Mana Iwabuchi Age, Salary, Net worth, Current Teams, Career, Height, and much more
Mana Iwabuchi is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder. She was most recently with Arsenal and has previously played for Aston Villa, Bayern Munich, 1899 Hoffenheim, and Tottenham Hotspur.
She has also represented the Japan national team. She is often regarded as one of the best forwards in the world. She has been playing football since childhood and has an incredible game vision.
Mana Iwabuchi is known for her creative and offensive style of play, which has led her to be regarded as one of the best players in the world.
Here, we take a closer look at Mana Iwabuchi’s age, salary in 2023, net worth in 2023, Playing Position, height, Current Teams, boyfriend, facts, house, Individual Awards, football career so far, wiki, transfer news, market value, stats, FIFA 22 potential, height, weight, family, pics, affairs, car, and much more.
Who Is Mana Iwabuchi?
Mana Iwabuchi is a professional football player from Japan. She was born on March 18, 1993, and plays as a forward or an attacking midfielder. She has played for Aston Villa, Bayern Munich, 1899 Hoffenheim, Tottenham Hotspur, and Arsenal. She has also played for the national team of Japan.
Iwabuchi is known as a skilled technician with an amazing pass weight and great control of the ball. She is a prodigious talent. Because she is small and can easily dribble past her opponents, people in her home country call her “Maradona,” after the great Argentine player Diego Maradona.
Mana Iwabuchi Facts, Biography, WIKI
Do you wanna know her full Biodata? Take a look at the following table for more information.
| Full Name | Mana Iwabuchi |
| Nickname | Mana |
| Profession | Footballer |
| Date of Birth & Age | 18 March 1993 (age 30) |
| Birth Place | Musashino, Tokyo |
| Religion | Catholic |
| Marital Status | In Relationship |
| Hometown & Country | Japan |
| Height | 1.56 m (5 ft 1 in) |
Mana Iwabuchi Age and Birthday Info 2023
How old is Mana Iwabuchi? In this section, we will talk about her age and birthday-related info. Mana Iwabuchi’s age is 30, and her birthday is 18 March 1993. When is her next birthday?
| Birthday | 18 March |
| Name of the Day | Thursday |
| Next Birthday | 18 March 2024 |
| Age | 30 |
| Place of Birth | Musashino, Tokyo |
| Country of Birth | Japan |
Mana Iwabuchi’s Height, Weight, and Physical Condition
What is her physical condition? Want to know her Height and Weight in Feet-Inch or Meter-Centimeter? This section discussed her height-weight, foot, eyes, and hair colors.
| Height | In Centimeters: 156 cm In Meters: 1.56 m In Feet Inches: 5 ft 1 in |
| Weight | In KG: Not known In Pound: Not known |
| Foot | Yet to update |
| Eye Color | Yet to update |
| Hair Color | Yet to update |
Mana Iwabuchi Early Life
Iwabuchi was born and raised in Musashino. At age six, she started to kick a football and fell in love with the sport. She was also taking piano and dance lessons at the time. But Ryota, her older brother, and the boss of his football team had been trying to get her to join them for about a year.
She finally followed in his footsteps when she was eight and joined the same club team, Sekimae SC, where he played. Early on, people noticed how good she was, and she was asked to learn with the older boys.
The club used to be called “Sekimae Boys Soccer Club,” but when Iwabuchi joined as the first girl, they changed the name to “Sekimae Soccer Club.” Ryo Ryusei, a famous Japanese actor, was one of her teammates when she was young. He said years later that “she would dribble past boys with ease” from a young age, which was one of the reasons he gave up on being a professional footballer because he watched her play and realized he wasn’t good enough.
Iwabuchi went to Komazawa Women’s University and entered the Faculty of Intercultural Studies.
Ryota, her older brother, is also a professional football player. He is a defender for Fujieda MYFC.
Mana Iwabuchi Current Teams
She is playing with Arsenal.
