NEWS
Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (13th report)
We would like to provide an update on the violation of the match management regulations by an Urawa Reds supporter that occurred during the Emperor's Cup JFA 103rd All Japan Football Championship Round of 16 (4th match) against Nagoya Grampus (hereinafter referred to as "this incident").
Once again, we would like to offer our sincere apologies to Nagoya Grampus supporters and many other people for the inconvenience caused by this incident.
We are very sorry for the inconvenience.
In this report, we would like to report on the efforts of our club and Urawa Reds Third Party Committee since the "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Twelfth Report)" issued on February 17, 2024 (last revised on February 24), as well as the progress made to date on the measures to prevent recurrence that were explained in the "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Fourth Report)" issued on September 19, 2023.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (12th report) (revised 2/24)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208984/
■ Third-Party Committee
The fourth third-party committee meeting was held on Thursday, February 1, 2024, the fifth third-party committee meeting was held on Monday, February 26, 2024, and on the same day, a working group was held to prepare a report in conjunction with the fifth third-party committee meeting, with all committee members completing the review of the minutes of each meeting.
supplement)
There is a difference between the date of issuing the 12th Report and the date of the Fourth Third-Party Committee meeting, but this is due to a time difference that arises because the committee is considered to be in place once all committee members have confirmed the minutes of the meeting. The committee and related procedures are proceeding smoothly.
■ Third-Party Committee Report
As explained by Chairman Muto Yoshiteru at the "Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Public Symposium" held on Friday, February 16, 2024, the "Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Report," which covers the activities of the Third Party Committee and the information collected through its activities, has been completed and received.
With the completion of the "Urawa Reds Third-Party Committee Report," the Third-Party Committee has been dissolved. However, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all the members of the Third-Party Committee not only for accepting to serve as committee members, but also for your long-term dedication to their activities.
The Urawa Reds Third-Party Committee Report will be sequentially provided to the Japan Football Association (JFA), Japan Professional Football League (J.League), Urawa Reds partners, the media, and others. However, in light of the seriousness of this matter and the purpose of establishing the third-party committee, which is to "contribute to the promotion and dissemination of football and the entire sports world," we will be publishing the full text of the report below.
[Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Report]
Read the report here
■ Progress of measures to prevent recurrence
Measures to prevent recurrence 1: Establishment of new disciplinary standards for violations
As explained in the "Seventh Report on Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters" issued on October 26, 2023, with the aim of ensuring smooth and safe match management and the safety of spectators, players, referees, team staff, and all other people involved in the match, regardless of who they are supporting, we have decided to do our best to prevent violations from occurring, while taking the initiative to decide on disciplinary measures for any violations that do occur, as far as the regulations of the match, tournament, etc. permit, based on our own disciplinary criteria, which may include a permanent ban from attendance not specified in the guidelines set by the JFA and J.League, or the exercise of the right to claim damages.
Our club's unique disciplinary criteria have been in place since they were established.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
Measure to prevent recurrence 2: Review of the operational process for deciding on sanctions and lifting sanctions
As explained in "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Seventh Report)" issued on October 26, 2023, in order to maintain objectivity and fairness in the medium to long term and to eliminate personal influence when making decisions on disciplinary action and lifting disciplinary measures, we have established a "Compliance Committee" within the club, chaired by a director in charge of the corporate department, and have changed the process to make decisions through discussions within the committee.
In addition, it has been decided that if the Compliance Committee deems it necessary, it may take disciplinary action or lift disciplinary measures after obtaining advice from external experts, etc.
Regarding the Compliance Committee, since its establishment, it has begun actual operation after conducting simulations using test cases among our club members.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
Measure 3 to prevent recurrence: Establishment of a third-party committee consisting of fans, supporters, and external advisors
Because it is difficult to guarantee fairness and comprehensiveness in the selection process, the committee members selected do not include fans or supporters, but are instead people from the education, legal and media fields who have broad knowledge of compliance and governance in sports. However, the members of the Third Party Committee have worked hard on various activities, mainly those explained in the public symposium held on February 16, 2024 (see "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Twelfth Report) (Revised 2/24)" issued on February 17, 2024, with final revisions on February 24), and the above-mentioned "Third Party Committee Report," and have provided us with valuable advice and suggestions.
