Takeo Wakabayashi

Takeo Wakabayashi
若林竹雄
Personal information
Full name	Takeo Wakabayashi
Date of birth	29 August 1907
Place of birth	Hyogo, Empire of Japan
Date of death	7 August 1937 (aged 29)
Place of death	Hyogo, Empire of Japan
Position(s)	Forward
Youth career
	Kobe Daiichi High School
	Tokyo Imperial University
Senior career*
Years	Team
	Kobe Icchu Club
International career
1930	Japan
Medal record
Kobe Icchu Club
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Takeo Wakabayashi (若林竹雄, Wakabayashi Takeo, 29 August 1907 – 7 August 1937) was a Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.

Club career

Wakabayashi was born in Hyogo Prefecture on 29 August 1907. He played for his local club Kobe Icchu Club was consisted of his alma mater high school players and graduates. At the club, he won 1927 Emperor's Cup with Tadao Takayama and so on.

In May 1930, when Wakabayashi was a Tokyo Imperial University student, he was selected Japan national team for 1930 Far Eastern Championship Games in Tokyo and Japan also won the championship. At this competition, on 25 May, he debuted and scored 4 goals against Philippines. He was the first player in Japan national team to score a hat-trick in debut. The same feat would be achieved 80 years later by Sota Hirayama. On 29 May, he also played against Republic of China. He played 2 games and scored 4 goals for Japan in 1930.^[1]

On 7 August 1937, Wakabayashi died of lung disease in Hyogo Prefecture at the age of 29.^[2]

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