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Mina Tanaka

For the Japanese luger, see Mina Tanaka (luger).

Mina Tanaka
田中 美南
Tanaka with the Utah Royals in 2025
Personal information
Date of birth (1994-04-28) April 28, 1994 (age 31)
Place of birth Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand
Height 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Utah Royals FC
Number 11
Youth career
2007–2011 NTV Tokyo Verdy Beleza
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2019 NTV Tokyo Verdy Beleza 153 (98)
2020–2024 INAC Kobe Leonessa 58 (37)
2021 → Bayer Leverkusen (loan) 10 (4)
2024– Utah Royals 9 (2)
International career‡
2010 Japan U-17 3 (1)
2012 Japan U-20 6 (0)
2013– Japan 92 (40)
Medal record
Representing  Japan
AFC Women's Asian Cup
Gold medal – first place 2018 Jordan
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Team
FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2012 Japan
FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup
Silver medal – second place 2010 Trinidad and Tobago
AFC U-16 Women's Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2009 Thailand
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 28 March 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 28 March 2025

Mina Tanaka (田中 美南, Tanaka Mina; born April 28, 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for National Women's Soccer League club Utah Royals and the Japan national team. She has previously played for Nippon TV Beleza, Bayer Leverkusen, and INAC Kobe Leonessa.

Early life

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Tanaka was born in Thailand on April 28, 1994 to a Japanese father and a Thai mother. She returned to Japan soon after her birth and grew up in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa.[1] She graduated from Kanagawa Prefectural Yurigaoka High School in March 2013.[2]

Club career

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On May 3, 2011, she made her debut for Nippon TV Beleza in a 1–0 loss to Okayama Yunogo Belle.[3] On August 14, she scored her first goal in a 5–0 home victory against Fukuoka J. Anclas.[4] She became top scorer in 2016 and 2017. She was also selected Best Eleven for 3 years in a row (2015–2017).

In 2020, Tanaka signed for INAC Kobe Leonessa. After the season was delayed by two months due to the COVID-19 pandemic,[5] Tanaka made her club debut in the season opener on July 18. She scored the only goal of the match.[6] On 3 February 2020, she joined Bayer Leverkusen on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season[7]

On July 5, 2024, NWSL club Utah Royals signed Tanaka to a contract through the 2025 NWSL season.[8]

National team career

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Tanaka was part of the Japan U-17 national team that finished in second place at the 2010 U-17 World Cup and of the U-20 team that finished in third place at the 2012 U-20 World Cup. In February 2013, she received her first senior team call-up.[9] On March 8, she made her debut for Japan and scored her first goal in a 2–1 loss to Germany in the 2013 Algarve Cup.[10]

On 19 March 2018, she was called up to the 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup,[11] where Japan won the championship.

On 18 June 2021, she was included in the Japan squad for the 2020 Summer Olympics.[12]

On 7 January 2022, Tanaka was called up to the 2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup squad.[13]

On 13 June 2023, she was included in Japan's 23-player squad for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023.[14] On July 31, Tanaka scored in Japan's 4-0 group-stage victory in a match against Spain.[15]

On 14 June 2024, Tanaka was included in the Japan squad for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[16]

Tanaka was part of the Japan squad that won the 2025 SheBelieves Cup.[17]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 3 December 2023.
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup[a] League Cup[b] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Tokyo Verdy Beleza 2011 Nadeshiko League 7 1 3 0 — 10 1
2012 Nadeshiko League 15 2 2 1 2 0 19 3
2013 Nadeshiko League 17 10 2 0 8 7 27 17
2014 Nadeshiko League 21 3 4 5 — 25 8
2015 Nadeshiko League 23 14 4 7 — 27 21
2016 Nadeshiko League 18 18 4 2 9 6 31 26
2017 Nadeshiko League 18 15 5 7 6 6 29 28
2018 Nadeshiko League 18 15 5 7 5 5 28 27
2019 Nadeshiko League 16 20 5 4 10 10 33 34
Total 153 98 34 33 40 34 227 165
INAC Kobe Leonessa 2020 Nadeshiko League 18 12 3 1 — 21 13
2021–22 WE League 18 12 1 0 — 19 12
2022–23 WE League 19 11 2 1 4 2 25 14
2023–24 WE League 3 2 0 0 3 1 6 3
Total 58 37 6 2 7 3 71 42
Bayer Leverkusen (loan) 2020–21 Frauen-Bundesliga 10 4 — — 10 4
Utah Royals 2024 NWSL 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Career total 221 139 40 35 47 37 308 211
  1. ^ Includes the Empress's Cup
  2. ^ Includes the Nadeshiko League Cup

