When the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake hit the Kobe region in 1995, the city of Kobe suffered its worst disaster ever. One of the programs Kobe proposed after the earthquake was a project to develop the city around two themes, sports and well being. The Kobe Athlete Town Club was formed in 1998 as a non-profit organization to promote sports and fitness among the citizenry. The Club is composed of 100 regular members and 100 registered volunteers and has a busy agenda, holding and promoting sports events, and organizing sports-related volunteer groups.

The Club plans to promote its own activities for the World Cup, separate from volunteer projects sponsored by the Kobe Municipal Government and the JAWOC (Japan Organising Committee for the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan). The Club has all kinds of ideas, such as urban beautification, forming groups to cheer for foreign teams playing in Kobe, and stimulating international contacts through music, food and culture. One Club official, Tsuboi Masaharu, is eager for the day the volunteers get the chance to help raise the level of excitement in Kobe. "We want to make it easier for spectators from other places to get to know Kobe residents. That will be one way we can show gratitude to people from all over the world who helped us after the earthquake."