Agreement Concluded for The Nippon Foundation – JFA Children’s Support ProjectTo build on each organization’s resources and strengths
The Nippon Foundation and the Japan Football Association (“JFA”) concluded a comprehensive agreement on March 17 to work even more closely together to achieve a society in which all children have their own dreams for the future and are able to pursue challenges.
Various issues related to children that have been identified in Japan in recent years include low self-esteem and a decline in basic physical strength, as well as increases in bullying and children not attending school. The joint Project for Children’s Future was launched in response to these developments, and with the conclusion of this agreement, the two organizations will use their networks, public relations capabilities, and other resources and strengths to accelerate and expand their activities to date, which include Yume-no-Tane (Seeds of Dreams) Classrooms led by soccer players and other athletes, temporary Kids’ Pitches where children can safely play ball sports, and setting up disaster response centers.
Areas of activity
- Developing hearts and minds: Convey to children the importance of having dreams and create “opportunities” to foster self-esteem and self-respect.
- Developing bodies: Create “places” where children can freely gather and play sports with peace of mind
- Protection from disasters: Establish disaster response centers for large-scale disasters, which can occur anywhere in Japan, and create “bonds” for children in local communities.
Speakers’ comments (March 17 signing ceremony)
Jumpei Sasakawa (President, The Nippon Foundation)
The social issues faced by children in Japan are becoming more serious. We therefore want to use the power inherent in athletes to give children vitality and courage.
The Nippon Foundation will work with the JFA using our networks and funding to provide children with solid support.
Tsuneyasu Miyamoto (President, Japan Football Association)
I am very pleased to be able to conclude this comprehensive agreement with The Nippon Foundation. This marks an intersection of the social issues the Foundation is working to address and the society for which the JFA aims, which involves protecting children’s futures in particular. It will also strengthen community ties. I believe that by combining our strengths in these two areas, we can create significant value. I see this as a first step toward expanding this initiative nationwide.
Major initiatives for children carried out by the JFA and The Nippon Foundation to date
JFA: JFA Kokoro Project
The JFA Kokoro Project began in 2006, when bullying and suicide had become social issues, with consideration of what the soccer world could do to foster children who would have the mental strength not to engage in or be victims of bullying. After a year of preparation, full-scale activities commenced in 2007. The main target was children in the fifth grade of elementary school, with current and former soccer players, other athletes, and entertainers visiting schools as “dream teachers” and assistants for what are referred to as “dream classes.” The sessions last for 90 minutes, the same length as a soccer match, with the first 35 minutes being “game time.” The children learn about the importance of cooperation and fair play while playing games (exercise) with certain rules. The remaining 55 minutes are “talk time,” where the teachers use the lives they have lived so far as teaching tools to discuss things like the joy of having dreams and the importance of striving to achieve them. At the end of the talk time, the children fill out a “dream sheet,” listing their dreams for the future and how they intend to achieve them. Afterward, those sheets are sent to the dream teacher, who writes in individual messages and sends them back to the children. Dream classes are also being carried out as reconstruction support projects at elementary schools in areas affected by the earthquakes that struck Kumamoto in April 2016 and the Noto Peninsula in January 2024.
The Nippon Foundation
The Nippon Foundation is working to address social issues facing children from before they are born until they attend high school and university. The HEROs Sportsmanship for the Future project (in Japanese), which promotes activities to address social issues using the power of sports and athletes, was launched in 2017. Activities address social issues in various fields including children, disability, disaster recovery and the environment, and recently the project has been developing activities in cooperation with sports organizations like the professional men’s soccer J. League (May 2025) and the professional men’s basketball B.League (July 2025). The Foundation is also sponsoring new television commercials from March until the end of July 2026 on nationwide terrestrial commercial networks and internet media featuring Wataru Endo, who plays for Liverpool Football Club and is captain of Japan’s national soccer team, to support children’s dreams and challenges by promoting broader understanding of the issues children face and support activities being carried out.
About the Japan Football Association
The JFA is the comprehensive organization representing the soccer world in Japan under an ideal of “Through football, we realise the full benefits that sports can bring to our lives – the soundness of our bodies, the expansion of our minds, and the enrichment of our societies,” by promoting and strengthening soccer and contributing to society and international goodwill through soccer. Its main activities include: (1) Dispatching Japan’s national teams to various competitions, and hosting competitions in which Japan’s national teams participate; (2) The development and education of football players, coaches, and officials; (3) The registration of players, teams, coaches, and officials; and (4) Activities that contribute to society, support reconstruction from disasters, and contribute to international goodwill.
Related Link
Contact
Public Relations Team
The Nippon Foundation
- Email: pr@ps.nippon-foundation.or.jp
