THE J.LEAGUE

Last modified on March 24, 2014

IN 2014
No spectator game
For the first time, a game was held without spectators. It's on Mar 23 at Saitama 2002 Stadium in the game between home team Urawa Reds and Shimizu S Pulse. J-league took punitive measure against Urawa for allowing fans to hoist a banner stating "Japanese Only" seen as discriminating against nationality of fans. The worst was, the banner was not taken down. Urawa fans have a track record of causing problems. The game itself was a draw.

IN 2011
J-league resumes season
On Apr 23, the season was resumed for the first time since the great earthquake of Mar 11. Team from one of the hardest hit areas, Sendai played against Kawasaki Frontale in Todoroki and won 2 to 1. Another quake hit team, Kashima Antlers lost to the all-star Yokohama Marinos 0 to 3 in Tokyo's National Stadium.

IN 2010
Nagoya wins J-league title
It's the 3rd season former striker Dragan Stoikovic leads Nagoya Grampus. And under his leadership Nagoya clinched the J-League title for the first time on Nov 20. That's in 18 years since the J-league was launched. Adding to the feat, Nagoya clinched the league victory with 3 games left or the earliest to win the title. Keiji Tamada with his header gave the team a 1 to 0 win over Shonan Bellmare.

Kazu exceeds oldest goal record
On Aug 7, King Kazu was called in play near the end of the game. He suddenly goaled. He's 43 years old and 5 months. And that's the record for the oldest in the J League. Yokohama FC which plays in J2 won 2-0 against Okayama.

IN 2009
Kashima wins 3rd J-league title in a row
On Dec 5, Kashima Antlers defeated Urawa Reds 1 to 0 at Saitama Stadium, and became the first team to clinch the J-League title 3 seasons in a row. Its the Antlers 7th crown in all.

IN 2008
Gamba is Asia's club champion
Brazilian Lucas Chiaretti Cossenzo goaled twice against Adelaide United for Gamba Osaka. It's on Nov 12, in Adelaide. Gamba clinched the Asia Football Club Championship. With this it's secured a ticket to the Toyota Cup.

Takahara returns to J-League
Naohiro Takahara left Frankfurt and gave a press conference at Saitama Stadium on Jan 11. He formally annouced that he's signed with Urawa Reds for 3 years. He said he was unhappy with Eintracht Frankfurt. He played with Jubilo Iwata, then Boca Junior, SV Hamburg then with Frankfurt.

IN 2007
Kashima wins J-league title
Urawa Reds was a strong contestant of the J-league crown. With 1 point ahead of the Kashima Antlers, it fought against Yokohama FC on Dec 1. Yokohama was the one to goal. And the Reds, unable to make a goal lost the match 0 to 1. Meanwhile the Antlers beat Shimizu S Pulse 3 to 0, and clinched the J-1 title.

Urawa clinches Asian club title
In the final, Urawa Reds faced Iranian champion team Sepahan on Nov 14 at Saitama Stadium. Before nearly a crowd of 60,000, it was a tough game. But in the 22nd minute, Yuichiro Nagai goaled. Then 26 minutes into the later half, Yuki Abe managed to kick in a goal. With the 2-0 win, it's the first time that a J.league team clinched the AFC Champions League which was launched in 2002.

All star game
Veteran soccer stars, Masashi Nakayama of Jubilo Iwata and Kazuyoshi Miura of Yokohama were chosen to play the game on Aug 4 in Ecoba Stadium. The first goal was accidental. "Gon" Nakayama headed into his own goal. But he recovered the miss by heading in another goal for his team. In the end, J-West represented by "Gon" beat J-East represented by Kazu, 3 to 2.

King Kazu is the oldest Japanese to goal
On May 12, Kazuyoshi Miura's team, Yokohama FC faced Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Kazu goaled. He's 40 years old, making him the oldest Japanese soccer player to goal in the Japanese professional league. However, there is a non-Japanese older than him who had goaled. It's Brazilian legend Zico who goaled for the Kashima Antlers when he was 41.

IN 2006
Reds win J.League title
Gamba Osaka had a change to win the title if it clinched 3 more goals than Urawa Reds on Dec 2. But this did not happen. The Reds won 3 to 2. And with this victory, for the first time since the J.League kicked off 14 years ago, the Reds clinched the highest domestic title.

