From fourth tier to continental final: Machida Zelvia’s remarkable journey | OneFootball

The AFC Champions League final will feature an unexpected challenger to reigning champions Al-Ahli , where it features Ivan Toney. Japanese outsiders Machida Zelvia have risen from relative obscurity to take on the continent’s elite - and done so with a pragmatic style that has made them unpopular at home even as it carried them to Asia’s biggest match.

Just 13 years ago, Machida were playing in the Japan’s fourth tier. Over the past decade, significant backing from a major Japanese technology company helped fuel a remarkable climb through the divisions.

In 2024, the club reached the J1 League for the first time and immediately challenged established heavyweights such as Vissel Kobe and Sanfrecce Hiroshima for the title, even opening up a five-point lead at one stage. They eventually faded late in the campaign to finish third, but their message to the rest of Japanese football was clear.

That breakthrough season laid the foundations for a historic run the following year. In the Emperor's Cup, Machida eliminated major opposition including Kashima Antlers, FC Tokyo and Vissel Kobe on their way to lifting their first major domestic trophy.

That success, combined with another strong league campaign, earned Machida their debut appearance in the AFC Champions League Elite. A lack of continental experience did little to slow them down. They topped Group B - made up of the competition’s 12 eastern-region clubs - and continued to outperform more established opponents.

In the knockout rounds, South Korea’s Gangwon were the next side to fall before Machida booked their place in the finals stage, staged entirely in Saudi Arabia. From there, the Japanese club brushed aside highly fancied Arab opposition, eliminating @Al-Ittihad Club in the quarter-finals and Al-Shabab in the semi-finals.

Efficient - and unpopular - by design

Machida’s surprise run has been built on a style rarely associated with Japanese football. Rather than the technical, possession-based approach traditionally seen in the country, they favour compact defending and ruthless efficiency.

Their organisation is reflected in a defensive record of just seven goals conceded in 11 matches. In the knockout rounds, they scored only three times - but conceded none - progressing from every tie by the narrowest of margins.

“It would be better if we could build from the back and score more goals,” head coach Go Kuroda admitted. “But this is my ideal style. Instead of playing beautiful football, we have to threaten opponents and make them fear us. Technique and tactics come afterwards.”

Alongside their reactive setup, Machida have also leaned heavily on classic South American-style gamesmanship - something that has further contributed to their reputation as outsiders within Japanese football culture. It may not be popular, but the results speak for themselves.

From school football to the continental stage

Machida’s underdog story is strengthened further by the background of Kuroda himself. Before taking charge of the club and leading them to promotion from the J2 League, the 55-year-old had never managed professionally.

Instead, he built his reputation across more than two decades in school football, winning three national high school championships with Aomori Yamada High School between 1995 and 2022.

That success earned him his opportunity at Machida - and his appointment has since proved inspired.

This Saturday, Kuroda and Machida Zelvia have the chance to complete one of the competition’s most unlikely stories. The anti-heroes of this year’s tournament now face the task of ending the recent dominance of Saudi Arabia’s big-spending clubs and returning Japanese football to the top of Asia.