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[Yamagata Prefecture] Two quietly burning professional teams loved by the citizens of Yamagata Prefecture [Introduction to professional sports in six Tohoku prefectures]
[Yamagata Prefecture] Two quietly burning professional teams loved by the citizens of Yamagata Prefecture [Introduction to professional sports in six Tohoku prefectures]
The pioneer of professional sports in Yamagata Prefecture was Montedio Yamagata, which joined the J2 soccer league when it was founded in 1999
As professional sports were booming, with Montedio being promoted to J1 twice, the Wyverns were established in 2013 as the second professional sports team in the Basketball Hall B League
Additionally, the farm team (second team) of the professional baseball team Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles uses Yamagata Prefecture as a quasi-franchise and hosts official Eastern League games
Montedio Yamagata (Football: Meiji Yasuda Life J League)
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
The team's predecessor was the soccer club of "NEC Yamagata" which was established in 1984, and changed to its current name "Montedio Yamagata" in 1996 after being promoted to the JFL. This season, the team is in 21st place in J2 with 3 wins and 8 losses as of April 22nd, and is not doing so well, but they have a track record of being promoted to J1 from 2009 to 2011 and in 2015, so they are expected to make a comeback from here
What does Montedio mean? What are the team colors?
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
Montedio, meaning "God of the Mountains," is a coined word combining "Monte," meaning "mountain" in Italian, and "Dio," meaning "god." It symbolizes Yamagata Prefecture, which is surrounded by mountains such as the Zao mountain range and the Dewa Sanzan mountains
The mascots are two gods named "Montes" and "Dio" who descended to Yamagata
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
The club emblem is based on a snowflake and the Dewa Sanzan mountains, and is painted in the club's colours of blue and yellow
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
Montedio Yamagata's progress so far
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
Before joining the J.League, the team won the Tohoku Amateur Soccer League four times in a row (1990-1993) and was promoted to the JFL in 1994
1999: When the J.League was divided into two divisions, the team joined the then-J.League Division 2
December 2008: Finished second in the season and achieved their long-awaited promotion to J1
November 2011: After three seasons in J1, the team finished last and was relegated to J2
2014: Finished 6th in J2, won the promotion playoffs and returned to J1
November 2015: Finishes the season in 18th place and is relegated to J2
Where is Montedio Yamagata's hometown?
From Montedio Yamagata official Facebook page
Our hometown is all cities and towns in Yamagata Prefecture
The team's home stadium is the ND Soft Stadium Yamagata (Yamagata Prefectural General Athletic Park Athletics Stadium) located in Benibana Sports Park (Yamagata Prefectural General Athletic Park) in Tendo City, and is commonly known as ND Sta
"ND" stands for ND Software, a company located in Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture, with which the company has had a naming rights contract since 2007
INFORMATION
Team name: Montedio Yamagata
Office address: 1-1 Sanno, Tendo City, Yamagata Prefecture
The team's official name is "Pass Lab Yamagata Wyverns," with "Pass Lab" being the name of the team's management company, meaning "a laboratory that develops person-to-person passes," and representing the team's mindset
The team has been a member of the B2 East Division since the B League was founded in the 2016-17 season, and in the 2022-23 season, they finished 6th out of 7 teams in the B2 East Division with 26 wins and 34 losses
What does Wyverns mean? What are the team colors?
From Yamagata Wyverns official Facebook page
The nickname, which is based on the legendary dragon "Wyvern," was chosen through a public contest
The design evokes the image of a player who attacks with the fierceness of a dragon, but always remains calm in his judgment of the situation and takes control of the match
From Yamagata Wyverns official Facebook page
The team color is "WAKEN VIOLET," a noble purple woven with passionate red and calm blue, which is said to be a fitting color for the people of Yamagata Prefecture, whose hearts are quietly burning
The team logo was designed by the "ASSIST" design team from the Department of Graphic Design at Tohoku University of Art and Design
From Yamagata Wyverns official Facebook page
The wyvern's distinctive features of bat wings, eagle legs, and snake tail are depicted in purple, while the chevrons symbolize a dragon waking up and taking flight
The Yamagata Wyverns' journey so far
From Yamagata Wyverns official Facebook page
The team was originally called "TGI D-RISE," a youth team of the Tochigi Brex, and was founded in 2013 when Passlab was established as a result of a franchise transfer, creating the Wyverns
2015: When the B League was born, the team decided to join the B2 East Division with Yamagata City as its home town
2017: Hometown changed to Tendo City, home arena changed to Yamagata General Athletic Park Gymnasium
2021: Reached the playoffs as a wild card but lost in the quarterfinals
What is the Yamagata Wyverns' home arena?
From Yamagata Wyverns official Facebook page
Like the soccer team Montedio, their home arena is the general gymnasium located within the Yamagata Prefectural General Athletic Park (Benibana Sports Park) in Tendo City
The management company, Passlab, has its headquarters in Yamagata City, and the team previously played at the Yamagata City General Sports Center, but moved there in 2016 as promotion to B1 required an arena with a capacity of over 5,000 people
In addition to these two arenas, official matches are also held at Nanyo Civic Gymnasium
INFORMATION
Team name: Passlab Yamagata Wyverns
Office address: Diversity Media 2F, 1-2-4 Akoyacho, Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (Baseball: Eastern League)
From the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles official Facebook page
Rakuten Eagles' Eastern League official game held
Until 2015, the Eagles' farm team was based in both Miyagi and Yamagata prefectures, but at the request of the league, they were based only in Miyagi prefecture from 2016. However, official Eastern League games have continued to be held in Yamagata and Tendo since then
In 2023, an Eastern League official game will be held at Kirayaka Stadium (Yamagata General Sports Center Baseball Stadium) in Yamagata City on August 27th, and a first-division official game will be held at the same stadium on May 17th. However, due to various circumstances, there are no plans to hold a game in Tendo City this year, and it is hoped that the game will be held again next season
INFORMATION
Stadium name: Kirayaka Stadium (Yamagata General Sports Center Baseball Stadium)
Address: 1 Ochiai-cho, Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture
This season, Yamagata Prefecture's professional sports team, the Wyverns, finished the season in 6th place in the B2 East Division
Montedio is not doing so well, languishing at the bottom of the J2 League in the early stages, but with the enthusiastic support of boosters and supporters from Yamagata Prefecture, let's support both teams and push them forward!
Additionally, the first team of the professional baseball team, the Golden Eagles, will be holding an official Pacific League game in Yamagata City, so please come along and give your enthusiastic support to the Tohoku professional baseball team
I am a former Edo guy who loves Morioka, loves the six prefectures of Tohoku, and loves history, gourmet food, travel, sports, alcohol, and singing. We'll introduce you to some interesting, delicious, and good things about Tohoku!
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