J.League season kicks off
Shinji Ono was back for the first time in 5 years. He's rejoined the Urawa Reds. But his team tied with Gamba Osaka 1-1 on the opening day Mar 4. Former star Brazilian born player Ruy Ramos is in charge of Tokyo Verdy 1969 in hopes of helping the team out of J2. His team defeated Tokushima 4 to 1 in the first game of the season.

IN 2005
King Kazu to Sidney FC
Kazuyoshi Miura announced on Oct 4 that he will play for the Australian league's Sidney FC. It will be for just 3-month. Pierre Littbarski who has an advisory position with Yokohama FC is head of Sidney FC. And the team will compete in the World Club Championship in Tokyo in December.

Real Madrid plays J.League teams
vs Jubilo Iwata
At the Ajinomoto Stadium on Jul 27, the game was played. Raul goaled as soon as the game kicked off. Jubilo equalized, but Ronaldo kicked in the next 2 goals for Real Madrid's 3 to 1 victory.

vs Tokyo Verdy
The all star team arrived in Tokyo on Jul 24, and on the 25th faced Tokyo Verdy, which is not in a good shape. However, Real Madrid faced a devastating defeat of 0 to 3 despite the presence of its superstars in the game such as David Beckham, Roberto Carlos, Figo and Ronaldo.

King Kazu to Yokohama FC
A couple days after Japanese media reported that Kazuyoshi Miura is to leave Vissel Kobe for Yokohama FC, Kazu himself spoke on Jul 20. He was not given a chance to play in the past 5 games with Vissel. And he stated his determination to help Yokohama win promotion to the J1 level.

IN 2004
Marinos wins J.League overall title
The 2nd game of the J.League championship was held at Saitama Stadium 2002 on Dec 11. Urawa Reds Santos Alessandro's free kick made into the goal. It's a tie as the championship counts the total number of goals during the 2 games. The game was extended, and as no more goals were made, a shoot out was performed. The Urawa Reds Marcus Tulio Tanaka was the first to kick the ball. But it was stopped by the Yokohama F Marinos goalkeeper. The 4th to take part from the Reds, couldn't make it into the goal either. The Marinos clinched the championship for the 2nd year in a row. Yuji Nakazawa was chosen MVP.

Record crowd to J.League game
First stage champion, Yokohama F Marinos faced second stage champion Urawa Reds at Yokohama International Stadium on Dec 5. It had a turn out of nearly 64,899. It's the largest ever crowd for a J.League game. The first of the home and away match went to the Marinos. Ryuji Kawai who was fired from the Reds, ironically achieved the goal in the 66th minute to give his team a 1 to 0 win.

Reds wins 2nd stage
Urawa Reds played against Nagoya Grampus on Nov 20. Although Emerson goaled, it failed to win in a 1 to 2 game. But since Gamba Osaka lost that day 0 to 2 against the Yokohama F Marinos, the Reds secured J.League 2nd stage title. It's the first time the Reds won a stage title in 12 years history of the league. The team's headed by former West Germany national player Guido Buchwald who's led the team only for a year.

Verdy vs Real Madrid etc
Real Madrid mesmerized fans on Aug 1. First it was Zinedine Zidane who dribbled the ball marvelously and then shot into the goal. Ronaldo goaled too in the 34th inning. Luis Figo also succeeded in a goal. Real Madrid beat the Tokyo Verdy 4 to 0. On the same day Barcelona played against Kashima Antlers which he won 5 to 0. Valencia lost to Albirex Niigata 2 to 5.

JEF United vs Real Madrid
More than 50,000 turnout was recorded at Tokyo's National Stadium on July 29, despite the typhoon. It was JEF, which goaled first on a penalty kick. But Real Madrid equalized with a soft shoot by Guti. Then in the 37th minute, Raul shot the ball into the goal after a fall. And Santiago Solari shot the 3rd goal for Real. Real Madrid won 3 to 1.

All star game
On July 3, J League's all star game was held. FC Tokyo's Naohiro Ishikawa goaled for J East 6 minutes into the game. Tatsuya Tanaka followed heading in a goal in the 17th minute. Tokyo Verdy's Atsuhiro Miura of J West completed a perfect penalty kick. For the first time in the J League all star history the game ended a 3 to 3 tie.