For the reasons stated above, we have selected only external experts as members of the third-party committee. However, we have read all phone calls and emails received by our club from fans and supporters regarding this matter, and we have also listened to the opinions of participants in the question and answer sessions at the symposium and the "Supporter and Stakeholder Meeting" (described below). We use this information as reference for discussions within the third-party committee and our club.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (9th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/206136/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (10th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/207880/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (11th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208388/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (12th report) (revised 2/24)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208984/
Recurrence prevention measure 4: Take timely, appropriate and firm action against violators (including immediate expulsion)
In order to be able to respond more resolutely and quickly than ever before not only when a violation occurs, but also when we detect signs of a violation, we have reviewed our response system, including delegating authority to staff in the field.
Furthermore, with the aim of creating a "safe, comfortable and exciting packed stadium" by making the new response system function organically, we have separated the Competition Operations department, which is responsible for match management and security management, from the Marketing Headquarters and established a new Competition Operations Headquarters.
However, we recognize that changes to our response system and organizational restructuring are merely means to an end, and that the goal of creating a "safe, comfortable, and exciting, packed stadium" is a never-ending endeavor. We intend to continue to maintain a high level of awareness throughout the club and improve our level of expertise.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: To all fans and supporters]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208666/
[Measure 5 to prevent recurrence: Thoroughly publicize the "Stadium Prohibitions and Spectating Rules"]
We have strengthened our announcements on our official website, social media, Aurora Vision and elsewhere in order to foster mutual understanding with spectators, regardless of their support, with a focus on complying with the six key prohibitions (discriminatory remarks/actions, violent acts, throwing objects onto the pitch etc., damage to property, trespassing in restricted areas, and smoking outside designated areas).
In addition, in order to strengthen our awareness-raising activities in places for communication with fans and supporters, we designated the 7th round match of the 2024 Meiji Yasuda J1 League against Sagan Tosu on April 7, 2024 as "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY", and raised awareness about complying with the Six Key Prohibitions and eradicating discrimination, as well as carrying out various activities to communicate and spread the greatness of sports.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Rules and Manners for Spectators]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/game/manner.php
[Reference: The match against Tosu on Sunday, April 7th is "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY"]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/210581/
[Reference: Report and thanks for the "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY" event at the Tosu match on April 7th (Sun)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/211249/
[Preventive Measure 6: Re-establishing communication with fans and supporters]
After considering ways to strengthen dialogue with our various fans and supporters, including season ticket holders, the cheering leadership team, and REX CLUB members, we came to the conclusion that we would like to re-establish communication with not only our fans and supporters, but also the many stakeholders who support Urawa Reds.
In addition to "a safe, comfortable, and exciting stadium filled to capacity," our club aims to develop the local sports culture and build a strong and attractive team, so what is it able to do and what is it not able to do now? What do you expect from us, and to what extent are we able to meet those expectations?
We have begun holding "Supporter & Stakeholder Meetings" as an effort to objectively understand our club's current state through candid feedback.
To date, a total of 142 fans and supporters have participated, and we plan to reach out to Urawa Reds Partners, Reds Business Club (RBC) members, local government officials, and others in the future.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
This concludes our report on the efforts of our club and the Urawa Reds Third Party Committee since the "12th Report on Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters" and the progress made to date on measures to prevent recurrence.
Naturally, the issues that our club must address in its quest to create a "safe, comfortable, exciting and packed stadium" are wide-ranging and not limited to the above-mentioned measures to prevent recurrence.
Many of the measures to prevent recurrence are never-ending efforts, and as I have repeatedly stated, we view this incident as an extremely serious problem that has significantly damaged the positive image of watching football at stadiums that has been built up through the efforts of many people involved in football, as well as fans and supporters.
As a party that caused these problems, Urawa Reds is being asked by society how it will face up to these facts and how it will move forward. All club staff will never forget this, and will work hard to create a "safe, comfortable, exciting and packed stadium" by placing importance on dialogue, maintaining the perspective of being a member of society, and responding to any violations in a timely, appropriate and firm manner.
Once again, we would like to offer our deepest apologies to all those who have been inconvenienced by this incident.
We will continue to face our responsibilities as members of society in good faith and work hard to manage the club.
