On 24 February, FC Blue Spot and Sekai International United (SIU) FC lined up across each other on the football pitch, bowing to each other. The President’s Cup is an intra-school tournament consisting of 9 football clubs within the University of Tokyo, competing against each other in multiple rounds of 60-minute matches. (Interview and photos by Kamil Zeribi)

FC Blue Spot has over 30 years of history, established in 1993, making them a formidable team. They consist of roughly 50 members, primarily Japanese students—half UTokyo students and half from other Japanese universities. 

On the other hand, SIU FC was established only three years ago in December 2022 and was one of the newest teams in the tournament. Marketed towards international students at UTokyo, the team consists primarily of exchange students, Programs in English at Komaba (PEAK) students, and also includes Japanese students.

The final began calmly, with FC Blue Spot kicking off under the field lights at the whistle. With both teams feeling the pressure of a tournament final, they appeared to be focusing on maintaining possession of the ball in their halves of the field. FC Blue Spot managed a couple of early opportunities, with long balls down the sides that nearly resulted in shots on goal, with one shot striking the crossbar. Both sides continued to swap possession until the whistle blew, ending the first 30-minute half with the score 0-0.

SIU FC kicked off the second half. The energy felt different immediately, with the ball passed more vigorously and increased physicality between the players. Early into the second half, SIU FC passed the ball up the side of the field, with the defender and winger matching each other’s steps. The winger swung the ball into the penalty area, where it connected with Shunki Doko (left wing), who tapped it into the back of the net with his head. The SIU bench erupted into cheers, with the sideline players and on-field players alike jumping and cheering in a circle. FC Blue Spot reset the ball, with their eye on the next 20 minutes of game time.

With kickoff, FC Blue Spot retained possession, reinvigorated by the danger of losing the match. They passed the ball around the back, waiting for an opening and when it arose, they sent several plays behind the SIU defenders, but weren’t able to score. On the counterattack, SIU crossed the ball into the box, and, from distance, Amir Hazem (striker) headed the ball into the goal, catching the keeper off his line. Although SIU had extended their lead to 2-0, FC Blue Spot and their fans retained hope that a comeback would still be possible.

FC Blue Spot and SIU FC sustained a high intensity of play, trading fouls as they felt the time pressure. In the end, SIU ensured that a comeback from FC Blue Spot would be out of reach when Masahiro Yamada (central midfielder) scored their third goal from a free kick, confirming them as the 2025 President’s Cup champions.

Following the game, the Todai Shimbun received a short comment from a second-year master’s student who plays for FC Blue Spot, saying, “It’s simply frustrating that we didn’t win. We’re a group made up of a lot of different people, so the idea is just to give our all to what’s right in front of us.”

The following day post-game, we followed up with SIU FC co-captain, George Beal, in an interview to further unpack SIU FC’s preparation for the game and the mentality that led to them being crowned champions. 

───Tell me about yourself.

I’m a second-year UTokyo student, studying Japan-in-East Asia in the PEAK Program. Although both of my parents are Australian, I was born and raised in the United Kingdom, where I played rugby, cricket, and football.

───What were your first impressions of last night’s performance?

I don’t think it could have gone much better. Everyone played extremely well, and even though we didn’t score a goal in the first half, which we were a bit worried about, everyone stayed disciplined and played their role.

───You went from scoring no goals in 30 minutes to three. Did you make any big changes in the second half?

I think we simply started wearing them down. But we did bring our right winger on, Hiro, and he added energy to the game. Also, Gonzalo who also played in the first half really stepped up in the second.

───How did this game compare to previous rounds of the tournament?

I think our performance was better. Of course, before the final we had already played last year’s champions, UTokyo Law School and Speranza FC, who came second last year, so we felt confident. We had been through a lot to get there, and it was all about finishing the job.

───As an international team, do you experience a lot of player turnover?

Yes. Even just looking at the tournament, we had one of our main players leave the country to start a new life in Indonesia after the semi-final. Obviously, this affects the ability of the team, as it can fluctuate a lot. Some semesters, we’re exceptionally strong, but some semesters we go through a rough period. However, I think it’s a positive thing because you get to interact with people from all over the world. It’s a really nice space for international students to come when life in Japan becomes overwhelming.

───What’s the environment of SIU FC like?

People build quite strong connections in this team. I was very surprised, I didn’t think I’d get as invested as I would. But a year later and I’m captain; it’s been quite a crazy journey. I think it’s a real blessing to have these different backgrounds, languages, perspectives since when I was a kid, I always wanted to play football with people from all over the world. I think you can tell a lot about people through the way they play, the culture that they come from, and what they think is important.

───During the game, French, English, and Japanese could be heard. Do you have any issues communicating in the games across languages?

No, actually I think that gives us an edge because everyone, even the Japanese members, are comfortable with English at this point. The other teams probably all understand what we’re saying anyway, but I think it gives us an edge speaking in other languages. On the other hand, I think my Japanese has also improved through being in this circle, even though we mostly communicate in English.

───Clubs can be hard for international students to join at UTokyo. How have you made yourself accessible?

It’s our whole niche- we don’t have much competition for recruitment from some of the other big circles like Speranza FC because we live and die off of the rotation of international students. We’ve made it our whole thing, and I think that’s why we’ve become so big. Three years ago, it was a team of five people and now the team is huge, our group chat has over 350 people in it.

───Does SIU FC have any future goals post-tournament?

To use the 30,000-yen (£144) yakiniku coupon that we won from the tournament.

In all seriousness, since the team is stronger and deeper than it’s ever been with 20-25 members who can play at a high level, we may join a league or find more competition in or outside of UTokyo. A lot of us are on the same page about wanting to improve and take it seriously. But we haven’t talked about it at all since we lifted the trophy last night.

This interview was conducted in English and has been edited and condensed for clarity.