Marinos makes history
On June 26, Yokohama F Marinos played against Kashima Antlers. 16 minutes into the later half, South Korean national player Ahn Jung-hwan received a pass from Daisuke Oku to goal. The Marinos won 1 to 0 and it clinched its 3rd stage in a row.

Turkish heartthrob joins Kobe
Turkey's 28-year old striker,Ilhan Mansiz arrived in Japan on Feb 10, and immediately held a press conference to announce he's with Kobe Vissel for the season kicking off in March. Japanese women have adored Ilhan ever since he's played in the 2002 World Cup. His team placed 3rd. To prove his popularity, about 200 women welcomed him at Narita Airport. He's agreed to a two-year deal for a transfer fee of 4.5 million dollars from Besiktas.

IN 2003
Marinos wins annual title automatically
At International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama F Marinos played against Jubilo Iwata on Nov 29. It was in pouring rain. Iwata was the first to score on Brazilian, Rodrigo Gral's goal. The Marinos equalized when Marquinho headed in the ball, 6 minutes into the 2nd half of the game. It was during injury time, Tatsuhiko Kubo achieved a game winning goal to give the Marinos a dramatic win of 2 to 1. And with this victory, the Marinos clinched the 2nd stage. It's in addition to the first stage, to become the only team to win 2 stages in a year twice.

Reds first Nabisco Cup victory
The same 2 teams which fought last year faced eachother on Nov 3. There was more than 50,000 at Tokyo's National Stadium. Brazil's Emerson scored 2 goals for the Reds. But Emerson suffered a head injury when he clashed into his teammate. At the end though the Reds beat the Antler 4 to 0. The sad news to Reds fans is that manager Hans Ooft is leaving the team.

All star game
Koji Nakata of the Kashima Antlers headed in a goal in the first half. Next it was Patrick Mboma of Tokyo Verdy. In the later half, his teammate Takuya Yamada goaled. And Kazuyoshi Miura of Kobe Vissel pushed in a goal. J East beat J West 3 to 1 before a crowd of 36,000 at the Sapporo Dome on Aug 9. Mboma was named Most Valuable Player, while King Kazu awarded as the Most Impressive Player.

Marinos wins first stage
There was a turn out of 60,000 at International Stadium Yokohama on August 2. Although Yokohama F Marinos did not goal during the first half, in the later half it exploded. Yuji Nakazawa goaled twice. Captain Daisuke Oku completed in a penalty kick. F Marinos beat Kobe Vissels 3 to 0. It clinched J.League's first stage.

Mboma arrives in Japan
Cameroon's striker Patrick Mboma arrived in Tokyo's Narita Airport on Jan 26. He joins Tokyo Verdy from Jan 31. He used to play for Gamba Osaka and is highly popular in Japan.

Cafu to join Marinos
Yokohama F Marinos announced on Jan 23 that it has acquired Brazil's 2002 World Cup captain Cafu. And he will play from July 1, for 2 and a half years with the team. He will join the team after his season with AS Roma in Italy's Serie A ends.

IN 2002
2002 J.League Awards
Presented on Dec 16 at Yokohama Arena.
Title Player
Player of the YearNaohiro Takahara (Jubilo Iwata)
Top Striker Naohiro Takahara (Jubilo Iwata)
Fair PlayKeisuke Tsuboi (Urawa Reds)
Rookie of the Year Keisuke Tsuboi (Urawa Reds)
Manager of the Year Masakazu Suzuki (Jubilo Iwata)

Jubilo clinches 2nd stage
Jubilo Iwata faced Tokyo Verdy on Nov 23. They went into sudden death. And Jubilo clinched the game. Jubilo won the 1st stage. It's the first time a team has clinched both stages.

Reds unable to make revenge in Nabisco Cup
On Nov 4, Urawa Red Diamonds faced Kashima Antlers in the final of the Nabisco Cup in Tokyo's National Stadium. It lost 0 to 1 to Mitsuo Ogasawara's goal.. For the Antlers its the team's 3rd Nabisco Cup victory.

Oita wins slot in J1
In the J2 division, Oita Trinita defeated Omiya on Nov 2, 1 to 0 to secure its place in the J1 division next season. It's the first time a team from Kyushu will play in the top division of the J.League.

Reds' miracle falters
Urawa Red Diamonds on Oct 27 lost to Tokyo Verdy 0 to 1. Tough rival, Jubilo Iwata meanwhile continued to win, clinching the top spot. The chance for Red to win the 2nd stage is very slim. A sadder news is, Consadole Sapporo lost to Kashima Antlers 2 to 3. It's finish below number 15 was finalized, meaning it will drop to J2 division next season.

