Ningineer Stadium Guide Ehime FC

Japan Stadiums: Ningineer Stadium, Ehime Prefecture

The main entrance to Ningineer Stadium. — The main entrance to Ningineer Stadium

Ningineer Stadium (ニンジニアスタジアム) so-called for sponsorship reasons is a multi-purpose stadium in Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku.

Before that it was known as Ehime Matsuyama Athletic Stadium or Ehime Prefectural Sports Park Stadium (愛媛県総合運動公園陸上競技場) from 1979 to 2008.

The venue is the home ground of J.League club Ehime FC and also hosts both athletics meets and other sports.

Ningineer Stadium, Ehime Prefecture. — Stadium plan

History & Capacity

The stadium has an athletics circuit around the natural grass playing surface. It has one partially covered main stand, floodlights and opened back in 1979.

The ground was most-recently renovated in 2005.

The arena has a total capacity of 20,983 people, seated in the partially-covered main stand and the other uncovered stands. It is part of the larger Ehime Sports Park which also includes an adjacent soccer/rugby field used for training and the women's teams of Imabari FC and Ehime FC.

There is also a tennis center, an archery range, and Ehime Sports Park is across the road from the large Tobe Zoo, which is home to over 600 animals of around 144 species. The popular Ehime Children's Castle is also here next to the zoo.

The ground has two substantial stands at the sides of the playing area. — The uncovered stand opposite the main stand

Ehime FC

Ehime FC presently compete in the J3, the third tier of football in Japan.

The club was founded in 1970 as Matsuyama Soccer Club, a local amateur team based in Matsuyama, before being reorganized as an independent club and renamed Ehime FC in 1995.

The team in blue and white stripes won three consecutive Shikoku Regional League titles from 1998 to 2000 and was promoted to the Japan Football League (JFL) in 2001. In 2005, Ehime FC won the JFL title, earning promotion to the professional J.League Division 2 (J2) for the first time.

They achieved their best J2 finish in 2015, finishing fifth and advancing to the J1 promotion playoffs.

Ehime also made headlines in the 2007 Emperor's Cup by defeating reigning AFC Champions League winners Urawa Red Diamonds 2-0 away at Komaba Stadium. In 2023, the club won the J3 League championship, securing a return to J2.

They were relegated to J3 in 2021 and again in 2025.

The partially-covered main stand. — The partially-covered main stand

Derbies

Ehime have a passionate rivalry with prefectural neighbors Imabari FC. This derby is known as the 'Iyo Kessen' (伊予決戦) in Japanese. In 2023 Ehime FC secured the J3 League title and promotion to J2 by defeating Imabari 1-0 in a high-stakes game. There are other less-fierce rivalries with such Shikoku-based clubs as Tokushima Vortis, Kamatamare Sanuki and Kochi United.

Notable Players

Some notable players associated with Ehime FC include Takumu Kawamura who developed at the club on loan from 2019 to 2021 before starring for Sanfrecce Hiroshima, earning a senior Japan national team cap and making a move to Red Bull Salzburg, where he rarely started.

Former Japan international Koji Yamase, who previously played for several major J1 clubs, brought his experience to Ehime's midfield between 2019 and 2021 making 97 appearances with 6 goals.

Journeyman winger Manabu Saito also spent an early-career loan spell with Ehime before establishing himself at Yokohama F. Marinos and appearing for the Japan national team.

Defender Ryota Moriwaki gained valuable early professional experience and regular playing time at Ehime before going on to enjoy a prominent career with Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Urawa Red Diamonds. He returned to the club at the end of his career before retiring.

Veteran striker Kenji Fukuda joined Ehime later in his career, bringing extensive top-flight and international experience to the club. Fukuda had spells in Paraguay, Mexico, Spain and Greece before returning to his home prefecture to play for Ehime.

The adjacent training ground. — The adjacent training ground with Imabari FC's women's team in action vs Momoko FC from Takamatsu

Access - Getting There

The ground is one of the more challenging venues to access by public transport in Japan.

The closest major railway station is JR Matsuyama which has connections to Imabari, Niihama, Takamatsu and Okayama (in Honshu for Shinkansen connections) on the Yosan Line.

From Matsuyama Station take a tram to Matsuyama City Station and then a bus or an Iyotetsu train from nearby Otemachi Station on the Takahama Line to Matsuyama City Station and then a bus. The journey is over an hour in total.

There are also buses from Kencho-mae (City Hall) which is also on the city's tram network.

The nearest bus stop to the venue is Ehime Koen right at the stadium.

Address: 46 Uenomachi, Matsuyama, Ehime 791-1136