Omiya Ardija (大宮アルディージャ, Ōmiya Arudīja) is a professional football (soccer) club which play in the J. League, and are based in Ōmiya-ku in Saitama, Japan. Its "hometown" as designated by the league is the whole of Saitama city, which is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds. Omiya currently compete in the J1 and have done since 2005, after promotion from J2 in 2004 as the second placed team.
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| Full name | Omiya Ardija | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Squirrels | ||
| Founded | 1964 | ||
| Ground | Ōmiya Park Soccer Stadium Omiya-ku, Saitama, Saitama | ||
| Capacity | 15,500 | ||
| Chairman |  Seigo Watanabe | ||
| Manager | Yasuhiro Higuchi | ||
| League | J. League Div.1 | ||
| 2007 | 15th Place | ||
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Their home field is Nack5 Stadium Ōmiya (Nack5スタジアム大宮, Nakku-faibu Sutajiamu Ōmiya): Ōmiya Park Soccer Stadium by the naming rights.
History
The team were founded in 1964 as NTT Saitama Soccer Selection in Urawa, Saitama and later known as the NTT Kantō Soccer Club in 1969. In 1998 it was separately incorporated as NTT Sport Community K.K. based in Ōmiya to participate in the J. League. The nickname "Ardija" is a transcription of the Spanish language ardilla (squirrel) which is the mascot of Ōmiya and the park in which their home stadium is located.
Their matches against Urawa Red Diamonds have been called the "Saitama Derby".
In 2005-2007 most of Omiya's home matches were held at Saitama Stadium 2002 and Urawa Komaba Stadium due to expansion works at their home ground. In October 2007 the expansion was complete. On November 11, the re-opening match was held as a J. League season match between the Ardija and Ōita Trinita (1-2).
Team Record
J. League
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Other Domestic Competitions
Current players
As of July 1, 2008 Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Managers
| Manager | Nat. | Tenure |
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| Takashi Shimizu | Japan |
1992-1996 |
| Norio Sasaki | Japan |
1997-1998 |
| Pim Verbeek |  Netherlands |
1998-1999 |
| Toshiya Miura | Japan |
2000-2001 |
| Henk Duut | Netherlands |
2002 |
| Masaaki Kanno | Japan |
2003 |
| Eijun Kiyokumo | Japan |
2003 |
| Toshiya Miura | Japan |
2004-2006 |
| Robert Verbeek | Netherlands |
2007 |
| Satoru Sakuma | Japan |
2007-present |
Former players
External links
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