Who is Mana Iwabuchi’s Boyfriend, and What is her Marital Status?
Do you want to know whether Mana Iwabuchi is married or unmarried? In this section, we will discuss her personal life and life story as you are curious about her boyfriend. We added the information below.
| Marital Status | In Relationship |
What is her Playing Position?
She plays as a forward in her team.
What is Mana Iwabuchi’s Salary in 2023?
Mana Iwabuchi’s Salary in 2023 is $1 million.
What is Mana Iwabuchi’s Net Worth in 2023?
Mana Iwabuchi’s Net Worth in 2023 is $5 million.
Transfer Market Value
We discuss about Mana Iwabuchi’s transfermarket history: current and highest transfer values.
| Current Market Value | Yet to update |
| Highest Market Value | Yet to update |
Mana Iwabuchi Educational Qualifications
Do you want to know what is her educational qualifications? In this table, we added the education information. As we do not have all data currently, we keep some fields blank, which we will update soon.
| School | Yet to update |
| College | Yet to update |
| University | Yet to update |
Mana Iwabuchi Football Career
Here, we take a closer look at her Football career so far.
Mana Iwabuchi Club Career
JTV Beleza
She debuted with reigning Nadeshiko League champions Nippon TV Beleza at 14 on 21 October 2007. She became a starter in 2008 and won Best Young Player.
On 22 August 2010, she scored the winning goal in the 90th minute of the Nadeshiko League Cup Final and led her team to a 3–2 win over Urawa Reds Ladies, receiving the tournament’s MVP award. “Even today, I didn’t do anything except for the very last minute,” she added, despite her goal and praise from teammates and the media. Happy but disappointed in myself. I’m so behind; I want to work hard to become closer to Sawa-san.” The following season, she took over number 10 from Japan veteran Homare Sawa at 17.
She was named Most Hardworking Player and Best Eleven in 2011 after scoring nine goals, the team’s most and the league’s joint-3rd highest.
1899 Hoffenheim
Iwabuchi joined 1899 Hoffenheim in the 2. Bundesliga on 28 November 2012 and chose the number 28 shirt, her first professional number for Beleza. She made her debut in a 6–2 away win over SV Bardenbach on 17 March 2013, coming on as a 46th-minute substitute.
Her first goal came in a 3–2 win over 1. FFC Niederkirchen on 31 March 2013. Iwabuchi scored four goals in nine games as Hoffenheim won the Southern division and rose to the Bundesliga in 2012–13.
Next season, she wore 13. Hoffenheim’s first Bundesliga goal came in a 1–0 home win over VfL Sindelfingen on 8 September 2013. Iwabuchi scored two goals and assisted one as Hoffenheim returned from two goals down to win 3–2 and avoid relegation in the second-last match of the season against her future club Bayern Munich. She scored six goals in 22 games in 2013–14.
Bayern Munich
Iwabuchi joined Bayern Munich from Hoffenheim in June 2014. In her rookie season, she scored three goals and helped Bayern win the Bundesliga for the first time since 1976.[
She signed a two-year contract extension on January 30, 2016. On the final day of the 2015–16 Bundesliga season, she equalized against her previous club Hoffenheim to help her team win a second title.
In March 2017, she declared on her blog and to the public that she had amicably cancelled her contract with the club to return to Japan to heal from injury.
Kobe Leonessa
Iwabuchi joined INAC Kobe Leonessa on June 23; She signed with Kobe Leonessa, a rival of NTV Beleza, the club she played for till she moved to Germany. She chose the club because they courted her most aggressively, and she wanted to play under manager Takeo Matsuda again.
She coached her at NTV Beleza when she was 14–15. “I could barely keep up in training, but she would still play me in matches,” Iwabuchi said in a magazine interview. I felt down because I couldn’t do much. I wanted to show him how much I’ve improved as a player and study football from him again.
