27 July 2026
Japanese football star Kazuyoshi Miura scored his first competitive goal in four years—finding the net at the age of 59—during his team Fukushima's 7-0 victory over Iwaki Furukawa in the Emperor's Cup. In the match held on Sunday evening, Miura, known as "King Kazu," scored in the 52nd minute to make it 5-0 for Fukushima; he capped off a fine run into the penalty area with a first-time shot following a pass from a teammate, at the age of 59 years and 149 days.
The goal sparked celebrations among Miura's teammates on the pitch and the bench before the veteran striker was substituted three minutes later.
This marks Miura's first competitive goal since November 2022, when he scored for his former club, Suzuka PG (now known as Atletico Suzuka), in a loss against FC Osaka in the Japanese league.
The former Japan international is preparing for a record-breaking 42nd professional season, having extended his loan spell with third-division side Fukushima United until June 2027.
As Japanese domestic professional leagues prepare to transition to an autumn-to-spring schedule, Miura will enter his sixties while still playing professionally, adding another chapter to one of the longest careers in football history. Miura scored 55 goals in 89 matches for Japan after making his national team debut in 1990, but he was left out of the squad for the country's first World Cup appearance in 1998 before retiring from international football in 2000.
