Kashiwa Reysol

is a Japanese professional football club based in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. Their home stadium is Sankyo Frontier Kashiwa Stadium, also known as "Hitachidai". Reysol is a portmanteau of the Spanish words Rey and Sol, meaning "Sun King". The name alludes to their parent company Hitachi, whose name means "rising sun" in Japanese. The club was formed in 1940 and was a founding member ("Original Eight"). of the Japan Soccer League (JSL) in 1965. Since the league's inception, they have spent nice in the top tier of Japanese football. They have been Japanese League champions twice in 1972 and 2011, and have won three League Cups in 1976, 1999 and 2013, and three Emperor's Cups in 1972, 1975 and 2012. History Hitachi SC (1939–1992) The club started in 1939 and was officially formed as the company team, Hitachi, Ltd. Soccer Club in 1940 in Kodaira, Tokyo. The club formed the Japan Soccer League (JSL) in 1965, along with today's Urawa Reds, JEF United Chiba, Cerezo Osaka, Sanfrecce Hiroshima and three other clubs ("Original Eight"). They had some successes during the mid-1970s, winning several Emperor's Cups and JSL titles and contributing several players to the Japanese national team. The club relocated from Kodaira to Kashiwa in 1986, but it took a while to adapt to the new town, as they were relegated to the JSL Division 2 at the season's closing. They made it back to the top flight in 1989/90, but dropped back in 1990/91 and returned again in 1991/92. As the J.League advent had come too soon for them, the club abandoned to be a founding member of the newly formed professional league. The club joined the Japan Football League (called "former JFL") Division 1 in 1992, the second tier of the Japanese football hierarchy following the J.League.