Kazuyoshi Miura, set to turn 59 next month and is the world's oldest professional footballer, has finalized a loan deal until June with Japanese third division side Fukushima United.
The transfer means Miura could play in the J.League - encompassing the highest tiers of Japanese football - for the initial occasion in half a decade.
The ex-international forward, who began his professional journey with the Brazilian club Santos in 1986, did not find the net in just over an hour across seven outings last season while on loan at JFL side Atletico Suzuka.
"My passion for football remains undimmed, regardless of my age," he said as he prepares for a forty-first campaign as a pro footballer.
"I am truly thankful to be given this opportunity. I promise I will play with everything I have to help the team. Let's make history together!"
Referred to as 'King Kazu' in Japan, this will be Miura's fourth loan since 2022 from second division club Yokohama FC.
The veteran, who has also featured in Australia, Italy, and Croatia, signed for the club in 2005 but has remained absent from the pitch for them since 2020.
He netted 55 goals in 89 games in an career for the national team that concluded in 2000, shortly following his surprising exclusion from the squad for Japan's maiden FIFA World Cup campaign.
The footballer, who has expressed a desire for playing until he is 60, said he was ready to "take on a new challenge" after being demoted last season to the country's lower regional divisions.
Fukushima United finished 10th in the twenty-club third division last season.
