Kazuyoshi Miura, set to turn 59 next month and is recognized globally as football's most senior pro, has agreed to a temporary transfer until June with J3 League club Fukushima United.
The transfer means Miura might feature in the Japanese professional league - encompassing the highest tiers of Japanese football - for the first time in five years.
The ex-international forward, who started his career with Brazilian side Santos in 1986, did not find the net in just over an hour across seven appearances last season while on loan at fourth-tier club Atletico Suzuka.
"My passion for football hasn't changed, regardless of my age," he said as he prepares for a forty-first campaign as a pro footballer.
"I'm very grateful to be given this opportunity. I vow I will play with everything I have to help the team. Together, we can create a legacy!"
Referred to as 'King Kazu' in Japan, this will be Miura's fourth temporary move since 2022 from second division club Yokohama FC.
Miura, who has also featured in Italy, Croatia and Australia, signed for the club in 2005 but has remained absent from the pitch for them since 2020.
He netted 55 goals in 89 games in an international career that ended in 2000, two years after his surprising exclusion from the squad for Japan's maiden FIFA World Cup campaign.
The footballer, who has talked of continuing his career into his seventh decade, said he was ready to "embrace a fresh test" after being relegated last season to Japan's regional leagues.
Fukushima United finished 10th in the twenty-club J3 League last season.
