Ao Tanaka

Kawasaki Frontale

Raised for a decade in the youth ranks of hometown club Kawasaki Frontale, Tanaka made his J1 League debut in September 2018 against Consadole Sapporo, scoring his first professional goal just six minutes after he was subbed on. As injuries struck the midfield options of Kawasaki Frontale during the 2019 season, he earned more starts with his club, participating in 24 J1 League matches throughout the season, accumulating 31 matches in total during the year, across five different competitions. As his performances continuously caught the eyes of many, and his manager's approval, he was then awarded the 2019 J.League Rookie of the Year Award in his first full professional season. With this feat, he is the only Kawasaki Frontale player ever to win this award.

Fortuna Düsseldorf

On 26 June 2021, after two and a half professional seasons with Kawasaki Frontale, he joined German 2. Bundesliga side Fortuna Düsseldorf on a year-long loan with an option to buy. On 28 April 2022, Fortuna Düsseldorf, satisfied with his club and national team performances, exercised the buy-out option in his club contract to acquire him, paying his release clause to get him officially signed for the club on 28 April 2022. He signed a three-year contract with the expiration date being 30 June 2025, encouraged by a sequence of game time with their first-team in the 2021–22 2. Bundesliga.

Leeds United

On 30 August 2024, Tanaka signed for EFL Championship club…

Tanaka made his debut for the Japan national football team on 14 December 2019, in a 5–0 win against Hong Kong in the 2019 EAFF E-1 Football Championship. In the summer of 2021, he was named in the 22-man squad for the 2020 Olympic Games alongside two Kawasaki Frontale ex-teammates, Kaoru Mitoma, and Reo Hatate. He started every match for Japan during the tournament. Throughout the 2020 season, Tanaka established for a good reputation among the Kawasaki Frontale players, playing a total of more than 2500 minutes across all competitions, being a starter in most of the matches he played. His performances with the Kawasaki Frontale team also helped him earn caps with the Japan under-23 team, including a two-goal performance that helped the Japan under-23s earn a 3–2 win over the Brazil under-23 team in a friendly match at 14 October 2019. He played his first match in the AFC qualification tournament for the 2022 FIFA World Cup on 12 October 2021, where he scored his first international goal in a 2–1 home win against Australia. On 1 November 2022, Tanaka was included in Japan's 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. On 1 December, he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 victory over Spain, which qualified his national team to the knockout stage as top of their group. That goal sparked much dispute over its validity since the ball seemed to be out-of-play when Kaoru Mitoma assisted Tanaka. The dispute was only settled after the match when the Associated Press released a crucial…

Ao Tanaka was born in the Miyamae-ku ward of Kawasaki on 10 September 1998. His parents originally wanted to give him a different name, but the sky was so blue on the day of his birth that they named him Ao, the Japanese word for "blue". He started playing football in kindergarten, and in addition to football, he was involved in other athletic pursuits such as gymnastics. However, football was the one he enjoyed the most, and he started kicking the ball against the wall alone in the park for practise. Tanaka entered Saginuma Elementary School and joined its football club, Saginuma SC, which was well known in the area. The team's coach at the time later recalled Tanaka's trial session; Tanaka was kicking the ball happily at first, but was crying in the corner of the schoolyard halfway through. When the coach asked him why he was crying, he replied, "I'm bored with this practice. I want to practice harder." The coach was surprised to see such ambition in such a young boy.

Since childhood, Tanaka has been a close friend of fellow footballer and occasional teammate of Kaoru Mitoma, with whom he attended school. As of December 2022, Tanaka is in a relationship with singer Airi Suzuki. In December 2022, Tanaka's outspoken love for Nambu Tekki ironware became a trending topic on social media after he claimed that using a Nambu Tekki kettle had helped him with his anemia.