spain and Germany as well as Costa Rica in Group E in Qatar. However, they recorded upset victories against the European heavyweights to survive the group and reached the Round of 16, exiting at the hands of Croatia. The women’s team now heads to Australia and New Zealand in 2023 with the hopes of building on this result. Football Shirts has their kits on this page for you to see:
Japan Home & Away Kits
2022/23 Japan Home Shirt
The vivid blue with white represented the Anime culture of Japan on the nation’s 2022 World Cup home shirt. Furthermore, the popular origami cranes acted as the all-over graphic, stylised with diagonal stripe overlays for a holographic effect. The hazy visuals contrasted with the solid fill of the blue collar and white shoulder stripes.
2022/23 Japan Away Shirt
The Japan adidas away shirt for the 2022 World Cup was predominantly white, limiting its graphic to the sleeves. The same origami cranes with holographic effect informed the said visuals. The black sleeve cuffs, collar, shoulder stripes, and side trims perfectly contrasted with the base.
Japan are one of the strongest national teams in the AFC confederations as they boast world class footballers including Shinji Kagawa, Makoto Hasebe, Shinjo Okazaki and Maya Yoshida. Japan wear blue home shirts with white and red trim which are supplied by adidas and their away kit is all white with red and blue trim. The nation was one of the first to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
Japan play their home games in blue shirts with blue shorts and blue socks. Japan’s first World Cup appearance was in 1998, four years before they co-hosted the 2002 World Cup with South Korea. In 1998 they lost all their group games and whilst in 2002 they reached the 2nd round. Japan have won three of their last four Asian Cup finals appearances and on 8th June 2005, Japan qualified for their third World Cup.
The Japanese national football team whose nickname is the Blues, first played international football against China in Tokyo, Japan on May 9th 1917, but lost 5 nil.
Yasuhito Endo holds the record for the most number of appearances with over 130 matches and Kunishige Kamamoto holds the record for the most number of goals with 80.
Japan Women’s Kits
2023 Women's Japan World Cup Home Kit
Japan’s women’s team competes in the 2023 World Cup with the same adidas home shirt worn by the men’s squad in Qatar. The predominantly blue shirt has a diagonally ribbed visual, causing a holographic effect on the white crane graphics proliferating the front and the sleeves. Additional white details include the template shoulder stripes flanking the solid-filled blue round collar and the lateral panels. A small Japanese flag signs-off at the back right under the collar. 
2023 Women's Japan Away World Cup Kit
Japan’s women’s team has their 2023 away kit launched as part of the adidas 2023 World Cup kit collection. The said shirt represents the beautiful sunrise in Mt. Fuji, and to do this the kit displays a ragged transition from purple to pink then to white from top to bottom. The uneven demarcation helps the outfit recreate that beautiful horizon during dawn. The round neckline collar and template shoulder stripes add pink accents around the top, with the small Japanese flag signing off at the back panel right behind the neckline. 
Japan World Cup Kits
World Cup 2022 – When Japan participated in the Qatar 2022 World Cup, they wore their blue home shirt with an all-over white origami graphic applied with a holographic illusion. The same origami cranes were applied in blue and red on the sleeves of the predominantly white away shirt. Together with Costa Rica, Japan featured in a tough Group E that included Germany and Spain.
World Cup 2018 – Japan’s 2018 home kit was designed with alternating pattern of tonal and white broken line pinstripes. The alternate shirt, on the other hand, was light grey and, inspired by the adidas EQT, had a broad three-Stripe graphic on the upper left. The nation lost its last game against Poland, but moved to the Round of 16 as they were able to secure points from their win against Colombia and draw against Senegal. Japan was able to put up a fight against heavily-favoured Belgium, losing narrowly with a 3-2 scoreline to exit in the first knockout round and follow historical precedence.
World Cup 2014 – In 2014, Japan shook up their tradition on the alternate shirt, opting for electricity yellow that was used in some Predator boots instead of the usual white. The home kit remained blue and had tonal rays emanating from the team crest. Things were just not meant to be for the Samurai Blues in 2014, dropping their first game 2-1 (conceding 2 goals in a two-minute span after taking the first lead of the game), drawing the second but losing the third one to once again crash out in the group stage.
World Cup 2010 – The detail that carried the 2010 Japanese kits were the tonal abstract pattern that somehow resembled that of a flower, perhaps inspired by the Japanese cherry blossom. The nation recorded two wins in the group stage that propelled them to the knockout phase, where they lost a penalty shootout to Paraguay in the R16.
World Cup 2006 – Japan failed to build on their R16 finish in the prior WC, unable to get past the group stage in what would be a pattern of alternating group stage and R16 exits in the succeeding tournaments. The 2006 Japanese World Cup home kit was known for the curvey trims on the side of the shirt, while the alternate one sported claw-like mark on the lefthand side of the front.
World Cup 2002 – Just after their 1998 WC debut, Japan was selected to co-host the 2002 World Cup with South Korea. The home advantage might had provided a boost to the national team, with the squad topping the group stage before exiting in the R16(a better finish than the group stage exit in 1998). Japanese kits at this World Cup were mostly plain, though the away shirt had the front body panel in grey.
World Cup 1998 – Japan first appeared in the World Cup in 1998, starting the tradition of wearing a blue home shirt and a white away kit. The notable design element on the kits was the flamey graphic on the sleeves, with the primary kit further displaying a tonal all-over pattern of the same visual. Despite the group stage exit, Japan performed well, losing their games with only one-goal difference.