Reds is first place
Urawa Red Diamonds on Oct 12 surpassed Jubilo Iwata to gain first place in the J1 standing. Thanks to Brazilian, Emerson's good performances, Urawa defeated Kyoto Purple Sanga 4 to 1. Shinji Ono of Feyenoord who's back in Japan to join the national team looked on from the stands the match played by his former teammates.

Korean star joins J.League
South Korean national team player Ahn Jung-hwan signed with Shimizu S Pulse and held a press conference on Sept 18. The idol soccer player who was criticized by Perugia's owner during the World Cup for his victory over Italy decided to play in Japan for a year for 55 million yen.

J.League kicks off to 2nd stage
1st stage champion Jubilo Iwata had a good start defeating Kobe Vessel 1 to 0. Tokyo Verdy had the most goal this season scoring 5 in a match against Kyoto Purple Sanga.

All star game
The match was held at the site of the semi final of the FIFA World Cup Finals, Saitama Stadium 2002. Just 3 minutes into the game, Consadole Sapporo's Takafumi Ogura kicked in a goal for J-East. With Urawa Red Diamond's Emerson's goal, East went further ahead. 35 year old Kazuyoshi Miura of Vissel Kobe headed in J-West's only goal. The match was 2 to 1 for J-East. Emerson was awarded MVP.

Jubilo clinches first stage
It was up to Jubilo Iwata whether it would win the first stage in J1 in its game against the Kashima Reysol on Aug 17. This was its last game in the stage. The game was a competitive on. At a 2 to 2 draw it appeared that the match had to be extended. But close to the end Naohiro Takahara headed in a goal. It's his goal in 7 straight matches. Jubilo became the winner of the 1st stage for 2 years in a row.

Marinos falls
Yokohama F Marinos which was leading the first stage of this year's J1 level was out of gas at last. It lost to the Kashima Antlers 1 to 2 on Aug 11. It was replaced by Jubilo Iwata which achieved 4 goals against Vegalta Sendai the previous day including hat trick by Naohiro Takahara. On Aug 17 will be the last matches of the first stage and the champion should be determined then.

Shunsuke's final J.League match
On July 21, Tokyo's National Stadium was packed with 53,000 spectators. It's said to come close to the opening match for the J.League 9 years ago. The reason for the huge turnout, it's Shunsuke Nakamura's last game before leaving for Italy's Serie A team Reggina. And it was indeed his game. Tokyo Verdy's Edmundo scored the first goal. Yokohama F Marinos caught up with Shunsuke Nakamura's freekick which was kicked in by his teammate. It was Shunsuke himself to kick in the winning goal. The Marinos won 2 to 1.

Post World Cup matches take off
On July 13, J1 division of the J.League was back after the more than a month long break due to Japan's co-hosting of the FIFA World Cup finals. The excitement from Japan advancement to the top 16 was still there. Saitama Stadium attracted over 60,000 fans. Home team Urawa Reds faced powerhouse Jubilo Iwata. Iwata's Masashi "Gon" Nakayama achieved 2 goals to reach a tie. The game was extended, and in the end, Jubilo won. Yokohama F Marinos continued its winning streak in a 2 to 0 game against Vegalta Sendai. It was learned on the day that Kashima Antlers' Takayuki Suzuki was being approached by Belgium league champion, Genk. Suzuki scored Japan's first goal in the recent World Cup.

Marinos takes over first place
Leader Jubilo Iwata was challenged by Yokohama F Marinos in Iwata on April 20. Shusuke Nakamura supported the Marinos twice, to lead to goals. Jubilo's winning streak ended at 6. In other games, Tokyo Verdy won for the first time this season defeating the Urawa Reds with a V-goal.

Kazu's first goal of the season
Kazu Miura alias King Kazu kicked in his first goal on Mar 17 in the game against Gamba Osaka. It was in the 29th minute of the later half of the game. And his team Vissel Kobe defeated Gamba 3 to 1. As to the competition of teams within J1, Jubilo Iwata surged to the top wiping out Consadole Sapporo 0 to 4.