Urawa Red Diamonds
Once again, we would like to offer our sincere apologies to Nagoya Grampus supporters and many other people for the inconvenience caused by this incident.
We are very sorry for the inconvenience.
In this report, we would like to report on the efforts of our club and Urawa Reds Third Party Committee since the "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Twelfth Report)" issued on February 17, 2024 (last revised on February 24), as well as the progress made to date on the measures to prevent recurrence that were explained in the "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Fourth Report)" issued on September 19, 2023.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (12th report) (revised 2/24)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208984/
■ Third-Party Committee
The fourth third-party committee meeting was held on Thursday, February 1, 2024, the fifth third-party committee meeting was held on Monday, February 26, 2024, and on the same day, a working group was held to prepare a report in conjunction with the fifth third-party committee meeting, with all committee members completing the review of the minutes of each meeting.
supplement)
There is a difference between the date of issuing the 12th Report and the date of the Fourth Third-Party Committee meeting, but this is due to a time difference that arises because the committee is considered to be in place once all committee members have confirmed the minutes of the meeting. The committee and related procedures are proceeding smoothly.
■ Third-Party Committee Report
As explained by Chairman Muto Yoshiteru at the "Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Public Symposium" held on Friday, February 16, 2024, the "Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Report," which covers the activities of the Third Party Committee and the information collected through its activities, has been completed and received.
With the completion of the "Urawa Reds Third-Party Committee Report," the Third-Party Committee has been dissolved. However, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all the members of the Third-Party Committee not only for accepting to serve as committee members, but also for your long-term dedication to their activities.
The Urawa Reds Third-Party Committee Report will be sequentially provided to the Japan Football Association (JFA), Japan Professional Football League (J.League), Urawa Reds partners, the media, and others. However, in light of the seriousness of this matter and the purpose of establishing the third-party committee, which is to "contribute to the promotion and dissemination of football and the entire sports world," we will be publishing the full text of the report below.
[Urawa Reds Third Party Committee Report]
Read the report here
■ Progress of measures to prevent recurrence
Measures to prevent recurrence 1: Establishment of new disciplinary standards for violations
As explained in the "Seventh Report on Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters" issued on October 26, 2023, with the aim of ensuring smooth and safe match management and the safety of spectators, players, referees, team staff, and all other people involved in the match, regardless of who they are supporting, we have decided to do our best to prevent violations from occurring, while taking the initiative to decide on disciplinary measures for any violations that do occur, as far as the regulations of the match, tournament, etc. permit, based on our own disciplinary criteria, which may include a permanent ban from attendance not specified in the guidelines set by the JFA and J.League, or the exercise of the right to claim damages.
Our club's unique disciplinary criteria have been in place since they were established.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
Measure to prevent recurrence 2: Review of the operational process for deciding on sanctions and lifting sanctions
As explained in "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Seventh Report)" issued on October 26, 2023, in order to maintain objectivity and fairness in the medium to long term and to eliminate personal influence when making decisions on disciplinary action and lifting disciplinary measures, we have established a "Compliance Committee" within the club, chaired by a director in charge of the corporate department, and have changed the process to make decisions through discussions within the committee.
In addition, it has been decided that if the Compliance Committee deems it necessary, it may take disciplinary action or lift disciplinary measures after obtaining advice from external experts, etc.
Regarding the Compliance Committee, since its establishment, it has begun actual operation after conducting simulations using test cases among our club members.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
Measure 3 to prevent recurrence: Establishment of a third-party committee consisting of fans, supporters, and external advisors
Because it is difficult to guarantee fairness and comprehensiveness in the selection process, the committee members selected do not include fans or supporters, but are instead people from the education, legal and media fields who have broad knowledge of compliance and governance in sports. However, the members of the Third Party Committee have worked hard on various activities, mainly those explained in the public symposium held on February 16, 2024 (see "Regarding Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters (Twelfth Report) (Revised 2/24)" issued on February 17, 2024, with final revisions on February 24), and the above-mentioned "Third Party Committee Report," and have provided us with valuable advice and suggestions.
