2017/04/27 16:50
J.LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL SERIES MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2017 Tournament Announcement The 2016 J. League Titlists take on Top European Clubs!
The 2016 J.League champions, Kashima Antlers, and 2016 J. League YBC Levain Cup winners, Urawa Reds, will play two leading European teams in the MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2017 in July.
The J.League has organised the MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2017 as an invitational “J.LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL SERIES” of matches between J1 clubs and world-class clubs from abroad.
The J.LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL SERIES has the purpose of creating opportunities for J.League clubs to gain international experience and as many people as possible to enjoy exceptional football.
The series will take place on the two days of Saturday, July 15th and Saturday, July 22nd with one match on each day. The J.League Title Partner, the Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company, is the special sponsor of this event.
Urawa Reds will play Borussia Dortmund of Germany at Saitama Stadium on Saturday, July 15th and Kashima Antlers will then host Sevilla F.C. of Spain at Kashima Soccer Stadium on Saturday, July 22nd.
The tournament logo, kick-off times, broadcasting arrangements, ticket sales etc. will be announced in due course.
Overview of the MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2017
■Title：MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2017
■Host：Japan Football Association／Japan Professional Football League
■Organizer：Japan Professional Football League
■Cooperation：Kashima Antlers／Urawa Reds
■Title Partner：Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
■Participating Teams
Kashima Antlers（2016 Meiji Yasuda J1 League Champions）
Urawa Reds（2016 J. League YBC Levain Cup Winners）
Borussia Dortmund（Germany）
Sevilla F.C.（Spain）
■Matches
〔Match 1〕
・Date：Sat. 15 July, 2017
・Fixture：Urawa Reds vs Borussia Dortmund
・Stadium：Saitama Stadium 2002
〔Match 2〕
・Date：Sat. 22 July, 2017
・Fixture：Kashima Antlers vs Sevilla F.C.
・Stadium：Kashima Soccer Stadium
【Participating Clubs】
Kashima Antlers（2016 Meiji Yasuda J. League champions）
Established：1947
Home area：Ibaraki Prefecture
Home towns：Kashima City, Itako City, Kamisu City, Namegata City and Hokota CityHome Stadium：Kashima Soccer Stadium
Results in 2016：Meiji Yasuda J. League champions
Defeated in the group stage of the J. League YBC Levain Cup
Current Standing：4th in the Meiji Yasuda J1 League (As of the 8th section)
Honours：J. League champions 8 times (the most of any club
J. League Cup (now the YBC Levain Cup) winners 6 times (the most of any club)
Emperor’s Cup winners 5 times (the most of any club since the J. League began)
FIFA Club World Cup runners-up 1 time
Founded as the corporate football club of Sumitomo Metals in 1947, the club moved thto its current home, Kashima Town (now Kashima City), in 1975. Although still only playing in the second division of the Japan Soccer League, Kashima signed the Brazilian star, Zico, and bid successfully to join the J. League in its inaugural year, 1993. Kashima won the league’s First Stage in 1993 and its first league championship in 1996. As of the end of the 2016 season, Kashima’s record reads 8 J. League championships, 8 J. League Cups (currently the Levain Cup), and 5 Emperor’s Cups, making 19 major domestic crowns in total. Kashima is the most successful club in J. League history. Past players include 1990 FIFA World Cup winners Jorginho and Leonardo. Many Kashima players have represented Japan during the J. League era.
Urawa Reds（2016 J.League YBC Levain Cup Winners）
Established：1950
Home area：Saitama Prefecture
Home town：Saitama City
Home Stadium：Saitama Stadium 2002
Results in 2016：Meiji Yasuda J. League runners-up
J. League YBC Levain Cup winners
Current Standing：1st in the Meiji Yasuda J1 League (As of the 8th section)
Honours：J. League champions 1 time
J. League Cup (now the YBC Levain Cup) winners 2 times
Emperor’s Cup winners 6 times (2 times since the J. League began)
AFC Chamoions League winners 1 time
FIFA Club World Cup 3rd place 1 time
Founded as the corporate football club of Central Japan Heavy Industries in 1950, the club was later the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and then Mitsubishi Motors football clubs before, as Urawa Red Diamonds, becoming a founding member of the J. League in 1993. Many of its players have represented Japan over this long history. The club’s first title as Urawa Red Diamonds was the J. League Cup (Yamazaki Nabisco Cup) in 2003. Reds won their first J. League championship in 2006 and, the following year, became the first J. League club to win the AFC Champions League. They also lost only narrowly to AC Milan of Italy to finish third in the 2007 FIFA Club World Cup. Many German internationals, including Guido Buchwald, Uwe Rahn and Uwe Bein, played for Reds in the nineties. The club’s home stadium hosted a FIFA World Cup semi-final in 2002 and is the largest dedicated football stadium in Asia. Counting from the inaugural season to the present, Reds boast the largest aggregate home attendance of any J. League club.
Borussia Dortmund（Germany）
Established：1909
Home town：Dortmund （North Rhine Westphalia State)
Home Stadium：Signal Iduna Park
Results in 2015-16：Bundesliga runners-up
Current Standing：3rd in the Bundesliga (As of the 30th section), German Cup finalists
Honours：German champions 8 times (Bundesliga, since 1963： 5)
German Cup winners 3 times
German Super Cup winners 5 times
UEFA Champions League winners 1 time (1996-97)
FIFA Intercontinental Cup (Toyota Cup) winners 1 time
2015-16 UEFA Europa League semi-finalists
2016-17 UEFA Champions League quarter-finalists
Founded in 1909 in Dortmund in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the club has been a founding member of the Bundesliga (German football league) in 1963. The club has won the domestic league championship 8 times (5 times in Bundesliga), UEFA Champions League once, UEFA Cup Winners Cup once, and Toyota Cup once. This was also the club of 1996 Ballon d’Or winner Matthias Sammer. In recent years, Dortmund won the league twice in a row in 2010-11 and 2011-12 and are currently 3rd in the table after the 30th round of games. Shinji Kagawa became the first Japanese to play for Dortmund in 2010-11 and has again been back at the club since 2014. As indicated by the club’s full name of Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e.V. Dortmund, aside from football it also has a women’s handball and men’s table tennis team.
Sevilla FC（Spain）
Established：1890
Home town：Seville （Andalucia）
Home Stadium：Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan
Results in 2015-16：7th in La Liga
Current Standing：4th in La Liga（As of the 33th section）
Honours：Spanish league champions 1 time
Spanish Copa del Rey (King’s Cup) Winners 5 times
Spanish Super Cup winners 1 time
UEFA Europa League winners 5 times
UEFA Super Cup winners 1 time
2015-16 Europa League winners
2016-17 UEFA Champions League Round of 16
Founded in 1890 in Seville in the southern Spanish region of Andalucia, the club has a proud history of 120 years. Major titles include the UEFA Europa League 5 times, UEFA Super Cup once and domestic league championship once. In recent years, Sevilla have won the UEFA Europa League three seasons in a row from 2013-14. The Seville derby between Sevilla and cross-town rivals Real Betis is known as one of Spain’s fiercest derbies. Hiroshi Kiyotake (currently with Cerezo Osaka) was on Sevilla’s books into the early part of the current season. The club’s youth program is highly respected and many first team players have graduated from it.
