It was the first stadium in Japan that sold its
naming rights, which went to
Ajinomoto Co., Inc. on a five-year, 1.2 billion
yen (about 10 million
U.S. dollars) contract from March 2003 to February 2008 to name it Ajinomoto Stadium. This contract was renewed in November 2007 and extended by six years for 1.4 billion yen to February 2014; in October 2013, the second renewal extended the term to February 2019.[1]
Overview
The stadium is the home of
J1 Leaguefootball club
FC Tokyo and
J2 League football club
Tokyo Verdy and is used as the venue of some lower divisions of football leagues.
Rugby union games are also held there. For the
2002 FIFA World Cup,
Saudi Arabia's national team based their training camp at Chōfu and used the stadium as a main training ground, although it did not host an actual World Cup match.
The stadium is often used for non-sport events, such as concerts and
flea markets. It has been used as a shelter for survivors of the
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.[2] The stadium was the
rugby venue for the
2020 Summer Olympics.[3] During the Olympics, the stadium was known as Tokyo Stadium due to
International Olympic Committee's non-commercialization policy. The stadium has also been one of the venues for
2019 Rugby World Cup and hosted the opening ceremony, followed by the opening match of the tournament, as well as other 7 matches including Bronze Final.[4]
Site
The north end of the stadium adjoins the
Chofu Airport, while Route 20 runs close to the south end. At the south end is the main gate, which is directly connected by a pedestrian bridge over Route 20.
Stand
The stand accommodates 49,970 and is divided into two levels; the upper level accommodates 20,600 and the lower level 29,370 (both are all-seated). On each level, the stand is divided into four sections (main, back, north and south sides).
The whole of the upper level, as well as upper tiers of the lower level, is covered by roof, which is made of
Teflon (main and back) and
polycarbonate (both sides). The main stand houses media and hospitality boxes,
VIP rooms and reception hall. Two large
LED displays are installed at both sides.
Ground
The ground was originally designed for both
athletics and football games. However, the construction of the supplementary ground, which is needed for compliance with 1st-grade athletic grounds in Japan, has been postponed. The management company has decided to use the ground mainly for football, and not to install a running track until the supplementary pitch has been added. Currently
artificial turf is laid down all over the ground except the
football field area, over which natural
turf is spread. Consequently, there is some room between the football pitch and the stand.
In 2013, the athletics track was finally installed in order to host the
National Sports Festival of Japan at the same year.[5] However, the artificial turf is still used over the track for football matches.
In order to comply with height limitation close to the airport, the pitch is sunk below the level of the land around the stadium.[citation needed]