The Japan FA has donated $57,000 from the proceeds of the All Whites v Japan clash at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo directly to the Christchurch Earthquake football recovery fund.
The match was rescheduled from 2011 after Japan was hit by an earthquake in March of that year while Christchurch was struck a month before.
New Zealand Football CEO Andy Martin says the wonderful donation from the Japan FA, which will be invested and administered by the New Zealand Football Foundation, signifies a close alignment of the two football nations.
“We’re overwhelmed by the gesture from the Japan FA and it demonstrates how close our two organisations are after both nations were struck by similar tragedies in 2011,” Martin said.
Mainland Football CEO Mike Coggan says the money will go to continuing the redevelopment of the facilities required to deliver the game at grassroots level.
“The funds will be invested into the football infrastructure of the city to help boost our effort to provide our thousands of players, coaches and referees the best on-pitch experience we can.”
The two nations will meet again on the field twice in the next several months with the Young Football Ferns facing Japan at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica while Tony Readings and the Football Ferns travel to Osaka in May to meet the world number three ranked senior women’s side.
For more on New Zealand football go to www.nzfootball.co.nz

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