Ferhat Akbas has taken over as the head coach of the Japan women’s national volleyball team.
He has now become the first foreign coach in the team’s history, and his contract reportedly extends until the end of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Akbas has led Eczacibasi Dynavit since 2021 and his appointment as Japan’s head coach marks a new phase in his career. Reports from Japanese media confirmed that he was the only candidate for the role, and negotiations had been underway for weeks.
He previously worked in Japan as an assistant coach for the national team during the 2017-2018 season. His familiarity with Japanese volleyball played a key role in his selection.
Japan’s women’s volleyball team has a strong history in international tournaments. The team aims to develop under Akbas’s leadership. His previous coaching experience in Japan during the 2017-2018 season gives him insight into the team’s structure and playing style.
At Eczacibasi, he has coached a high-performing team and built a strong reputation. Japan will be looking to leverage his experience for upcoming competitions.
Born in 1986, Akbas started coaching in 2004 as a volleyball statistician. He gained experience with Galatasaray and Turkish Telekom Ankara before moving into international coaching.
In 2011, he became an assistant coach for Guangdong Evergrande in China. Later, he joined VakifBank as an assistant coach and went on to lead CSM Bucharest in Romania and Chemik Police in Poland.
At the national level, he coached Türkiye’s women’s national volleyball team from 2015 to 2016 and later led Croatia’s national team from 2021 to 2023.
Akbas was born in 1986. He started his coaching career in 2004 as a volleyball statistician for Galatasaray and Turkish Telekom Ankara. Over the years, he gained experience working with top clubs and national teams across multiple countries.
His international coaching journey began in 2011 when he joined Guangdong Evergrande in China as an assistant coach. From 2012 to 2015, he worked with VakifBank. In 2015, he became head coach of Türkiye’s women’s national volleyball team, a position he held until 2016.
In 2017, Akbas joined Japan’s national team as an assistant coach. He later took on head coaching roles at CSM Bucharest in Romania (2017-2019) and Chemik Police in Poland (2019-2021). From 2021 to 2023, he led Croatia’s national team before continuing his club coaching career with Eczacibasi Dynavit.
Akbas’s extensive coaching experience in different countries and leagues has made him a well-known figure in volleyball. His appointment as Japan’s head coach has now marked another significant milestone in his career.
