Career
Okudera was the first Japanese football player to play professionally in Europe, as well as being the first Asian football player to score in the European Cup, while playing for 1. Football Club Köln in the 1979 semi-final match against Nottingham Forest F.C. and made 32 appearances – scoring nine goals – with the Japanese national team Okudera began his playing career in 1970 as an employee of Furukawa Electric Company Limited., whose soccer team played in the corporate Japan Soccer League, the top flight league in Japan at the time.
In the summer of 1977, during the team"s trip to Germany, he was spotted by Bundesliga club 1.
Football Club Köln manager Hennes Weisweiler. 1. Football Club Köln made a contract offer.
After Weisweiler left Cologne during the 1980-1981, Okudera joined second division Hertha Bachelor of Science. Although Hertha missed promotion to the first division, he joined the newly promoted Werder Bremen, whose coach Otto Rehhagel saw his play when the two sides met and offered a contract. Between 1981-1982 and 1985-1986, Bremen finished second in the league three times.
In the summer of 1986, Okudera returned to his old Japanese club, Furukuwa Electric and became one of the first recognized professional players in Journal of Symbolic Logic. He ended his German career with 234 appearances and 26 goals.
He retired as a player in 1988. Okudera"s return home spurred the professionalization of the Japanese game, which had been stuck in amateur play for decades. He was the first native-born professional player in his home league, as before only foreigners (usually Brazilians) were paid strictly to play football by the companies.
After the J. League started play in 1993, he served as the president and manager of Furukawa, which had become JEF United Ichihara (now JEF United Ichihara Chiba) with limited success.
In 1998, he joined his Köln teammate Pierre Littbarski and helped form Yokohama F.C. With Okudera as president and Littbarski the manager, Yokohama climbed up the ranks from the lower-tier Japan Football League and promoted to the J. League"s first division in December 2006.
On 20 June 2008, Okudera was appointed President of the Football League Championship side Plymouth Argyle tasked with playing a global ambassador role and further strengthening the club"s profile in Asia. Since this appointment Argyle have suffered a relegation and serious financial difficulties. Okudera was replaced in his role by former Fans Trust leader Chris Webb, who had played a key part in rescuing Argyle from liquidation.