International

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As of match played 26 February 2025[18]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Japan 2013 4 1
2014 0 0
2015 2 0
2016 0 0
2017 14 5
2018 15 8
2019 4 2
2020 3 0
2021 11 5
2022 9 2
2023 12 7
2024 11 5
2025 7 5
Total 92 40
Scores and results list Japan's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Tanaka goal.
List of international goals scored by Mina Tanaka
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 8 March 2013 Bela Vista Municipal Stadium, Parchal, Portugal  Germany 1–1 1–2 2013 Algarve Cup
2 9 April 2017 Egao Kenkō Stadium, Kumamoto, Japan  Costa Rica 2–0 3–0 Friendly
3 27 July 2017 SDCCU Stadium, San Diego, United States  Australia 1–0 2–4 2017 Tournament of Nations
4 22 October 2017 Minami Nagano Sports Park Stadium, Nagano, Japan  Switzerland 2–0 2–0 Friendly
5 8 December 2017 Fukuda Denshi Arena, Chiba, Japan  South Korea 1–0 3–2 2017 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
6 11 December 2017  China 1–0 1–0
7 1 April 2018 Transcosmos Stadium Nagasaki, Isahaya, Japan  Ghana 1–0 7–1 Friendly
8 7 April 2018 King Abdullah II Stadium, Amman, Jordan  Vietnam 4–0 4–0 2018 AFC Women's Asian Cup
9 10 June 2018 Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand  New Zealand 1–0 3–1 Friendly
10 2–1
11 3–1
12 26 July 2018 Children's Mercy Park, Kansas City, United States  United States 1–1 4–2 2018 Tournament of Nations
13 21 August 2018 Gelora Sriwijaya Stadium, Palembang, Indonesia  Vietnam 4–0 7–0 2018 Asian Games
14 7–0
15 11 December 2019 Busan Asiad Main Stadium, Busan, South Korea  Chinese Taipei 2–0 9–0 2019 EAFF E-1 Football Championship
16 4–0
17 8 April 2021 Yurtec Stadium Sendai, Sendai, Japan  Paraguay 7–0 7–0 Friendly
18 10 June 2021 Edion Stadium Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan  Ukraine 8–0 8–0
19 13 June 2021 Kanseki Stadium Tochigi, Utsunomiya, Japan  Mexico 2–0 5–1
20 27 July 2021 Miyagi Stadium, Rifu, Japan  Chile 1–0 1–0 2020 Summer Olympics
21 30 July 2021 Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama, Japan  Sweden 1–1 1–3
22 6 October 2022 Noevir Stadium Kobe, Kobe, Japan  Nigeria 1–0 2–0 Friendly
23 2–0
24 7 April 2023 Estádio D. Afonso Henriques, Guimarães, Portugal  Portugal 2–1 2–1
25 22 July 2023 Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, New Zealand  Zambia 2–0 5–0 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup
26 31 July 2023 Wellington Regional Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand  Spain 4–0 4–0
27 23 September 2023 Kitakyushu Stadium, Kitakyushu, Japan  Argentina 1–0 8–0 Friendly
28 26 October 2023 Lokomotiv Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan  India 4–0 7–0 2024 AFC Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament
29 30 November 2023 Arena Corinthians, São Paulo, Brazil  Brazil 3–3 3–4 Friendly
30 3 December 2023 Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil  Brazil 2–0 2–0
31 9 April 2024 Lower.com Field, Columbus, United States  Brazil 1–0 1–1 (0–3 p) 2024 SheBelieves Cup
32 31 May 2024 Estadio Nueva Condomina, Murcia, Spain  New Zealand 1–0 2–0 Friendly
33 13 July 2024 Kanazawa Go Go Curry Stadium, Kanazawa, Japan  Ghana 1–0 4–0
34 31 July 2024 Stade de la Beaujoire, Nantes, France  Nigeria 2–0 3–1 2024 Summer Olympics
35 26 October 2024 Japan National Stadium, Tokyo, Japan  South Korea 3–0 4–0 Friendly
36 20 February 2025 Shell Energy Stadium, Houston, United States  Australia 1–0 4–0 2025 SheBelieves Cup
37 2–0
38 23 February 2025 State Farm Stadium, Glendale, United States  Colombia 2–0 4–1
39 4–1
40 27 June 2025 Butarque, Leganés, Spain  Spain 1–0 1–3 Friendly

