Asato Miyagawa to join Birmingham City | OneFootball

Asato Miyagawa (Birmingham City FC)

Birmingham City have agreed a deal to sign Japan international Asato Miyagawa as from January 2, subject to international clearance and WSL2 approval.

Assuming all goes ahead as planned, the 27-year-old will be joining from Hammarby IF, where she has featured in their Damallsvenskan and UEFA Women’s Champions League campaigns.

In a press statement released by the club, Miyagawa was quoted as saying: “I am very happy to be able to join this historic team.

“I believe that winning the championship is definitely ahead, so first I want to focus on the upcoming matches and keep winning.”

In a YouTube interview translated in captions by the club, she went on: “The speed and power in the Swedish league were very high, so I want to make use of the experience I gained there here. I will fight each game one by one without looking too far ahead.”

And she added: “I had been approached [by Birmingham City] for a while, and I truly felt that they wanted me, so I decided to join because I didn’t want to waste this opportunity.”

Asato Miyagawa: her career

Miyagawa began her career with Tokyo Verdy Beleza in Japan, where she played more than 90 times and helped them to domestic trophies before she moved to Sweden last year.

She has 23 senior international caps for Japan, making her debut in 2019 and featuring in the FIFA Women’s World Cup as well as the Olympic Games. She had previously been part of the youth international set-up, winning the under-17 World Cup in 2014, finishing third in the under-20s World Cup in 2016, and winning that competition two years later.

Birmingham City: their season so far

Amy Merricks‘ side are currently second in the WSL2 table, give points behind leaders Charlton Athletic.

They rounded off their 2025 with a 3-0 win at home over Durham, and will begin next year with a visit to fellow promotion-chasers Newcastle United, on Sunday, 11th January.