On January 12, 2024, Tohoku University Graduate School of Economics and Management/Faculty of Economics concluded a Comprehensive Collaborative Agreement with Vegalta Sendai.

This is the first time in Japan for a university to conclude an agreement with a J-League club for the purpose of promoting exchange with overseas. Specifically, the agreement will contain three following aims:

(1) to collaborate with the local community and society, to provide educational opportunities for students, and to conduct joint research, in the field of sports culture.

(2) to develop a short-term studying program for students of the Faculty of Economics/Graduate School of Economics and Management in Thailand, to conduct local social contribution activities, and to conduct the market research activities for supporting the spreading of Tohoku-based companies products in Thailand, with the cooperation of Vegalta Sendai.

(3) to provide consulting services for Begarda Sendai’s regional and social contribution projects, with the participation of students and researchers.

As a first initiative, 30 students from the Faculty of Economics/Graduate School of Economics and Management will stay in Thailand for 10 days in coming March to research the current status of the sports business with the aide of FC Bangkok, which has a cooperative relationship with Vegalta Sendai, and to support companies in Miyagi prefecture (including Vegalta Sendai’s sponsor companies) that aim to expand their business in Thailand. The project will also conduct social contribution activities to support needy children in cooperation with Vegalta Sendai. In addition, by conducting fieldwork together with students from Thai-Nichi Institute of Technology, an inter-departmental partner university, and Chulalongkorn University, an inter-university partner university, the program aims to provide students with a global perspective. We thus plan to develop a unique problem-solving program that focuses on fieldwork and specializes in economics and business administration, which is rare for a short-term study abroad program.