Japanese football club
Football club
Reilac Shiga FC (レイラック滋賀FC, Reirakku Shiga Efu Shī), formerly MIO Biwako Shiga (MIOびわこ滋賀, Mīo Biwako Shiga), with "Biwako" being a reference to Lake Biwa, is a Japanese football club based in Kusatsu, Shiga Prefecture, although they also play matches in Ōtsu and Konan. They currently play in Japan Football League, Japanese fourth tier of football league.
History
The club was formed in 2005 from the former Sagawa Express SC Kyoto. They were first called FC Mi-O Biwako Kusatsu. In 2007, upon promotion to the JFL, they renamed themselves simply MIO Biwako Kusatsu until 2011.
Regional League and Promotion to JFL (–2007)
In 2007, they won third place in the regional playoffs and were promoted to the JFL for the 2008 season. They were promoted to Japan Football League for the first time at the end of 2007.
JFL (2008–)
The club played their first season in 2008 where they finished 14th.
In 2012, they renamed themselves MIO Biwako Shiga, in order to extend their fanbase to the entire extent of Shiga Prefecture, particularly the area around southern Lake Biwa, in where they mostly have played matches.
In 2022, MIO Biwako Shiga finished in the last place out of the 16 participating teams in the season. The club, however, was not relegated back to the Kansai League, as JFL's top 2 teams were promoted to the J3. Under the league system, MIO Biwako would only be relegated as the last-placed team if no team had earned promotion to the J3 during the season, which was not the case.
On 27 January 2023, MIO Biwako Shiga announced a name change, becoming Reilac Shiga FC from 2023. On 1 February 2023, the new identity was fully introduced with the new crest release.
On 28 November 2023, At the J League Board of Directors meeting held on this day, Reilac Shiga was decided to issue J3 club licenses for the 2024 season.[1][2]
They will play their 16th consecutive season of JFL football in 2023.
Current squad
As of 9 January 2024.[3]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
