Fellow SENATUS member Hidetoshi Nakata is one of Asia’s most recognisable faces but few truly know the man behind the facade.
By Jeremy Gopalan

He is a sporting superstar who took Japanese football to the world stage. He is a national idol whose website once drew 15 million hits in a single day.

He is a fashion icon noted for his sharp dress sense and even sharper hair cuts. He is a marketing dream and the face of many advertising campaigns for global giants such as Canon and Toyota.

Yet at the peak of his power and with the world at his feet, he decided to pull the plug.

In 2006 at the age of 29, Nakata shocked his nation, and the world, by announcing his retirement from football.

The 34 year old’s passion for football was roused at the age of seven, when he began reading a manga comic about the sport and began his professional football career in 1995 as an earnest talent with J League side Bellmare Hiratsuka (now Shonan Bellmare), and quickly went on to represent Japan in three World Cup tournaments and in two Olympic games.

By the ripe retirement age of 29, the agile midfielder had racked up over ten years of field experience as a global soccer phenomenon and made significant contributions to the evolution of Japanese football throughout his career; he notably played for the Japanese National Team in three FIFA World Cups. Then, in 1998 immediately after the 1998 France World Cup, he caught the world's attention with a surprising transfer to Italy where he eventually played for five Italian Football League teams.

Nakata became the first Japanese ever to play for a Serie A team that won the Italian championship.

Since retiring from football in 2006 at which time he was worth an estimated US$28 million, Nakata has swapped the football field for the departure lounge, spending the last five years travelling the world and pursuing charitable work to support craft industries and agriculture in Japan. In past interviews, Nakata has revealed that these journeys benefit his personal self-discovery and growth; they also serve as his initial steps in becoming a goodwill ambassador for international aid agencies. Despite his retirement, the Yamanashi Prefecture native remains one of Japan’s most iconic figures and continues to mould a lucrative future by marketing his image.

Often regarded as the Asian David Beckham for his dedication to fashion (he reportedly owns several hundred pairs of shades) and his status as a role model for many Asian football exports to Europe, Nakata has been the editor-at-large at Monocle since the hip international magazine’s inception, at the invitation of his friend Tyler Brûlé, who serves as the magazine’s editor-in-chief and founder. In a television interview for CNN five years ago, Brûlé described Nakata's style as ‘tastefully flash’ : “He rides the border of just going over the top at times, but manages to rein it back with aplomb,” he said. And Brûlé is not alone in appreciating Nakata’s sense of style.

Countless fashion publications around the world have fought to get ahead of each other in using his image on their pages. Last year, American fashion label Calvin Klein introduced its X underwear line and ran a high-octane promotional campaign featuring Nakata alongside some of the hottest male celebrities, such as actor Kellan Lutz and Spanish professional tennis player Fernando Verdasco. 

Plastered over billboards around the world, Nakata held his own against his campaign counterparts and reminded his fans of what they already knew too well – that he is an emblem of not just the sporting world, but of sex appeal and style too. Calvin Klein menswear creative director Italo Zucchelli nailed it when he described Nakata: "He plays with fashion like all of them do now, but in a cooler, more sophisticated way than many others."

Clearly, while this enigmatic globetrotter has hung up his boots and left the field, he remains a steadfast fixture in the international arena. In Singapore recently for a gala store opening at Marina Bay Sands, Designaré HOMME catches up with the dynamic icon.

"So many people around the world tried to do something to help Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami disasters. Nationality and religion didn’t matter and the world was one entity."

What represents power to you, both in the context of family and in the context of work? Trust.

What do you think is the reason for the powerful appeal of sport, or football in particular, all around the world? I think that sports exceeds nationalities, language, religion and economics, which is why so many people love it and get so excited about it.

What have you been up to since retiring from professional football? I’ve been travelling around the world. The fact is I’ve been playing football all my life and it seemed like a good chance for me to visit different countries and see what’s going on with my own eyes. That’s why you won’t have seen me in one place for very long.

Why is travelling so important for you? Travelling is not just an interest but an essential part of my life. Through travel, I’m actually shaping and creating my life.

Which countries have you been to? Many; there was one year where I went to 40 countries. I’d been living in Europe for eight years (while playing football professionally) and I visited a lot of countries there. But when I retired I said to myself, "You’re Japanese and you’re Asian too. You've got to get to know Asia."And so, I ended up travelling the whole continent.

What has been one of your most memorable journeys? Not just one journey can be distinguished but all of my travels have been incredible experiences.

Are there any cities or countries, both in Asia and Europe, that you have not been to yet but would love to visit? One of my goals is to visit every country in the world.  I still have only visited about 100 countries and so there are so many to still visit.  In Asia, I would like to travel more within China and also I would like to also travel more in South America.

What has been a powerful or strong source of motivation in your life Curiosity.

It has been over five years since you hung up your boots. Do you miss playing? Of course. I love football. But it’s not like I don’t play anymore. Sometimes when I go to other countries I like to play with different people. When I was in Bhutan I had a kickabout with some monks there. And when I visited the slums in the Philippines I came across people chasing after a ball in the street and I joined them. Football has become such a big game that it’s played all over the planet, so you never have any trouble finding a game when you fancy one.

Since you retired from football, how has life changed most significantly for you? When I was playing football, my daily life revolved around football.  Every day I would be at home or at training and in hotels or the stadium. But now my life is full of new experiences and travels. My daily life’s schedule is what has changed the most.

What do you feel has been one of the most powerful lessons that you have learned in life? To ‘accept’. In life, things do not always go the way you would like and in that situation it is important not to get angry or to give off negative emotions but to always try to accept the situation and try to always make the effort to turn it into a positive situation.

Growing up, apart from football, what were some of your other passions Electronic games and manga.

After Japan’s earthquake disaster earlier this year, you were quick in helping to organise fund-raising charity events. What is been the one thing that touched you most through it all? So many people around the world tried to do something to help Japan in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami disasters. Nationality and religion didn’t matter and the world was one entity. I would like to see the world come together more often and not just as a reaction to a disaster and I hope that I can help to make such opportunities a reality. With this, the world would be an even better place.

As an international traveller and a fashion icon, which cities do you find most stylish and inspiring? Everyone has a different style so every city inspires me. But I think that visiting a city that is new to me inspires me more because I am more attentive to what is around me.

Do you think with fashion being so global, that it is becoming homogeneous Someone shopping in Tokyo could easily buy the same jacket as someone in Oslo. Because fashion is now so global, we have more choices and I think that it is a good thing. But the important thing is that everyone chooses and creates their own style. If one can say that there is a loss of individuality, it might be because there are some people who lack opinion and their own sense of style – but this is not the majority.

Out of the five different senses (sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste), which do you find most powerful or most important to you? I think that the sense of smell is one of the most powerful senses because it immediately and directly affects and moves your brain. But the most important thing, actually, is the power of ‘feeling’ in all aspects of the word. Power comes with using all of your five senses and instinct.

Is your football career over? Are you thinking about returning as a coach or an agent one day? I honestly don’t think I’d make a very good coach or agent. I always enjoyed playing football but not coaching it. I can’t rule it out completely, but maybe I’ll want to start playing again one day. I don’t know.