She returned to the Nadeshiko League after five years, coming on as a substitute against MyNavi Sendai Ladies on September 9, 2017. She scored her maiden club goal on 5 November 2017 in a 5-0 win over Okayama Yunogo Belle.
She reached 100 Nadeshiko League appearances on August 9, 2020.
In her final season, she played 47 times and scored 11 goals as captain.
Aston Villa
Iwabuchi returned to Europe as she joined Aston Villa in the FA Women’s Super League in January 2021. Sporting director Eni Aluko called her a “statement signing” for the team, and an unusual deal was made with CEO Christian Purslow to bring Iwabuchi to the club ahead of many big European clubs. Iwabuchi stated, “Receiving an offer from a club that plays in what I consider to be the most attractive league in the world right now, I wanted to go there without any hesitation.” “I played against England for Japan,” she said. First, I noticed the players’ skill, power, and teamwork. They’re a Premier League club’s women’s team. Another draw was the surroundings.
She scored and assisted on her league debut against Reading on 23 January 2021.
Iwabuchi scored the only goal in the game against Tottenham Hotspur on 6 February 2021, helping Aston Villa avoid relegation. She was nominated for FA Women’s Super League 20/21 Goal of the Season.
Arsenal
On 26 May 2021, Arsenal confirmed that she would join after Villa’s short-term contract expired in June 2021. The club tried to sign her in the summer of 2019 and winter of 2020, but the Japanese Football Association wanted her to stay in Japan until the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
She scored her first goal on her Champions League debut against Okzhetpes on 18 August 2021. She scored twice in her second Arsenal match against PSV.
Her first goal in that match, a magnificent solo strike from a short corner, won the club’s August Goal of the Month poll, where supporters vote for the greatest goal from the Men’s, Women’s, and U-23 teams. She won the award with 64% of the vote, joining Kim Little and Vivianne Miedema. On 2 October 2021, she scored her first Arsenal WSL goal against her former team Villa in a 4–0 away win.
Arsenal announced on 14 June 2023 that Iwabuchi would leave once her contract expired.
Spurs (Loan)
In January 2023, Iwabuchi joined Arsenal’s north London rival Tottenham Hotspur on loan until the end of the season after only three league appearances for Arsenal. She debuted on 25 January 2023 in a 3-1 FA WSL Cup quarter-final loss to Chelsea. She scored her first goal for the club in a 5-0 FA Cup fourth-round win over London City Lionesses on 29 January 2023.
Mana Iwabuchi International career
Youth
At 15, Iwabuchi joined the Japan U-17 team and played in the 2008 U-17 World Cup in New Zealand. Despite the team’s quarterfinal loss, Iwabuchi won the Adidas Golden Ball as the tournament’s top player. It was the first time a Japanese player—male or female—won a FIFA MVP award. A French coach called her a “future star of women’s football.”
In 2009, Iwabuchi helped the Young Nadeshiko win their second AFC U-19 Women’s Championship. Her four goals, including a late winner in the final against Korea Republic and the only semi-final goal against DPR Korea, made her the tournament’s joint top scorer and MVP again.
In 2008 and 2009, the Asian Football Confederation named Iwabuchi Asian Young Footballer of the Year. Despite never playing for the senior national team, Iwabuchi was nominated for the 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year award (since renamed the FIFA Ballon d’Or). She was the fourth Japanese player and first female player nominated for this award.
Japan was eliminated early in the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Germany. In their 3–3 draw against Mexico, Iwabuchi scored another crucial goal from a long distance. Despite Japan’s early exit, Iwabuchi was one of eleven Adidas Golden Ball nominees in Germany in 2010.
Senior
Iwabuchi made her Japan women’s national football team debut in the East Asian Football Championship in her home country on February 6, 2010. Japan defeated China 2–0 after her 60th-minute substitution.
