Wataru Endo international retirement
Illustration: WhyTrend

What happened

Early on June 12, 2026 (Japan time), the Japan Football Association (JFA) announced that national team captain Wataru Endo would miss the 2026 FIFA World Cup because of a worsening left-foot injury. Head coach Hajime Moriyasu made the final call. Shuto Machino of Borussia Monchengladbach was called up as a replacement, and defender Ko Itakura was named the new captain.

Endo then went further, posting on X that he is retiring from international football, writing that this would be his final time with the national team, that he will now support Japan 'as one fan,' and that he has 'no regrets.'

Why it is trending now

The timing is the heart of the shock. Japan's World Cup opener against the Netherlands is set for June 15, just three days away. Endo had surgery on his left foot in February 2026 and reported discomfort after playing only the first half against Iceland on May 31. Losing the captain alone would have been big news; the simultaneous retirement announcement turned it into a late-night storm on Japanese social media.

How fans reacted

Reaction mixed grief with gratitude. Many fans said they could not control their emotions in the middle of the night, while the largest group praised Endo as 'the best captain' and thanked him for his service. A recurring theme framed this as the end of an era: the captaincy lineage of Makoto Hasebe -> Maya Yoshida -> Wataru Endo.

What to watch next:

Attention now shifts to how new captain Ko Itakura organizes Japan and whether Shuto Machino features in the squad for the June 15 opener against the Netherlands. Reports that teammate Ao Tanaka was visibly tearful underline the emotional impact, and fans are watching how the team channels Endo's parting message into the tournament.