Athlete Club Kumamoto

What Athlete Club Kumamoto does

Athlete Club Kumamoto Co., Ltd. (株式会社アスリートクラブ熊本) is a Japanese sports operating company incorporated on March 22, 2005, that runs Roasso Kumamoto — the only J.League men's professional football club licensed to Kumamoto Prefecture. The club competes in J3, the third tier of Japanese professional football, during the 2026–2027 seasons and plays home matches at Egao Health Stadium in Kumamoto city. The company is private, with no disclosed parent company.

The business operates across five revenue streams: matchday operations (tickets, stadium gourmet concessions), merchandise, sponsorship and naming rights, academy tuition, and media/broadcast income. The academy runs a full U-12 through U-18 development pipeline with regional satellite branches in Kumamoto city, Aso, and Hitoyoshi, functioning as a community-embedded grassroots talent funnel. Sponsorship inventory is structured in tiers, anchored by regional corporations (Higo Bank, Kyusanko Group, Libwork, Egao, Admiral, Yusen Logistics, Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun, Hirata, Hakutake) and increasingly complemented by national partners (SMBC, DAZN, Mynavi, LINE, Times 24/Park24).

The company's 2026 operating context is shaped by two material events: the 2026 Kumamoto earthquake, which disrupted matchday and local economic activity, and the death of former President Maeda Hirofumi (前田浩文), which is producing a leadership transition at the operating-company level. As of the May 24 standings update, Roasso Kumamoto sits 5th in the J3 ranking.

Name

Athlete Club Kumamoto

Legal name

Athlete Club Kumamoto Co., Ltd.

Website

https://roasso-k.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Athlete Club Kumamoto operates Roasso Kumamoto, a professional men's football club competing in Japan's J3 League. The company serves Kumamoto Prefecture through matchday operations, a U-12 to U-18 academy with regional branches, corporate sponsorship, and community programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Football Club Operations

NAICS

Sports Teams and Clubs (711211), Spectator Sports (71121), Sports and Recreation Instruction (611620)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Team Sports Matches (Club & National) (MPAGAMAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local Amateur Clubs & Community Sports Organizations (MPAKACAE)

Keywords

• Professional football club
• Sports club operations
• Youth football academy
• Matchday event services
• Fan engagement programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Kumamoto

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Matchday Revenue: Revenue generated from home match ticket sales, season tickets, and matchday programs at Egao Health Stadium.
2. Merchandise Sales: Sale of official club merchandise including uniforms, towels, goods through the J League Online Store and direct sales.
3. Stadium Gourmet / Concessions: Stadium food and beverage concessions managed by third-party vendors. The club recruits approximately 25 food and beverage vendors per season for home games, charging annual stall fees (220,000 JPY), sales commissions (12.5%), terminal fees, and cleaning fees.
4. Sponsorship and Partnerships: Club partners with approximately 15+ companies providing financial sponsorship, in-kind support, and co-marketing. Sponsors include Hirata, Hakutake, Higo Bank, Kyusanko Group, Libwork, Egao, and others. Stadium naming rights and logo/branding placements are key deliverables.
5. Academy and Youth Programs: Revenue from youth soccer schools, academy programs, and related community sports activities targeting children from elementary through high school age.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Athlete Club Kumamoto operates a professional football club competing in Japan's J3 League, staging home matches and running matchday operations at its stadium. In parallel, the club runs a youth academy for player development and delivers community-engagement programs that anchor the franchise within the Kumamoto region. Revenue is generated through ticketed matchdays, fan-club memberships, merchandise, stadium food-and-beverage vendors, and corporate sponsorships.

Product overview

Athlete Club Kumamoto operates Roasso Kumamoto as a professional football club with a multi-layered product portfolio centered on the top team competing in J-League J2/J3. The ecosystem includes youth development through the Academy system, community engagement via hometown activities and soccer schools, match-day experiences at Egao Health Stadium, and commercial offerings such as merchandise and fan club memberships. The club's product architecture is structured around core football operations (top team and academy), community programs (sports club, soccer schools), and commercial services (tickets, goods, fan club), with each component designed to support the club's sustainability and fan engagement objectives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Roasso Kumamoto Sports Club: The club's sports club division encompassing academy programs including youth (ユース), junior youth (ジュニアユース), and junior (ジュニア) teams, as well as football schools and various sports club activities.

