Kazuyoshi Miura, set to turn 59 next month and is recognized globally as football's most senior pro, has finalized a loan deal until June with J3 League club Fukushima United.
The transfer means Miura could play in the Japanese professional league - encompassing the highest tiers of football in Japan - for the initial occasion in five years.
The ex-international forward, who started his career with Brazilian side Santos in 1986, failed to score in just over an hour across seven appearances last season while on loan at JFL side Atletico Suzuka.
"My love for the game remains undimmed, no matter how old I get," he said as he gears up for a forty-first campaign as a professional footballer.
"I'm very grateful to be presented with this chance. I promise I will play with everything I have to help the team. Let's make history together!"
Known as 'King Kazu' in Japan, this will be Miura's fourth loan since 2022 from J2 League side Yokohama FC.
The veteran, who has also played club football in Australia, Italy, and Croatia, signed for the club in 2005 but has not played a minute 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 first World Cup finals appearance.
Miura, who has talked of 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 finished 10th in the 20-team third division last season.
