“Women’s sports are never viewed as professional”
This is a strong statement made by Kikuko Okajima, the chairwoman of the Women’s Empowerment (WE) League.
The announcement of the WE league was made in June this year and Okajima, who is a former Japan international turned businesswoman, residing in Baltimore, Maryland, has made the growth of women’s football in Japan here main focus.
In an interview with WTOP News, Okajima said:
“It’s good for players because the Japan national team has the opportunity to play against many foreign players. But if you’re not on the national team, you don’t really play with or against foreign players.”
“Once you’re selected to the national teams, you have to face a new challenge dealing with the bigger, faster players. So it’s good for all the Japanese soccer players to have a teammate from the U.S. or Europe to play with and play against.”
The WE league is planned to be at the top tier of women’s football in Japan, along with the Nadeshiko League, and each team would be required to have 15 players within each team; earning a minimum of $50,000 a year
The league is set to start next year after the Tokyo Olympics.
