, formerly known as BTOP Thank Kuriyama, are a Japanese football club based in Kuriyama, Sorachi, Hokkaido. They play in the Hokkaido Soccer League. Despite playing in a league that holds an amateur status, the club's players and employees are currently signed on professional contracts.
History The club was established in 1998 under the name Sapporo Thank FC. As a phoenix club, it emerged from the dissolution of another Hokkaido team, Anfini Sapporo. Originally based in Sapporo, the club relocated to Kuriyama, a town in Hokkaido, in 2004. Following the move, the club rebranded as Thank FC Kuriyama. They competed in the Hokkaido Soccer League until 2006 but were relegated after finishing in seventh place in the league.
From 2007 to 2021, they played at the Hokkaido Block Leagues, which can be considered Japan's 7th-tier league. At the start of the 2021 year, the club once again rebranded, now changing into BTOP Thank Kuriyama. Former J.League player Tetsuya Yano became the club's president, and the players were all signed into professional contracts.
In 2022, they debuted in the 5th-tier league, Hokkaido Soccer League. After signing experienced players to help the team, BTOP Thank Kuriyama immediately won the Hokkaido Soccer League title after being promoted, after a last effort was made on 25 September, beating Sapporo FC by 8–0. With this win, their got their first promotion opportunity to the Japan Football League, Japan's 4th tier, via the 2022 Regional Champions League. They had qualified for the tournament by winning the Hokkaido League and by finishing as 2022 Shakaijin Cup runners-up, where they lost to Briobecca Urayasu by 5–3 after a penalty shoot-out, after a 0–0 tie in the regulation time. Despite their efforts, they were eliminated in the group stage of the competition, losing all three matches by 2–1.
The club aspires to be the second team from Hokkaido to ever join the J.League in any of its current divisions, after Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo on 1998. The path to join the J1 League is much more difficult from before, as newly founded teams have to climb from five or more leagues, to finally earn promotion for the J1 League. BTOP Thank Kuriyama, however, in high hopes, highlights their ambition to join the Japanese maximum level of professional football in back-to-back promotions by 2027.
On 13 March 2023, the club made an official announcement regarding a new name change, becoming BTOP Hokkaido. The club explained that the motivation for this change was "...to convey the charm of Hokkaido, which is full of dreams and vitality, through sports. (BTOP) will strive to grow into a team that is loved by everyone by involving the whole of Hokkaido by contributing to a wider range of areas through the team's activities."
Current squad
Coaching staff Position NameManager Masayuki MiuraStaff Masada HyodoTrainer Kohei SuzukiGeneral Manager Kotaro Nishino
Club record ChampionsRunners-upThird placePromotedRelegated Season League Position P W D L F A GD Pts Emperor's Cup Shakaijin Cup RCLSanku FC Kuriyama2004–2021Hokkaido Block Leagues–BTOP Sanku Kuriyama2022Hokkaido Soccer League1st14 11 3 0 60 3 5736 Did not qualify Runners-upGroup stageBTOP Hokkaido2023Hokkaido Soccer League1st 14 13 0 1 100 13 87 39 2nd round Hokkaido Soccer LeagueRound of 32 Group stage20242nd 14 9 3 2 78 16 62 30 Did not qualify Round of 32 Did not qualify20251st 14 12 0 2 55 14 41 36 1st round TBD Group stage2026TBD 14 0 TBD TBD Key
Shakaijin Cup record Season Stage Score Opponent Team scorer2022 Round of 321–1 Mitsubishi Mizushima Edamoto Round of 163–0 Cobaltore Onagawa Kammera, Hiraokaand Edamoto Quarter-finals1–1 Arterivo Wakayama Motozuka Semi-finals2–2 Nobeoka Agata Kammera and Kisa Final0–0 Briobecca Urayasu–2023 Round of 322–3 FC Basara Hyogo Unno2024 Round of 320–3 Tokyo United
Regional Champions League record Season Stage Score Opponent Team scorer2022 Group stage1–2Nobeoka AgataKammera1–2FC KariyaKisa1–2Tochigi CityKammera2023 Group stage2–3Joyful Honda TsukubaMotozuka and Abe1–2Fukui UnitedMun Hyong-jong4–1Arterivo WakayamaYoshiyuki, Abe, Fujiyoshi and Sawada2025 Group stage0–1J-Lease FC0–4FC Tokushima0–5VONDS Ichihara
Honours +BTOP Hokkaido honoursHonour No. YearsHokkaido Division 222001North Hokkaido Block League22008, 2009Central Hokkaido Block League32015, 2016, 2018Central/North Hokkaido Block League12021Hokkaido Soccer League32022, 2023, 2025
References
External links Official Website