Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is one of the most common head and neck cancers. OSCC generally has a poor prognosis due to its tendency towards a local invasion and subsequent metastasis, which is mediated by multiple proteolytic enzymes and angiogenesis. Soy products contain high levels of isoflavonoids, including the tyrosine kinase inhibitor, genistein, which has been identified as a potent inhibitor of cell proliferation and in vitro angiogenesis. The purpose of this in vitro study is to evaluate the anti-cancer effect of genistein with respect to the angiogenesis and basement membrane invasion in OSCC. The highly invasive OSCC cell line, HSC-3 cells were cultured in the presence of $10{mu}M$ genistein for 24h. To evaluate the effects of genistein on the invasiveness and the gelatinolytic activity, in vitro invasion assay and zymography were performed. In order to evaluate the effect on the VEGF and bFGF mRNA expression, RT-PCR and northern hybridization reaction, and chemiluminescence detection were applied. The in vitro invasion assay showed that the genistein treatment reduced the cellular invasion through the artificial basement membrane and significant difference between the control group and the genistein treated group was shown in MMP-2 activity. Especially, the 62 kDa activated form of MMP-2 in the control group was 1.8 times higher than that in the genistein treated group. The results of the northern blot analyses indicated that VEGF mRNA expression in the genistein treated group was significantly down regulated. This study showed that genistein inhibits angiogenesis and reduces basement membrane invasion in OSCC. It seems to support the possibility of genistein as an anti-cancer agent.