J.League's 10th season kicks off
On Mar 2, the J. League was off to its 10th season. It began with an upset. Last season's league champion Kashima Antlers were defeated by FC Tokyo. By the way the toto lottery ticket sells is off to a much better start this season.

IN 2001
2001 J.League Awards
Presented on Dec.10 at Yokohama Arena.
Title Player
Player of the YearToshiya Fujita (Jubilo Iwata)
Top Striker Will (Consadole Sapporo)
Rookie of the Year Koji Yamase (Consadole Sapporo)
Manager of the Year Masakazu Suzuki (Jubilo Iwata)

J.League Championship
The winner of J.league's first stage and second stage, Kashima Antlers and Jubilo Iwata faced eachother in this championship.
1st leg
On Dec. 2, the game was played in Shizuoka before a crowd of 32,368. Jubilo's Toshihiro Hattori goaled in the 12th minute. Then in the later half, Masashi "Gon" Nakayama drove the ball in with his right. And with only 10 minutes left, it appeared the Jubilo was sure to clinch the game. But the Antlers fought back. Yutaka Akita headed in a goal, and then Tomoyuki Hirase brought the game to a tie. The game ended 2 to 2.
2nd leg
Kashima Stadium attracted 40,115 fans on Dec 8. It was a game that remained scoreless. It was only during extra time, that Mitsuo Ogasawara of the Antlers kicked from 20 meters away fromt he goal and succeeded. The Antlers won this game 1 to 0, and also the championship title for the 4th time.

Demotions to J2
Avispa Fukuoka lost to Gamba Osaka 2 to 3 on Nov 24. It's demotion next season was declared. Meanwhile Tokyo Verdy which was in danger of demotion defeated FC Tokyo 1 to 0 securing its place in the top division. Cerezo Osaka will also play in J2 next season.

Antlers clinches 2nd stage
Antlers scored 3 goals already in the first half of Nov 17. It won 4 to 0 to Tokyo Verdy to secure its 2nd stage victory. It will face Jubilo Iwata for the championship title. Meanwhile, Verdy still has the possibility of being demoted to J2.

Alex is Japanese
It was learned on Nov 12, that Shimizu S Pulse's Brazilian born player Alex Santos had earned Japanese nationality. This is likely to pave his way to join the national team.

Kyoto secures J.League promotion
On Nov 10, Kyoto Purple Sanga defeated the Shonan 2 to 1 increasing its winning points to 84. One more team will be promoted from J2 to J1, but is yet to be decided. As for teams facing the likelihood of a demotion from J1, Tokyo Verdy, with Brazilian Edmundo's goal won 3 to 2 over Gamba Osaka. It raised its hope to stay in J1, but still faces the threat of a demotion. Yokohama F Marinos lost 0 to 1 to Jubilo Iwata and put itself in a danger of a possible demotion.

Marinos clinches Nabisco Cup
Yokohama F Marinos and Jubilo Iwata played sudden death, but still neither side goaled so the game on Oct 27, in the Nabisco Cup final went into a PK. And the Marinos goalkeeper Tatsuya Enomoto who took over from Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi who left for England the week before guarded the goal well. The Marinos won the PK 3 to 1, to clinch the Nabisco Cup.

J.League 2nd stage--new stadium opens
The one of the 8th games of the second stage on Aug 13 was played at a new stadium, Saitama Stadium which is claimed to be Asia's largest. It's the new home ground for the Urawa Reds. And the game attracted the largest soccer turnout in Japan of 60,553. However, the Reds lost to the Yokohama F Marinos 0 to 2. On top of the J.League is Jubilo Iwata.

Takahara goes overseas too
Jubilo Iwata's Naohiro Takahara was in Argentina on Aug 4 to sign a one-year contract with Boca Juniors. It's for a total 300 thousand dollars. It will be on a one year rental format from Jubilo. Takahara joined the J.league in 1998, and was a national member for the Sydney Olympic Games. He's 22 years old.

All star game
Tomokazu Myojin kicked in the first goal for J-West in the game to open Toyota Stadium on Aug 4. Then it was King Kazu of Kobe Vissel who achieved the 2nd goal for J-West. And what what a big surprise that the Antlers Atsushi Yanagisawa achieved a hot trick. Gon Nakayama goaled too and won MIP. MVP of course went to Yanagisawa. His performace gave the J-East a 4 to 3 win.