Products and services

• Professional football matchday tickets Ticketed access to home matches of the club's first team competing in the J3 League, sold to individual supporters and families in the Kumamoto region.
• Fan-club membership Recurring supporter membership program that provides fans with engagement benefits tied to the club's matchday and community activities.
• Club merchandise Club-branded apparel and merchandise sold to supporters through club retail and online channels.
• Youth academy program Youth football development program operated by the club, providing training and player-development pathways for young players in the Kumamoto region.
• Community engagement programs Community outreach programs operated by the club to engage local residents and reinforce the franchise's regional identity.
• Corporate sponsorship packages Sponsorship and partnership packages sold to local and regional corporate buyers seeking brand association with the club, on-stadium visibility, and hospitality access.
• Stadium gourmet / food & beverage concessions Food-and-beverage concession offering operated at the club's stadium on matchdays via vendor partnerships, sold to attending fans.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• 株式会社マイナビ (Mynavi)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 July 2026Club partner and co-organizer of a high school student career event. Mynavi (株式会社マイナビ) Kumamoto Branch co-hosts a career event for high school students featuring Roasso Kumamoto players and alumni. This is the second year of the partnership.
• 株式会社三井住友銀行 (Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 6 May 2026The club offers SMBC credit card payment options at the J-League online store for merchandise purchases, indicating a payment processing partnership.
• タイムズ24株式会社 (Times 24)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 August 2021Business partnership to address stadium-area parking shortages and traffic congestion. Times 24 provides its 'Times B' reserved parking service, allowing fans to book parking near the stadium. In exchange, parking registrants receive complimentary A-seat match tickets. This partnership addresses the club's infrastructure challenge of insufficient parking around Egao Health Stadium.
• パーク24式会社 (Park24)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 August 2021Parent company of Times 24, Park24 Corporation is involved in the stadium parking partnership, providing the 'Times B' reserved parking platform to reduce traffic congestion around Egao Health Stadium.
• 平田機工 (Hirata)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor sponsor of Roasso Kumamoto. Hirata (平田機工株式会社) is a major sponsor whose logo appears prominently on the club's official website header and sponsor sections. Provides financial sponsorship and branding exposure at the stadium and digital platforms.
• 高橋造作株式会社 (Takahashi Sake Brewing)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of Roasso Kumamoto. Takahashi Sake (高橋造作株式会社, also known as Hakutake) appears as a top sponsor on the club website, providing sponsorship support and logo branding at the stadium.
• 肥後銀行 (Higo Bank)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerMajor regional sponsor. Higo Bank (株式会社肥後銀行) is a regional financial institution headquartered in Kumamoto that sponsors the club, appearing in the top sponsor section of the website.
• 九州産交グループ (Kyusanko Group)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor and partner of Roasso Kumamoto. Kyusanko Group (九州産交グループ株式会社) provides sponsorship and collaborated on team bus provision for the club in 2026.
• リブワーク (Libwork)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of Roasso Kumamoto. Libwork Co., Ltd. (株式会社リブワーク) is a sponsor whose logo appears in the header sponsor section of the club's official website.
• 株式会社えがお (Egao)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor. Egao Co., Ltd. (株式会社えがお) is a sponsor of the club. The club's home stadium is named 'Egao Health Stadium' after this sponsor.
• AdmiralminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of Roasso Kumamoto. Admiral appears as a sponsor in the header section of the club's official website.
• 郵船ロジスティクス (Yusen Logistics)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor of Roasso Kumamoto. Yusen Logistics (郵船ロジスティクス株式会社) appears in the sponsor section of the club's official website.
• 熊本日日新聞社 (Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal media partner and sponsor. Kumamoto Nichinichi Shimbun (株式会社熊本日日新聞社) provides sponsorship and media coverage support for the club.
• 公益社団法人日本プロサッカーリーグ (J-League)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRoasso Kumamoto is a member club of the J-League, competing in the J3 League under the league's governance, brand, and commercial structures. The J-League provides the league platform, official ticketing infrastructure, and merchandise store ecosystem.
• 日本サッカー協会 (Japan Football Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRoasso Kumamoto operates under the governance of the Japan Football Association (JFA), which administers national football competitions including the Emperor's Cup.
• DAZNcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDAZN is the official broadcast partner for J-League matches, streaming Roasso Kumamoto's games to domestic and international audiences.
• 公益財団法人日本サッカー協会 (Japan Football Association)Strategic or Co-development PartnerJFA and its group organizations receive user data from the club for service information provision and marketing research and statistics purposes under the club's privacy policy.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SC Sagamihara: J3 League opponent in the 2026-27 season (scheduled first match against Roasso Kumamoto). Comparable as a same-tier regional professional football club with similar matchday, sponsorship, and youth academy structure.
• Tochigi SC: J3 League competitor in the 2026-27 season facing Roasso Kumamoto directly on the pitch. Operates as a regional professional football club with comparable community/youth programs and J3 revenue profile.
• Kagoshima United FC: J-League club competing in J3 with strong regional community identity and hometown engagement programs. Highly comparable as another southern Japanese prefectural football club with a single-region sponsorship and fan base model.
• Gainare Tottori: J3 League club operating from a regional Japanese prefecture with similar matchday revenue, academy, and hometown activity structure. Comparable as a sub-J2 prefectural club competing for promotion.
• FC Imabari: J3 League club with strong regional corporate sponsorship model and stadium naming rights similar to Roasso Kumamoto. Comparable as a regional J3 club pursuing promotion with hometown-driven commercial strategy.
• Tegevajaro Miyazaki: J3 League club in southern Japan with strong regional identity and community-focused operations. Highly comparable in scale, regional sponsor profile, and youth development pipeline approach.

Broad incumbents

• Cerezo Osaka: Higher-tier J-League club (J1) operating in western Japan. Comparable as a same-region professional football organization but with substantially larger fan base, sponsorship revenue, and academy scale, illustrating the tier Roasso Kumamoto aspires to reach.
• Sanfrecce Hiroshima: J1 League incumbent and one of Japan's most established professional football clubs. Comparable as the broader J-League framework peer with similar full-stack operations (top team, academy, merchandise, community) at substantially larger scale.

Others

• DAZN: Official J-League broadcast partner streaming Roasso Kumamoto matches domestically and internationally. Relevant ecosystem participant providing match visibility and downstream media monetization pathways for J3 participants.
• J-League (Japan Professional Football League): The league organization governing all J1/J2/J3 clubs including Roasso Kumamoto. Relevant as the platform/ecosystem partner providing ticketing infrastructure, online merchandise store, broadcast arrangements (DAZN), and league-wide commercial rules that shape the club's revenue model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/roassoofficial
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCq3YBwctnz5IGUty-VNlo9g/featured

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Athlete Club Kumamoto