Honours

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Nippon TV Beleza

INAC Kobe Leonessa

Japan

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "18歳初先発田中美南 初ゴール決めてみな - サッカー日本代表ニュース". nikkansports.com (in Japanese). Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  2. ^ "東京新聞:＜田中美南のホームタウンかわさき＞リーグ制覇、次は皇后杯 「頑張れ」の声援、勇気に:神奈川(TOKYO Web)". 東京新聞 TOKYO Web. September 4, 2019. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  3. ^ "Match Report: Okayoma Yunogo Belle – Nippon TV Beleza" (PDF) (in Japanese). Nadeshiko League. May 3, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  4. ^ "Match Report: Nippon TV Beleza – Fukuoka J. Anclas" (PDF) (in Japanese). Nadeshiko League. August 14, 2011. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  5. ^ Kujawa, Taylor (July 21, 2020). "How to watch the 2020 Nadeshiko League season". Her Football Hub. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  6. ^ "2020 Plenus Nadeshiko League Part 1 Section 1". inac-kobe.com/. Retrieved July 28, 2020.
  7. ^ "Japan's Tanaka links up with Leverkusen". the-AFC. Retrieved July 23, 2023.
  8. ^ rsl. "Utah Royals FC Signs Japanese Olympian Through 2025 | Utah Royals". rsl. Retrieved July 11, 2024.
  9. ^ "アルガルベカップ（3/6～13）日本女子代表（なでしこジャパン） メンバー" (in Japanese). Japan Football Association. February 18, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  10. ^ "Match Report: Germany – Japan" (PDF). Portuguese Football Federation. March 8, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 19, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2018.
  11. ^ "Kawasumi returns as Japan name squad for Jordan 2018". Asian Football Confederation. March 19, 2018. Archived from the original on March 29, 2018.
  12. ^ "Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) Squad - Games of the XXXII Olympiad (Tokyo 2020)【7/21-8/6】, MS&AD CUP 2021【7/14＠Kyoto】". www.jfa.jp. Japan Football Association (JFA). June 18, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  13. ^ "AFC Women's Asian Cup India 2022 - Selected Players / Staff". Japan Football Association. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  14. ^ "Iwabuchi left out of Japan's World Cup squad". BBC Sport. Retrieved June 20, 2023.
  15. ^ "Japan trounces Spain 4-0 to top Group C at the Women's World Cup". AP News. July 31, 2023. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
  16. ^ "Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) squad & schedule - MS&AD Cup 2024: Noto Peninsula Earthquake Reconstruction Support Match "Ganbarou Noto" / Games of the XXXIII Olympiad (Paris 2024)". jfa.jp. Japan Football Association (JFA). June 14, 2024.
  17. ^ "United States vs Japan: Japan wins SheBelieves Cup". BBC Sport. February 27, 2025. Archived from the original on February 27, 2025. Retrieved February 27, 2025.
  18. ^ "Mina Tanaka". Japan Football Association. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
  19. ^ a b "2017年度プレナスなでしこリーグ／プレナスチャレンジリーグ表彰式" (in Japanese). Nadeshiko League. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
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