Goodbyes from J.League
On the last day of the first stage, that's on July 21, many players had their final showing. Shinji Ono bid farewell to the Urawa Reds. Junichi Inamoto to Gamba Osaka. And perhaps the most emotional, Nagoya Grampus's Dragan Stojkovich. The Yuglosav star known as "Pixy" ended his 20 year career defeating the Tokyo Verdy 3 to 0.

Inamoto to joing English club
It's reported on July 13, that Gamba Osaka's midfielder Junichi Inamoto will join English Premier League side Arsenal. He will win a 5 year deal of 2 million pounds or 360 million yen.

Ono to leave for Dutch club
Urawa Reds' midfielder Shinji Ono said at a press conference on July 10 that he will play with Feyenoor Rotterdam. He is to officially sign with the team on July 21. He said that he will also marry a 22 year old college student before the trip.

Jubilo clinches first stage
It was a rather jittery game for Jubilo Iwata on July 7. It scored first, and it goaled for Yokohama F Marinos to make the game a tie. But in the end, with Naohiro Takahara's goal, it defeated the Marinos 2 to 1, and clinched the first stage.

Jubilo sets home record
Jubilo Iwata played a competitive game against Avispa Fukuoka on June 23. But during sudden death, gave a decisive kick to take the game to a 2 to 1 victory. With this win, Jubilo marked it's 15th straight victory at home, breaking the J League record. It is of course, first in the league with 3 more games left .

J.League resumed
There was a month break due to the Confederations Cup. On June 16, the season resumed. Top runner Jubilo Iwata kept it's place. Although it lost 4 of its regular players to injuries, Masashi "Gon" Nakayama made up for it by achieving a goal. Jubilo defeated Kashiwa Reysol 1 to 0.

Jubilo vs toto
Games on May 12 generated the highest bet so far for toto. It's 3.2 billion yen. And the result of the top runner was, it lost to Shimizu S Pulse 0 to 1.

Jubilo ties record
On May 6, Jubilo won, recording its 8 straight win in the 1st stage of the J. League. It's a tie winning streak record. That day it faced Gamba Osaka, and won 2 to 0. It has not lost a game so far.

Jubilo's winning streak continues
Masashi "Gon" Nakayama kicked in his first goal of the season on Apr 14 for Jubilo Iwata. It reversed it's game against Cerezo Osaka 3 to 2. It's Jubilo's 5th straight win. The other extreme is Yokohama F Marinos.It has not won a game yet.

Standing after 3 games
With its victory of 1 to 0 over FC Tokyo on Mar 31, Jubilo Iwata clinched its 3rd win in the top league. The only team to do so. Urawa Reds won its first game since its promotion to J1. It's a 2 - 0 over Avispa Fukuoka By the way, 5 toto tickets predicted all 13 game results correctly. They all were prized 100 million yen.

Toto sales doubles
The first round of sales reached 890 million yen. But it was learned on Mar. 17,that the 2nd round of sales reached 1.96 billion or 2,2 times the previous. The biggest reason seems to be due to the fact that the first prize winner last time indeed won 100 million yen.

J.League season kick off
On Mar.10, the season kicked off. The new Tokyo Stadium attracked a sell out crowd. The game was officially opened by popular Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara's goal. And the game, went into sudden death where FC Tokyo defeated the Tokyo Verdy 2 to 1. Consadole Sapporo won it's first game ever in J1 by defeating Cerezo Osaka 2 to 1.

Toto goes on sale
Soccer lottery went on sale on Mar. 3. It's sold at gasoline stands, Ticket Pia but not at convenience stores. The maximum prize is 100 million yen. Each lottery card is 100 yen. But sales is restricted to those above 19.

Shimizu wins Xerox Cup
Kashima Antlers and Shimizu S Pulse met again, this time, in the Xerox Super Cup on Mar.3. Shimizu's Alex, who is applying for Japanese citizenship stood out. Veteran Masaaki Sawanobori was the first to score. He was followe by new player Marcelo Baron,and Alex scored the 3rd goal. Shimizu defeated the Antlers 3 to 0.

Emperor's Cup goes to Antlers
The Emperor Cups final was held between Kashima Antlers and Shimizu S Pulse at Tokyo's National Stadium. The first half of the game finished a 1 to 1 tie. In the latter half, again, both sides goaled. And one minute into sudden death, Antlers' Michita Ogasawara kicked in a goal to give his team its first victory in the 21st century.


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