Yuya Fukuda

Yuya Fukuda came through Higashi Fukuoka High School, where in 2015 he won the National High School Soccer Tournament and the National High School Sports Festival, also representing the Fukuoka Prefecture selection at the National Sports Festival. Gamba Osaka signed him straight from school in 2018, and his J1 League debut came that February against Nagoya Grampus, while a loan spell with Gamba Osaka U-23 kept him playing regularly in J3, where he scored his first league goal in March 2018 against Blaublitz Akita.

The loan arrangement ran until 2020, after which Fukuda settled into the Gamba Osaka first team. He reached 100 league appearances for the club, a landmark marked with commemorative merchandise, and featured in the Emperor's Cup, where he found the net in 2020, as well as in the J.League Cup. In 2021 he took part in Gamba's AFC Champions League group-stage campaign. His form also earned him a call-up to the Japan U-22 side for the Kirin Challenge Cup in December 2019, though he has not featured for the senior national team.

After seven years at Gamba Osaka, Fukuda moved permanently to Tokyo Verdy in December 2024 ahead of the new season, with neither club disclosing the fee. During the 2026 campaign he was named J.League Player of the Match. Away from the pitch, he announced his marriage to model Hikari Aiko in July 2026.