Five days later, at 16, she scored her first senior international goal in a 3–0 triumph over Chinese Taipei in the same competition. “The atmosphere here (Japan National Stadium) is special,” she added in her post-match interview. I’m glad I scored two goals despite my pre-game nerves. I’m grateful to the squad since goals require numerous plays. I prefer dribbling. My goal is Messi-like. I like his precise dribbling despite his size.” Iwabuchi was the tournament’s equal leading scorer as Japan won.
2011 World Cup
At 18, she was Japan’s youngest FIFA Women’s World Cup player in July 2011. She played in all of the semi-finals against Sweden as Japan won its first title. She substituted in the final against the United States, which Japan won 3–1 in a penalty shootout after a 2–2 draw after extra time to become the first Asian team to win a FIFA World Cup.
Japan, still recovering from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 15,000 people, celebrated the game’s incredible outcome. As a result, the entire team received the People’s Honour Award, a prestigious government commendation by the Prime Minister of Japan, for the hope and joy they brought the demoralized nation and the feat they achieved without sufficient support from the JFA since women’s football wasn’t a priority for Japan’s football development. Iwabuchi is the youngest recipient (18 years, five months, and 0 days), whereas Yuzuru Hanyu, a two-time Olympic champion figure skater, is the youngest individual winner (23 years, six months, and 25 days).
2012 Olympics
She had a right ankle contusion from the World Cup quarterfinal against Germany before the 2012 Summer Olympics. She withdrew from the last round of Asian Olympic Qualifiers due to crutches.
She still played at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. She played three games, starting against South Africa in the group stages.
Japan and the US met again in consecutive major event finals on August 9, 2012, for the gold medal. Iwabuchi substituted in the 76th minute, like in the previous final. Iwabuchi stole the ball from Christie Rampone and was through on goal as Japan trailed the USA 2–1. Japan won silver as Hope Solo saved her curled shot to the top right corner.
“It was a true joy to stand on the greatest stage with the best teammates,” she told reporters in Japan. Finishing second was disheartening, but I’ll work harder from here.” In 2021, some nine years later, she revealed she still uses the moment she missed as her computer wallpaper. Hence, she “never forgets the disappointment of defeat.”
2015 World Cup
Iwabuchi bruised her right knee in a training camp-friendly game in May 2015, a month before the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She was again the youngest player in Japan’s 23-player World Cup squad, picked by head coach Norio Sasaki despite doubts about her fitness.
Iwabuchi performed as a second-half impact substitution, helping Japan win the quarter-final against Australia and the thrilling semi-final against England. Her first FIFA World Cup goal was an 87th-minute winner versus Australia in the quarterfinals at the Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Canada. Japan lost to the US.
2016 Olympics qualifier
Iwabuchi was Japan’s leading scorer in the 2016 AFC Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament, scoring against South Korea, Vietnam, and North Korea. Japan finished 3rd in the tournament, missing out on the 2016 Summer Olympics.
The “Golden Period” of Nadeshiko’s global dominance was slowly ending, and Iwabuchi’s national team career changed in the summer of 2016. Homare Sawa, her mentor and Japan’s women’s game legend, retired at the end of 2015. After Japan failed to qualify for Rio 2016, longtime national team coach Norio Sasaki resigned. Iwabuchi was expected to lead the “future” Japanese national team after Aya Miyama, the captain, retired after the Olympics.
2018 Asian Cup
Iwabuchi delivered under media pressure. Iwabuchi played 90 minutes in all five matches at the 2018 Asian Cup in Jordan from 6–20 April, the last stage of Asian qualification for the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup. She was voted tournament MVP after helping Japan defend their title with a 1–0 win over Australia. “Defending the Asian title was great,” she remarked. MVP is an honour for me. However, the awards belonged to the team, not me.”
Asiad 2018
In August 2018, Iwabuchi scored two goals as Japan won their second Asian Games gold medal. On 31 August 2018, Japan scored a 90th-minute goal to win 1–0 and deny China a fourth Asian Games women’s football title.
