The Cheat Code

June 11, 2025 – it’s a rainy day in Tokyo. We’re in Machida, where Zelvia are ready to face the second round of the Emperor’s Cup against Kyoto Sangyo University. With the AFC Champions League Elite coming in September and two competitions to juggle (Zelvia already got knocked out from the Emperor’s Cup), head coach Go Kuroda rightfully decides for a bit of rotation. Little did he know that he’s out for a surprise.

Like it happened already many times, the university kids are there to surprise. Kyoto Sangyo University bag one in the net in the first half and Machida Zelvia will need the starters to come in to rescue the day and make it to the next round. Yuki Soma, Takuma Nishimura and Hokuto Shimoda are all put in to turn around the game, which happens – courtesy of a goal by Shota Fujio and a penalty from Soma himself.

Among the players subbed in, there’s also another talented winger. Those 34 minutes plus injury time against Kyoto Sangyo University are just one of the only two games he played that season – he featured also for 16 minutes in the extra time of the J.League Cup game against Yokohama FC, where he scored his penalty, but Zelvia lost against Yokohama FC. It’s been a strange couple of years for him, who joined Machida with very different expectations.

Byron Vásquez was the talk of the town back in 2023, when he was with Tokyo Verdy and his performances gained attention and a spot at Machida Zelvia. From there, once the club reached J1, the winger basically disappeared. He desperately needed a new start, and the 25 years-old might have found that in an improbable place: Tochigi, where Tochigi City FC offered him a loan, minutes, and a place to be back as we knew him.

Chilean Roots

As the name might suggest, Vásquez bears South American roots – specifically from Chile, where he was born, precisely in San Miguel, near Santiago. His family moved to Japan when Vásquez was still in elementary school, giving the young Byron the chance of learning Japanese and integrate into the new environment. And although he initially lived in Saitama – where his parents still are to this day – Vásquez found his way in football somewhere else.

He moved up North, joining the Aomori Yamada High School, one of the best high schools when it comes down to developing talents in football. Gaku Shibasaki and Kuryu Matsuki, for example, came from there. In fact, Vásquez quickly became a standout in that lineup, leading the team who won the national championship in 2018. From there, it was gonna be hard to be signed by a J.League team, since he would have filled the foreign quota – usually destined to players who are already pros.

Instead, Vásquez joined Iwaki FC – today a solid J2 team, but back then just a Tohoku Soccer League club with massive aspirations. He was convinced by the project and the facilities. He immediately contributed with five goals in 10 games, which led Iwaki FC to the Japanese Regional Championship Series, won by the club (Vásquez scored three goals in six games to help them), and which triggered the promotion to the Japan Football League.

Vásquez, though, decided to take some chances by accepting a loan in 2020, this time to Chile. He joined Universidad Católica for a year, but then COVID intervened, and football in Chile was basically suspended. It was a hard blow for his development: he came back to Japan in October, but at that point Iwaki FC had already replaced him. Between 2020 and 2021, he featured in just 14 games in the JFL, scoring once. It seemed he needed to go somewhere else to shine.

Tokyo, where everything happened

That somewhere was Tokyo. In fact, Tokyo Verdy decided to take a gamble on him and he joined the club in 2022. It was a decisive year for his career: he didn’t just find new time on the pitch at a higher level – 28 games in J2, with four goals and four assists –, but he also took a step forward in trying to acquire his Japanese citizenship. A logical move: “I know it’s gonna be hard, but I wanna give my best to make it happen”.

Meanwhile, his talking on the pitch became louder and louder. Tokyo Verdy found a gem and Hiroshi Jofuku – who took over the head coaching job in June 2022 – made Vásquez a central part of the team. But when his talent shone so bright, other clubs became interested – that’s where Machida Zelvia come into play. Vásquez switched alliances in Tokyo in mid-2023, signing for the club who then became champions that year (16 games, one goal and three assists – playing almost every match).

It seemed another smart move: Zelvia were going to J1, Go Kuroda was the head coach – the same who developed him at Aomori Yamada High School –, and he had now the chance of playing in the top-flight. Unfortunately, Machida had other plans: they had a massive strengthening campaign before their J1 debut, bringing in many solid players – such as Na Sang-ho, Kazuki Fujimoto and Keiya Sento, plus the addition of Yuki Soma in the Summer.

At that point, Vásquez became a rotation player, being a starter in the J.League Cup and featuring just 13 times in J1 (six from the start). The situation collapsed in 2025: with the arrival of Asahi Masuyama and all the players already present in his position, Vásquez basically never saw the pitch. 50 minutes in the whole season, no featuring in a league game – a clear sign it was time to move on somewhere else.

Unfair for J3

Ok, a new start… but where? Logic would have hinted at a J1 or J2 club, where the winger could have shown his talent. Instead, with some surprise, Vásquez moved on loan to Tochigi City FC, who were already in promotion territory in the Summer. We talked before the 2025 season of how much the club is ambitious, but that was a statement move for them. And it worked, right away – because probably head coach Naoki Imaya couldn’t believe at his luck.

Vásquez arrived mid-August, but by the beginning of September he was already in “MVP territory”. A goal and one assist in the crazy away win against Azul Claro Numazu, then another goal in the home win against Matsumoto Yamaga. From there, Vásquez has started every single match, putting together six goals and two assists in 13 games. Specifically, the winning goal against Vanraure Hachinohe at home felt like a massive case for Tochigi City to reach promotion.

And now that everything is sealed, the head thinks of the future. There’s a reason why our readers voted Vásquez as the winner in the “Best Wish” category of the 2025 Regista Awards for the J3 League. It seems a match made in heaven: Machida Zelvia won’t need him, Tochigi City FC can rely on a very solid player for their maiden J2 campaign, and Vásquez – who’s still just 25 years old, by the way! – can shine.

And that’s not just a pitch-related move. In the clips provided by the club, alongside another MVP candidate like Paulo Junichi Tanaka, you can see Vásquez finally laughing, cracking alongside Tanaka while picking up fruits at the local farm market or promoting some rice for one of the sponsors of the club. He found his mojo back, and probably that’s best news for any neutral fan, besides Tochigi City FC supporters.