The original event was spurred by Nakata’s desire to help others discover a Japanese sake that fit their own specific tastes. Participants were provided with extensive opportunities to learn about and enjoy high-quality Japanese sake, with each uniquely themed day featuring 10 different breweries for a total of 100 breweries over a 10-day period.

Newly expanded in scale, the event was held for a second time in 2017 with venues in both Roppongi and Hakata. In addition to carefully selected Japanese sake, the event featured several of Japan’s finest restaurants, including renowned Michelin-starred restaurants, which offered special event-only menus based on a theme of “fermentation” and designed to pair well with Japanese sake. A special performance by techno music superstar Richie Hawtin also helped further liven up the Roppongi venue.

After retiring from his professional soccer career in 2006, Nakata visited over 100 cities around the globe to observe what was happening in the world with his own eyes and contemplate what he could do to make a difference. In his time abroad, he began to feel like he knew almost nothing about Japan, and so he set off on a journey across the country in 2009. Over a period of six and a half years he traveled from the country’s southernmost inhabited island, Hateruma, in Okinawa to the northernmost point of Hokkaido, Cape Soya, visiting all 47 prefectures along the way and learning about the lifestyles, industries, and traditional cultures of each area from the people he met there. Inspired by his experiences on this journey, Nakata has since launched multiple ongoing projects that aim to share the beauty of Japanese culture and craftsmanship with the world.

After beginning his journey across Japan in the spring of 2009, Nakata found himself drawn to the skilled craftsmanship and dignified professionalism of the traditional artisans he encountered along the way. At the same time, he developed an awareness of the issues faced by the traditional arts, including a lack of artisans to carry them on. In response to these issues, he launched the Revalue Nippon Project to create opportunities for more people to experience the allure of Japanese traditional arts, culture, and craftsmanship, while also working to both preserve and nurture the further growth of those arts.

Each year a single theme is selected from among the pottery, woodwork, and glasswork genres. Members of an advisory board comprised of leading experts from a variety of fields then choose artists and designers active in the chosen genre to form a collaborative team which is given creative freedom to produce new works. The Take Action Foundation contributes by engaging in public relations activities and has held exhibitions aiming to increase awareness of the beauty of traditional arts and crafts by leveraging this creation of new works.

Mino, one of the leading producers of pottery in Japan, is hosting the “International Ceramics Festival, Mino” with a view to becoming one of the greatest ceramic regions in the world. Through the 2017 theme of “Ceramic Valley, “many works from various countries and areas around the world are collected in one hall in the “International Ceramics competition,” and one can fully enjoy and get a feel of the history and appeal of Mino ceramics ware, the local culture and various local initiatives with strong ties to the area.

SAKE COMPETITION is the only Japanese sake competition in the world for consumers as it is limited to commercially available sake.

Seeing that it was a problem that consumers' purchasing criteria was based on brand name and recognition, the initial idea was “to set new standards so that consumers can have more opportunities to sample delicious sake, regardless of brand.”

Nakata’s efforts to convey the appeal of Japanese sake both domestically and overseas were appreciated and since 2014 he has been participating as an organizing committee member. In addition to serving as a presenter of the awards ceremony, Nakata's contribution includes the suggestion of a new “Label design category” which was introduced in 2017. While the Japanese sake industry has received a boost of attention in recent years from the Intangible Cultural Heritage registration of Japanese traditional cuisine and the sake boom, the competition is also increasingly gaining recognition as the largest Japanese sake competition in terms of entries.

As part of the “HIDETOSHI NAKATA SWING TIMELINE” project, following his appointment as brand ambassador, Nakata can be seen earnestly practicing to improve his golf swings in Hawaii and Miyako Island. You can view the progress of the project on the Descente Golf website, (http://descentegolf.jp/category/TIMELINE_STORY/) and also on social media.

On the BMW NEW 5 Series official website “5REASONS FOR SUCCESS,” Nakata got a real feel of the 5 Series and was interviewed about the appeal and appearance of the car as well as his views on how to succeed in business. As a brand friend, Nakata is disseminating the appeal of the BMW NEW 5 Series, as can be seen in his talk session with BMW`s JAPAN President Peter Kronschnabl at the NEW 5 Series launch event, and his talk on the fun of driving at the BMW Festival, etc.