Ryo Miyaichi & Sota Nakajima Talk Soccer, Music and Playing to the Crowd
Categoria: Musica
The star athlete and FANTASTICS member talk to Billboard Japan ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Por Billboard | 09/06/2026
This story is part of Billboard’s Global World Cup Series, a collection of 11 cover stories which pairs top soccer stars across the world competing in the 2026 FIFA World Cup with highly-touted musicians in accompanying countries. Ryo Miyaichi signed with England’s Arsenal at 18, went on to gain experience at clubs across Europe and now plays for Japan’s Yokohama F. Marinos. The 33-year-old footballer’s perseverance through repeated injuries, returning to the pitch time and again with the support of his fans, has captured the hearts of many. FANTASTICS member Sota Nakajima has been watching Miyaichi play on television since elementary school. The 26-year-old member of the LDH boy band once aspired to become a footballer himself, but a medical circumstance forced him to let that dream go. He continued to excel at futsal, and he now puts his extensive knowledge to work as the host of a football program. Related Bob Dylan Plays 'You Ain't Goin' Nowhere' for First Time in 14 Years A$AP Rocky Raises a Riot to Close Out Gov Ball 2026: 'I Came to Get Disrespectful' These Are the Artists Who Will Be on the Official Album for the FIFA World Cup 2026 While they excel in different areas, both share the ability to captivate audiences on the big stage. Meeting for the first time, the two hit it off immediately and spoke with Billboard Japan about the role music plays in sports and more. Nakajima: I used to watch you a lot when you were playing abroad, so today still feels unreal to me. What got you into football in the first place? Miyaichi: I actually started playing football during my elementary school days to build the leg strength I’d need for baseball but ended up becoming a footballer instead. I was selected for the U-17 national team in my second year of high school. Watching players my age like Neymar and [Granit] Xhaka at the World Cup made me want to compete on that same stage. Nakajima: I was seriously pursuing football from elementary school too, but in my third year of junior high school, a doctor told me I couldn’t expose my eyes to UV light for long periods of time. I had to give up football and switched to futsal. These days, during performances, I’m always thinking about positioning, lyrics, watching for any part of the crowd that isn’t fired up and figuring out how to bring them in. My experience playing central and offensive midfielder positions turns out to be useful there. ( Laughs .) When I had to stop playing football, EXILE’s music carried me through. Sota Nakajima Ryuji Tatsumi Miyaichi: For me it was DREAMS COME TRUE’s “Nandodemo.” With so many injuries, rehab becomes this relentless grind of monotonous work and it’s hard to stay motivated. That line in the song, “maybe something will change on the 10,001st try,” got me through more tough moments than I can count. Making it back like this and then scoring a goal or seeing the team win — tha