【Player Spotlight #6】Ueda Ayase | The No. 9 Dominating the Eredivisie — Can He Carry Japan at World Cup 2026?
A column covering the essentials on Ueda Ayase, the Eredivisie's top scorer: his basic profile, hometown, career timeline, international performances, and the expectations and challenges he faces heading into World Cup 2026.
Éredivisie top scorer, racing ahead with 13 goals. 2025 JPFA Player of the Year. Wearing the number 9 shirt for Feyenoord, Ayase Ueda is now Japan's undisputed ace striker. With WC 2026 just two months away, here we take stock of the expectations he carries and the challenges he must overcome.
menu_book Basic Profile
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | August 28, 1998 (age 27) |
| Birthplace | Mito, Ibaraki Prefecture |
| Height / Weight | 182 cm / 76 kg |
| Position | Centre Forward (CF) |
| Preferred Foot | Right |
| Club | Feyenoord (Eredivisie) |
| Jersey Number | 9 |
| International Experience | Senior national team: debuted 2019; has recorded multiple hat-tricks to date |
arrow_forward Roots
Born in Mito, Ibaraki Prefecture in 1998, Ueda spent most of his boyhood in the Ibaraki football heartland centred on Kashima. Rising from a local youth club to the Kashima Antlers academy, he grew up breathing the air of Ibaraki — a true football kingdom. Days spent watching matches at Kashima Stadium, the memory of touching the pitch before a first-team game as a youth player — the winning DNA of Kashima is the very foundation of Ueda's identity as a striker.
Kashima and Ibaraki have long produced players for age-group national teams, and locals say that when people think of a "number 9 who breaks free," the names that come to mind first are Musashi Suzuki and Gaku Shibasaki. Ueda is the next-generation hope who continues that lineage, and a strong showing at the World Cup finals will serve as a triumphant message to every football fan in Ibaraki.
calendar_month Career Timeline
| Age | Period | Club / Key Events |
|---|---|---|
| 6–12 | 2004–2011 | Local youth football club, Kashima Antlers Junior |
| 13–15 | 2012–2014 | Kashima Antlers Junior Youth |
| 16–18 | 2015–2016 | Kashima Antlers Youth (left mid-academy) |
| 18–21 | 2017–2019 | Hosei University (Kanto University League Rookie of the Year & Best Eleven) |
| 21 | 2019 | Left Hosei University, joined Kashima Antlers (jersey number 36) |
| 22–23 | 2020–2021 | Kashima Antlers (prolific scorer in J.League) |
| 23 | 2022 | Cercle Brugge (Belgian Jupiler League) |
| 24 | 2023 | Transferred to Feyenoord; hat-trick vs. Myanmar |
| 26 | 2025 | Awarded JPFA Player of the Year |
| 27 | 2025–2026 | Eredivisie top scorer; heading into WC 2026 |
local_fire_department 2025/26 Season — The "World-Class No. 9" Has Finally Arrived
Now in his third season at Feyenoord, Ueda is functioning as the undisputed heart of the team. Through Matchday 27 of the Eredivisie 2025/26 season, he leads the scoring charts with 13 league goals. The frustration of missing the latter part of last season through a thigh injury has been repaid, in full, in numbers.
What stands out above all is the variety of his goals. The early criticism — "great in the hold-up game, but inconsistent in front of goal" — is fast becoming a thing of the past.
| Metric | 22/23 (Brugge) | 23/24 (Feyenoord) | 24/25 | 25/26 (through MD 27) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League Goals | 14 | 5 | 9 | 13 |
| Appearances | 28 | 26 | 24 | 25 |
| Goals / Game | 0.50 | 0.19 | 0.38 | 0.52 |
The trend in goals per game tells the story of a shift from "occasional brilliance" to "consistent scorer" — and that is precisely the kind of growth most needed in an international player.
sports_soccer International Career — From the Myanmar Hat-Trick to the World Cup
For the Japan national team, Ueda scored his first international hat-trick against Myanmar in the 2023 AFC World Cup Qualifying second round — a decisive turning point that cemented his status as the national team's go-to striker.
Throughout the AFC World Cup final qualifying round, Ueda retained the full trust of head coach Hajime Moriyasu and was consistently deployed as the first-choice forward. His physical resilience when up against the likes of 195 cm Onana (Cameroon) or 194 cm Mitroglou (Greece), combined with the pace of his runs in behind the defensive line, should come into their own at the group stage of WC 2026.
star Ayase Ueda in a Word — "Grit" and "Intelligence" Combined
Two keywords are essential when analysing Ueda's playing style.
| Keyword | How It Manifests in Play |
|---|---|
| Grit | Positioning right on the edge of a foul against the defensive line / hold-up play with his body leaning into the centre-back's shoulder / second-ball recovery |
| Intelligence | Timing his near-post runs after reading a teammate's full-back pre-cross movement / rolling the ball into the corner after studying the goalkeeper's weight distribution / fine-margin offside-line brinkmanship |
The coexistence of these two qualities is the primary reason he holds his own at the top level in Europe. He is neither a mere physical powerhouse nor a pure technician. A striker who thinks his way to goals is precisely the type that modern football demands most.
favorite Expectations at WC 2026 — The Key to Japan Breaking Out of Group F
Japan's WC 2026 group opponents in Group F are Sweden, the Netherlands and Tunisia. To advance from a group that includes heavyweights seeded in Pot 2 or higher, Japan will need a genuine centre forward who can take a chance when it counts.
| Opponent | Defensive Characteristics | Role Expected of Ueda |
|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | High line built around Van Dijk + proactive goalkeeping | Runs in behind and composure in one-on-ones with the goalkeeper |
| Sweden | Aerial dominance from two tall centre-backs | Hold up play to buy time and create shooting chances for the second line |
| Tunisia | Compact defensive block + counter-attacks | Quick one-touch combinations in tight spaces and goals from set pieces |
Being asked for a "different task" in all three matches is the fate of the modern striker — but today's Ueda has the tools to meet each challenge at the required standard.
live_tv Social Media & Press Presence
Ueda is the type who "speaks through silence". His Instagram (@bee18_official open_in_new) is centred on post-match results and words of thanks to teammates. He keeps his private life largely out of the spotlight, and it is clear that Ueda himself is strongly committed to the idea of "letting results do the talking." His X account (@bee18_official open_in_new) follows the same philosophy, with posts that radiate a quiet, earnest dedication to outcomes.
In media interviews, he carefully articulates his own theories as a striker in concrete terms — "I look at the opposing centre-back's weight in the first 10 seconds" and "I look at information on the side where the ball isn't coming, not just where the opponent's eyes are directed" — earning the trust of analytically minded football fans. Feature videos on the JFA official channel, post-match interviews on Feyenoord's official platform and other media appearances are on the rise as the World Cup year approaches.
info The Challenge Ahead — The Risk of Burnout
That said, there is no room for pure optimism. The club season runs through late May, and the tournament begins just weeks later — a brutally congested schedule. For Ueda, who suffered a thigh injury late last season, managing his physical condition is the single biggest concern.
How the JFA and coach Moriyasu control his playing time in warm-up matches — including negotiations with his club — is something supporters would do well to keep a close eye on.