Japan Professional Soccer Team Adopts EnglishCentral for Learning English

Albirex Niigata Singapore Players Learn English Online with EnglishCentral Video Lessons and 1-on-1 Lessons with Tutors

Tokyo, Japan – January 31, 2017 – EnglishCentral, the leading provider of online English conversation solutions, announced its 2017 sponsorship of the Japanese soccer team,  Albirex Niigata Singapore, the only Japanese professional soccer team based outside of Japan.  As part of the sponsorship, EnglishCentral will provide a curriculum of video-based self study materials as well as live 1:1 tutoring online to all members of the team.

The EnglishCentral Online Learning Solution will be available not only to the professional players on the team, but also to the next generation of soccer players coming up through the team’s soccer school.  In addition, EnglishCentral and Albirex Niigata Singapore are planning various campaigns to promote cross-cultural communication during matches at Jurong East Stadium and Jalan Besar Stadium in Singapore, at  team events  and on the team’s  website.  These activities fit into the broader mission of the club to develop the next generation Japanese soccer player to face the challenges of the world by building a strong character, including global communication skills.

Albirex Niigata Singapore is the first team in 20 years’ history of SLeague to achieve in 2016 the quadruple crown, by capturing four titles:  “Community Shield”, “League Cup”, “League Regular Championship”, and “Singapore Cup”.   As the Albirex Niigata Singapore team seeks to repeat its championship season in 2017, the EnglishCentral logo will be prominently displayed on the team’s uniform.

Shuto Inaba,  the team’s midfielder, who has been using the innovative online learning solution since 2016, commented: “I couldn’t speak English at all before joining the team. Learning English through this platform, I gradually came to understand what opposing team members say during the game and finally am able to communicate with referees smoothly. We will defend our championship, learning English with EnglishCentral, as part of our training.”

Profile Shuto Inaba □ Position: Midfield □ Uniform Number: 6 □ Date of Birth: Jun 29, 1992 □ Hight/Weight: 172cm / 66kg □ Place of Birth: Osaka □ History: Hijiri SC → Osaka Central → Risho Shonan HS. → Fukuoka Univ.

This is the 4th year EnglishCentral (formerly know as Langrich) will be sponsoring the Albirex team in the Singapore SLeague. EnglishCentral is “happy to be part of helping the next generation of soccer players become comfortable using English, making them ready for the challenges of the soccer world and beyond”, said Hirofumi Matsumura, General Manager of Japan.

About EnglishCentral

EnglishCentral is the most widely adopted online English language conversation platform in the world, changing the way students and professionals across the globe learn to speak English. Adopted by over 400 universities, schools and corporations in over 100 countries, the company delivers interactive, video-based language learning experiences for both self-study and one-on-one tutoring, providing one of the most widely adopted and complete platforms for practicing and mastering English conversation online. Its extensive library of videos lessons, proprietary IntelliSpeech℠ speech assessment technology, and pre-built course modules guarantees results for English as a Second Language (ESL) learners. EnglishCentral partnerships include the world’s largest private and online English language schools including Open English (Latin America), UOL(Brazil), NTT Learning (Japan), and Siwon (Korea).

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■About Albirex Niigata Singapore

Albirex Niigata Singapore organized with only young Japanese players, joined the SLeague, the professional soccer league in Singapore, in 2004, and won the championship in 2016 season for the first time since its establishment. The team also aims to contribute to developing Singapore soccer culture as well as to promote international experience for its players. As a comprehensive community sports club, Albirex Niigata Singapore is expanding its sports business beyond soccer and is developing into Malaysia, Myanmar, and Spain.

http://www.albirex.com.sg/en/