Team Data: Montedio Yamagata
Team Name:
Team Logo & Mascot:  
Team Flag:
Home Uniform Away Uniform
 
Home StadiumYamagata Prefectural Sports Stadium
Seats 20,315
Team Data:
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Management Corporation: | Development Association for Sports in Yamagata 21. | |
Established: | 19 January 1998
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President: | Yoshihiro Kanamori
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Investors: | Corporation based on membership system and supporters' group | |
Address: | Yamagata Prefecture Sport Kaikan 3F,
11-30 Matsuyama 2-Chome, Yamagata City,
Yamagata 990-2412 | |
Hometown Area: | Yamagata City, Tendou City, Tsuruoka City and all of Yamagata Prefecture | |
Home Stadium: | Yamagata Prefectural Sports Park Stadium (capacity: 20,315) | |
Joined J. League: | 1999 |
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Montedio Yamagata is based in the small, northern town of Yamagata, about halfway between Tokyo and the northernmost tip of the main island. The team was formed in 1984, as the club team of NEC's Yamagata factory. In a relatively rural area, the team was one of the strongest and best supported, winning the regional league four times between 1984 and 1992, when the domestic football league structure was reorganised. In 1994, after winning a regional title in the new regional league structure, the team advanced to the JFL.
In 1998, prior to the formation of the J.League second division, the team changed its name to Montedio Yamagata, and was a founding member of the J2. Montedio's performance in the J2 was less than spectacular, though that was hardly surprising for such a small town team with little in the way of finances. Local support was excellent, especially if one compares the population of its home town with those of most other J2 frachises. The team takes its name from the Italian words monte anddios, and accordingly, its mascot is the "Mountain God". This is a very appropriate name, as Yamagata is a rugged, mountainous prefecture in northern Japan, known for a harsh climate, tough men and reputedly beautiful women.
After struggling in its initial season in the J2, Montedio made a concerted effort to become more competitive. Koichi Hashiratani, a former Japan national team captain and Verdy Kawasaki defender, was named as head coach in January 2000, and he quickly instilled a "can-do" spirit that buoyed both the team and its supporters to unexpected heights. With just two weeks left in the 2001 season, it looked like Montedio would win promotion to the J1, but a collapse in the final two matches of the year saw those hopes dashed, as the team finished third.
Although it might be a bit too harsh to call the team's performance in 2001 "a fluke", it often appeared that the team were playing above its true abilities. More importantly, though, the team was driven by a small number of quality players who -- as soon as they had done enough to attract attention from a J1 club -- immediately jumped ship. As subsequent events show, Montedio didnt have the depth to replace these individuals. Although Montedio continue to draw good crowds, they slumped all the way to 11th place during the 2002 season. Yamagata set to work rebuilding, and by 2004 it looked like they were back in a position to challenge for a promotion spot. After a fourth-place finish that year, many people thought 2005 would be the season when they made the big jump. But again they fell agonizingly short, and immediately saw all of their top players rush out the door pursuing J1 offers. Since Montedio lacks the depth of quality that bigger and more well-funded teams enjoy, it takes them more than a year to rebuild from this soort of exodous. Furthermore, once the team gets into a slump, and the starters lose their momentum and enthusiasm, there are no reserves to step into the breach. This is what happened to the team in 2006 and 2007, as they spun back towards the lower reaches of the table.
Yamagata has a strong local following, but they seem to follow exactly the same problematic trajectory again and again, yet never learn from it. Either they will have to find a way to hang onto their players a bit longer, or they are destined to be a permanent "feeder club" for other teams. If Ventforet Kofu can win promotion to the J1, surely Montedio can do so as well. The question is whether they have the far-sighted strategy to build a club that can make the all-important jump. We suspect that 2008 will be too soon for another surge, but with a number of youngsters beginning to estagblish themselves, at least the team should be back onto the recovery track.
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 | Montez and Deo
When it ran a contest to choose the names of its two mascots, Montedio Yamagata obviously didnt get very many "original" suggestions. I suppose the fact that both names sound slightly "latin" is a nice touch. The big fella -- Montez -- represents the mountains around Yamagata city, and the little guy -- Deo -- is a type of wild antelope that lives in the mountains of Yamagata prefecture.
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National Team
Overseas Players