For the reasons stated above, we have selected only external experts as members of the third-party committee. However, we have read all phone calls and emails received by our club from fans and supporters regarding this matter, and we have also listened to the opinions of participants in the question and answer sessions at the symposium and the "Supporter and Stakeholder Meeting" (described below). We use this information as reference for discussions within the third-party committee and our club.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (7th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/205349/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (9th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/206136/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (10th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/207880/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (11th report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208388/
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (12th report) (revised 2/24)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208984/
Recurrence prevention measure 4: Take timely, appropriate and firm action against violators (including immediate expulsion)
In order to be able to respond more resolutely and quickly than ever before not only when a violation occurs, but also when we detect signs of a violation, we have reviewed our response system, including delegating authority to staff in the field.
Furthermore, with the aim of creating a "safe, comfortable and exciting packed stadium" by making the new response system function organically, we have separated the Competition Operations department, which is responsible for match management and security management, from the Marketing Headquarters and established a new Competition Operations Headquarters.
However, we recognize that changes to our response system and organizational restructuring are merely means to an end, and that the goal of creating a "safe, comfortable, and exciting, packed stadium" is a never-ending endeavor. We intend to continue to maintain a high level of awareness throughout the club and improve our level of expertise.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: To all fans and supporters]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/208666/
[Measure 5 to prevent recurrence: Thoroughly publicize the "Stadium Prohibitions and Spectating Rules"]
We have strengthened our announcements on our official website, social media, Aurora Vision and elsewhere in order to foster mutual understanding with spectators, regardless of their support, with a focus on complying with the six key prohibitions (discriminatory remarks/actions, violent acts, throwing objects onto the pitch etc., damage to property, trespassing in restricted areas, and smoking outside designated areas).
In addition, in order to strengthen our awareness-raising activities in places for communication with fans and supporters, we designated the 7th round match of the 2024 Meiji Yasuda J1 League against Sagan Tosu on April 7, 2024 as "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY", and raised awareness about complying with the Six Key Prohibitions and eradicating discrimination, as well as carrying out various activities to communicate and spread the greatness of sports.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
[Reference: Rules and Manners for Spectators]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/game/manner.php
[Reference: The match against Tosu on Sunday, April 7th is "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY"]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/210581/
[Reference: Report and thanks for the "SPORTS FOR PEACE! DAY" event at the Tosu match on April 7th (Sun)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/211249/
[Preventive Measure 6: Re-establishing communication with fans and supporters]
After considering ways to strengthen dialogue with our various fans and supporters, including season ticket holders, the cheering leadership team, and REX CLUB members, we came to the conclusion that we would like to re-establish communication with not only our fans and supporters, but also the many stakeholders who support Urawa Reds.
In addition to "a safe, comfortable, and exciting stadium filled to capacity," our club aims to develop the local sports culture and build a strong and attractive team, so what is it able to do and what is it not able to do now? What do you expect from us, and to what extent are we able to meet those expectations?
We have begun holding "Supporter & Stakeholder Meetings" as an effort to objectively understand our club's current state through candid feedback.
To date, a total of 142 fans and supporters have participated, and we plan to reach out to Urawa Reds Partners, Reds Business Club (RBC) members, local government officials, and others in the future.
[Reference: Regarding violations by Urawa Reds supporters (fourth report)]
https://www.urawa-reds.co.jp/clubinfo/203886/
This concludes our report on the efforts of our club and the Urawa Reds Third Party Committee since the "12th Report on Violations by Urawa Reds Supporters" and the progress made to date on measures to prevent recurrence.
Naturally, the issues that our club must address in its quest to create a "safe, comfortable, exciting and packed stadium" are wide-ranging and not limited to the above-mentioned measures to prevent recurrence.
Many of the measures to prevent recurrence are never-ending efforts, and as I have repeatedly stated, we view this incident as an extremely serious problem that has significantly damaged the positive image of watching football at stadiums that has been built up through the efforts of many people involved in football, as well as fans and supporters.
As a party that caused these problems, Urawa Reds is being asked by society how it will face up to these facts and how it will move forward. All club staff will never forget this, and will work hard to create a "safe, comfortable, exciting and packed stadium" by placing importance on dialogue, maintaining the perspective of being a member of society, and responding to any violations in a timely, appropriate and firm manner.
Once again, we would like to offer our deepest apologies to all those who have been inconvenienced by this incident.
We will continue to face our responsibilities as members of society in good faith and work hard to manage the club.
Urawa Red Diamonds