2019 World Cup
The 2019 FIFA Women’s third successive World Cup in France was Iwabuchi’s World Cup. In Japan’s 2–1 win over Scotland on 14 June 2019, she scored the tournament’s first goal, a 23rd-minute long-range shot from outside the box, and was awarded Player of the Match.
Iwabuchi assisted Yui Hasegawa’s equalizer in the Round of 16 against the Netherlands, a well-worked team goal nominated for Goal of the Tournament. Her team was eliminated after conceding a 90th-minute penalty for a handball in the box and losing 2–1 against the Dutch.
2019 EAFF Championship
In the absence of Saki Kumagai, Iwabuchi captained Japan at the 2019 EAFF E-1 Football Championship in South Korea in December 2019. On 15 December 2019, Iwabuchi scored a hat-trick against China in their 3–0 win. She earned the Golden Boot and guided Japan to their third regional victory with five goals.
2020 Olympics
Iwabuchi wore Homare Sawa’s number 10 shirt for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan in July 2021.
Iwabuchi scored a late equalizer to tie Japan and Canada in the group stage opener on July 21, 2021, at the Sapporo Dome in Hokkaido. Iwabuchi’s goal, a first-touch strike from the edge of the penalty area, broke the record held by Homare Sawa and Asako Takakura. Japan fell 3–1 against eventual silver medalist Sweden in the quarterfinals.
Post-Olympics, Iwabuchi was asked about the current status of the Japanese women’s national team. “This is a world where results matter most,” she said. It’s unfortunate, but we did our best. Everyone must be hungry and strive for a better world to win. We’ll lose otherwise. The national team must be strong and win for Japanese women’s football to grow.”
Iwabuchi has long encouraged Japanese players to play abroad. In an in-depth interview, she discussed how moving abroad at a young age helped her develop as a footballer, the differences between Japanese and European football, and her advice for younger players considering their future.
“When I moved to Germany, I was only thinking about my own experiences,” she said of playing abroad again. Instead, I went because I wanted to. I was young and living alone overseas for the first time.” “But this time [in England], I have no doubts,” she said. South Korean national team player Ji So-Yun plays for Chelsea. Due to her club’s success, some Korean players play in the English league. I want to lead the Japanese, and if I can show them that playing football in England is entertaining, our younger players will be motivated to try it, and Japanese players will be more respected. That’s a goal of mine.”
She’s Japan’s sixth-highest goalscorer, with 37 goals in 85 appearances as of February 2022.
Mana Iwabuchi Individual Awards
- Nadeshiko League Best Young Player: 2008
- Nadeshiko League Cup MVP: 2010
- Nadeshiko League Most Hardworking Player: 2011
- Nadeshiko League Best Eleven: 2011
- Asian Young Footballer of the Year: 2008, 2009
- FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Golden Ball: 2008
- AFC U-19 Women’s Championship MVP: 2009
- AFC U-19 Women’s Championship Golden Boot: 2009
- FIFA World Player of the Year Nominee: 2009
- EAFF Women’s Football Championship Golden Boot: 2010, 2019
- AFC Women’s Asian Cup MVP: 2018
- IFFHS AFC Woman Team of the Decade 2011–2020
Interesting Facts about Mana Iwabuchi
- Yet to update.
Mana Iwabuchi Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube
Visit her official Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Wikipedia, and YouTube accounts. For those who do not have an account on a certain platform, we added the official website link of the platform.
FAQs
She has a total wealth of $5 million.
Her height is 1.56 m.
She is Right-footed.
Conclusion
The article discusses Mana Iwabuchi’s age, salary in 2023, net worth in 2023, Playing Position, height, Current Teams, boyfriend, facts, house, Individual Awards, football career so far, wiki, transfer news, market value, stats, FIFA 22 potential, height, weight, family, pics, affairs, car, and much more. Share your thoughts in the comment section.
Source: Football Arroyo
