Nagasaki Stadium City is less than a month away from opening. The first preseason game was held at the Happiness Arena, the home stadium of the B1 League Nagasaki Velca basketball team. 2,000 people lined up to wait for the opening, and the visitors were excited by the immersive facility.

Novelty and immersive

11:30 a.m. on September 14th.

Images in this article (12 images)

2,000 people lined up at the opening time of the first game at the “real arena” that was born in Nagasaki. The 5,227 people who stepped into the brand new arena were still excited by the novelty of the arena.

Despite it being a preseason game, the venue was filled with fans and boosters who were excited for Stadium City to open and the start of the season.

The selling point of the arena is that the seats and the court are close, so you can “experience the sense of being there.” A Nagasaki Velca booster sitting in the front row was excited and said, “It feels like the court and the seats have become much closer.”

Nagasaki Velca welcomed five new players this season. The most notable of them all is Hiroya Kawamada (26), who transferred from Shiga Lakes.

He is one of the most popular players in the B League, and is said to be a “real-life Sakuragi Hanamichi” because his playing style is similar to that of the main character in the manga “Slam Dunk.” Japan national team player Yudai Baba has also decided to play for Nagasaki this season. Under the team’s slogan this season, “TOGETHER, WE RISE,” the team will participate in the championship and is determined to become a team worthy of winning.

A game that gives a sense of accomplishment at the new home ground

The opponent in the preseason game will be the Ryukyu Golden Kings, the runner-up in the B League in the 2023-2024 season.

Velca dominated the early stages thanks to new player Mark Smith scoring 34 points on his own.

The arena was tilted to make it easier to see from the fourth floor, and the spectators were excited by every play. In the second half, the team was caught up and lost by one point, which was not their first victory at the arena (Nagasaki 78-79 Ryukyu), but the players felt a sense of accomplishment.

Hiroya Kawamada:I’m happy to be able to play in an arena like this, with most of the seats filled. Even when times are tough, the fans support us with defensive and offensive calls, so in that sense I think it’s a great arena to play basketball in.

Although Baba did not play in the game that day, he appeared in good spirits and excited the supporters.

A supporter who watched the game was also excited, saying, “I went up to the top floor, but it was easy to see even from the fourth floor.” A wheelchair user who sat in the wheelchair seats was also satisfied, saying, “It was easy to see, and there were no particular problems from the perspective of barrier-free access.” A person from Okinawa also said, “If the away team could get more tickets, it would also attract more tourists.”

Hideki Iwashita, president of Regional Creation Nagasaki, which operates the facility, expressed confidence, saying, “We spent several years building the stadium, and it was great to see it almost full of spectators.We intend to go even further at the next opening and throughout the season, so please look forward to it.”

Velca is feeling confident about their new strength and new home base. They are looking forward to bringing even more excitement to the team when they host the Shibuya Sunrockers on October 4th and 5th, the opening day of the season.

10 minutes walk from Nagasaki Station

Since the preseason games took place before Stadium City opened, the parking lots could not be used.

Nagasaki Electric Tramway, which runs trams in Nagasaki City, operated about seven special routes before and after the arena opened and after the game. Many fans and boosters who used Nagasaki Station walked to the facility, taking about 10 minutes. Boosters who walked expressed their desire for improvements, saying, “I think it would be nice if there were some exciting things to do, like player flags along the way, to make people feel like they’re going to the arena,” and “I want a circular bus.”

Nagasaki Stadium City will host a free live concert by Masaharu Fukuyama on October 13th as its opening event, and will open on the 14th.

(Nagasaki Television)