PRO ITO GETS CALL TO JOIN MATAO

PRESS RELEASE – Through his consistent efforts to hone his skills and broaden his knowledge of the sport on and off the pitch, Takumi Ito’s childhood dreams of playing football at the highest levels – for club and country – are coming true.

Ito, who plays football professionally for Ezra FC in the Pepsi Lao League 1 in Laos, recently accepted a call-up to the Matao, Guam National Team, for the EAFF E-1 Football Championship Preliminary Competition in Hong Kong-China this month. 

“The first time I saw a Matao match was the match between Guam and Chinese Taipei in the AFC Challenge Cup Qualifier in 2013,” said Ito, who was 13 years old at the time. “As a young boy, I still remember when Jason (Cunliffe) and Ian (Mariano) scored goals in Guam’s first-ever win against Chinese Taipei. Since then, I always wanted to represent my country; it’s a childhood dream for me and a great honor to wear the Matao jersey alongside my teammates.”

Ito began his National Team career with Guam in 2012 when he was selected to Guam’s U14 National Team as a midfielder. Since then, Ito has also played for the U16, U17, and U18 National teams. Ito was first called up to the Matao for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Qualifiers of the Asian Zone in 2019 and most recently played for Guam at the next iteration of World Cup qualifiers last year. The Matao will next play against Macau in Group A of the EAFF tournament at 2 p.m. local time (4 p.m. Guam time) in Hong Kong China.

“Takumi has elevated his football since he was part of our National Academy,” said Ross Awa, Head Coach of the Guam National Team. “During his tenure, he actively participated in the Men’s National Program, progressing from the youth teams to the Matao. He continues to excel with his current club and I am confident he will carry this success into our upcoming match against Macau.”

Ito played for Wings FC in the Triple J Auto Group Robbie Webber Youth League and later for the ASC Trust Islanders FC in the U18 Division of the Aloha Maid Minetgot Cup Elite Youth League. Ito concurrently played in the top flight men’s league in Guam, now known as the Budweiser G-League, for the 2015 to 2017 seasons for the NAPA Rovers FC. With the Rovers, Ito traveled to Kyrgyz Republic to compete in the AFC Cup 2017 Playoff Qualifiers. 

Ito began his international player career in Montenegro in 2019, playing for FK Iskra D1 U19 and next in Japan for Ichikawa SC, a D1 team in the Chiba Prefecture League. From 2022, Ito has been playing for Ezra FC in Laos. The club is currently undefeated in the current 2024-2025 season and on top of the league’s leaderboard with seven wins in seven matches.

“Since I was young, I had only played football in Guam, so I always dreamed of playing football overseas when I got older,” Ito said. “I played in Montenegro and Japan, and now I am happy to have signed my first professional contract in Laos in 2022. When I went overseas, the language and cultural differences were so big that it was always difficult to live alone. Still, I was grateful for the environment that allowed me to concentrate on football, and it’s also important that I always continue believing in myself and my capabilities regardless of the environment I am in.” 

Ito will meet Guam’s team in Hong Kong China for the EAFF tournament Thursday. The winner of the match between Guam and Macau will move on to play the champion of Group B to determine the tournament winner on Dec. 17. The winning team will advance to final round of the EAFF tournament next year to play against Japan, Korea Republic, and China, PR.

Group B’s teams are Hong Kong China, Chinese Taipei, and Mongolia. 

More information on the EAFF tournament is online at https://eaff.com/competitions/eaff2024pre/index.html

Matao authentic jerseys are in stock and available for purchase at https://gufanshop.myshopify.com/