The Furuhashi Effect

He’s not kicked a ball for us yet, but if he can replicate his form for Vissel Kobe at Celtic this season, Celtic have a gem on their hands.

Away from the pitch, perhaps even more so.

The club are aware the Japanese market can be big for Celtic.

We have seen that in opening of a Japanese language official Celtic social media feed this week. Celtic had a Japanese site made specifically for Japanese fans following Shunsuke Nakamura when he played for the club back under Gordon Strachan.

#セルティックFC の日本語Twitterアカウントにようこそ?☘
古橋 亨梧選手と @CelticFC の情報を見逃すな☘??#ようこそキョウゴ #CelticFC #COYBIG #OneClubSince1888 #WelcomeKyogo@visselkobe @J_League pic.twitter.com/501QvIAt1c

— Celtic FC Japan Official (@CelticFCJPN) July 31, 2021

We spoke to a couple of journalists in Japan about the potential marketing opportunities for Celtic with a high profile Japanese player coming to the club. We weren’t given major signs of encouragement simply because there are many Japanese players within the European football scene nowadays – meaning it’s less of a novelty for Japanese football fans.

However, we have to admit over the last week or so, our own metrics are showing significant signs there’s a following building.

Our uptake from readers in Japan is growing significantly and that’s before Furuhashi has even got going. If the attacker is a success at the club, there’s major opportunities on the horizon for Celtic and it’s a clever move to put things in place now.