Saitama (Japanese: さいたま市 Saitama-shi) is a city in Japan, the capital of Saitama Prefecture. The city was formed on May 1, 2001 as a result of the merger of the cities of Urawa, Omiya and Yono. On April 1, 2005, the city of Iwatsuki was annexed to Saitama in the east. Saitama has been a designated city by government decree since April 1, 2003. The city is part of the Greater Tokyo agglomeration.
The area of ​​the city is 217.49 km², the population is 1,250,928 people (August 1, 2014), the population density is 5751.66 people / km².

Transport
Saitama is connected by rail and road to Tokyo (Kokudo 16). Okegawa Honda Airport is for general aviation. It does not provide transport services. The drive from Haneda and Narita International Airports takes approximately two hours.
In connection with the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the Tokyo Metro Namboku line was extended from Akabane-Iwabuchi station to Urawa-Misono. But outside of Tokyo, the line is called the Saitama Railway.

Sport
Saitama has two Japanese J-League football teams, the Urawa Reds and the Omiya Ardia. The new Saitama 2002 stadium has hosted several World Cup matches, including one semi-final. Also in Saitama, mixed martial arts PRIDE Fighting Championships were held, where the Russian fighter Fedor Emelianenko successfully performed.