Japanese actress Haruna Kawaguchi, 31, and Japan national team defender Ko Itakura, 29, announced on August 2 that they have married and are expecting their first child. The news was shared through Kawaguchi’s Instagram account, where the couple posted a handwritten, jointly signed statement rather than a typed press release, a touch that quickly became a talking point on its own.
In the statement, the pair said they hope to build “a home where we can support each other and always have smiles,” while also confirming that Kawaguchi is currently pregnant with the couple’s first child. Neither the wedding date nor the due date was disclosed in the announcement, and further details about the ceremony or ongoing pregnancy have not been made public.
The announcement moved quickly through Japanese entertainment news, landing at the top of Yahoo News Japan’s entertainment topics list within hours and drawing hundreds of comments, with related coverage from outlets including Sponichi Annex and Oricon. The dual reveal of marriage and pregnancy in a single post is a familiar format in Japanese celebrity announcements, often used to consolidate what would otherwise be two separate rounds of media attention into one.
Who is Haruna Kawaguchi?
Haruna Kawaguchi (川口春奈) is a Japanese actress who has built a long career across television dramas and films since debuting as a teenager. Over more than a decade in the industry, she has become one of the more recognizable leading women in Japanese TV drama, known for taking on a broad range of roles spanning romance, mystery and historical productions, including NHK’s prestige drama slots. She has also worked as a model and remains a familiar face in Japanese lifestyle and entertainment media.
Who is Ko Itakura?
Ko Itakura (板倉滉) is a professional footballer and center-back for the Japan national team. According to the report, he currently plays his club football for Ajax in the Netherlands, part of a career that has taken him through spells with Japanese and European clubs after coming through the youth ranks in Japan. As a regular fixture in Japan’s national team defense, he has become one of the more established names among the current generation of Japanese players competing abroad.
Neither Kawaguchi’s management nor Itakura’s club has issued a separate statement beyond the couple’s own announcement. Given the profile of both figures, in entertainment and in football respectively, further comment from their respective industries may follow in the coming days, though no additional details have been confirmed at this time.
Author’s Comment
Ah yes, the handwritten joint statement — Japan’s classiest way of saying "we’re having a baby" without anyone having to say anything as blunt as "we’re having a baby." I do love that every single one of these promises a home "full of smiles," as though the other option was on the table. Kawaguchi has been quietly carrying Japanese dramas since she was basically still in school uniform, and Itakura’s been doing excellent, unglamorous defensive work for the national team while everyone else was busy watching the strikers — so forgive me for finding two proper workhorses pairing up weirdly wholesome instead of just tabloid fuel. Congratulations to both. Ko, I hope you’re already practicing your diaper-changing footwork.
