28th January 2026
January 28 – The British Embassy Tokyo has added formal backing to a growing UK-Japan grassroots football project, with its Musubi Initiative joining the Liverpool FC Foundation’s ‘Leaders of Tomorrow’ programme as a partner.
The youth-focused programme is already delivered by the LFC Foundation with support from The Nippon Foundation and is currently active across Japan, using football and education to engage children and young people in community settings. The Embassy’s involvement is intended to help scale up that work and position it within a broader framework of UK–Japan cooperation.
Delivered using coaching and development models designed by the LFC Foundation in the UK, Leaders of Tomorrow combines football clinics with leadership development and community engagement sessions – targeting issues including social isolation and confidence-building, with a focus on young people from varied social and economic backgrounds.
By aligning with Musubi (loosely translated as joining together), the initiative has become the first children-focused programme under the Embassy-backed framework, which brings together government, industry, academia and civil society to support long-term collaboration between the two countries.
Julia Longbottom, British Ambassador to Japan, said the partnership marked an important step for the initiative’s objectives in youth development and international cooperation.
“I am delighted that the MUSUBI Initiative is partnering with the LFC Foundation, one of our greatest charitable exports, in support of the Leaders of Tomorrow programme. This is the MUSUBI Initiative’s first programme focused on children, and I am confident that it will provide exciting opportunities for the children who take part.
“I look forward to the programme expanding across Japan, drawing on the LFC Foundation’s long-standing experience supporting children facing economic hardship in its home city of Liverpool. Supporting the next generation through UK–Japan collaboration lies at the heart of the MUSUBI Initiative’s mission. It is therefore with the greatest pleasure that I extend my full support to the Leaders of Tomorrow.”
The Foundation says it worked with 145,000 participants across five countries last season and sees Japan as a ‘priority’ market for long-term community impact.
The Nippon Foundation, which has played a central role in delivering the programme locally, positioned the announcement as both a validation of the project’s aims and an opportunity for expansion beyond its current footprint.
Takehiro Umemura, Director of the Planning & Communications Division at The Nippon Foundation, said: “The Leaders of Tomorrow programme, delivered by The Nippon Foundation and the Liverpool FC Foundation, empowers young people through sport—helping them develop independence, teamwork, and the skills needed to become future leaders who will contribute to their communities and greater society.
“By joining the Musubi network and community, we look forward to building on the combined expertise and experience of both Japan and the United Kingdom, and to expanding this programme as a model for nurturing future leaders with a global outlook. We sincerely hope that today’s signing ceremony will serve as a new starting point, enabling this programme to expand from Kawasaki City to schools and communities across Japan, and supporting the growth of the ‘Leaders of Tomorrow’ who will shape our future.”
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [moc.l1769608156labto1769608156ofdlr1769608156owedi1769608156sni@g1769608156niwe.1769608156yrrah1769608156](javascript:;)