Kashima Soccer Stadium is a football stadium located in Kashima, Ibaraki in the Kanto region of Japan. It is the home stadium of the Kashima Antlers, a team in the Japanese J1 League.
The stadium has a capacity of 40,728 and has no corner stands, with the north, east, west and south stands providing the seating for the fans.
History
The stadium was opened in May 1993, as a football-only stadium for Kashima Antlers. The first match was played between Kashima Antlers and Brazilian club Fluminense.
The stadium initially had a capacity of 15,000, but when Japan co-hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea, the stadium underwent changes and the capacity increased to the current 40,728.
The new renovations took place in 1999 and it took three years to complete. The newly added extension was according to the FIFA guidelines and the Confederations cup matches were played at the Kashima Soccer Stadium.
The $161 million stadium suffered damages due to earthquakes and tsunamis in recent years, but withstood the calamities and is still functional.
Major Matches
The stadium hosted three group stage matches of the 2002 FIFA World Cup - Argentina v Nigeria (1-0), Germany v Republic of Ireland (1-1), and Italy v Croatia (1-2).
Asian Champions League is one of the most privileged league of Japan and Kashima Antlers have been qualifying for the same since a long time and have reached quarter finals four times. They've played many of their home games at the Kashima Soccer Stadium.
Recent Matches
On 5th November 2017 Kashima Antlers played Urawa Reds in the J1 League, and won 1-0. The match against Kashiwa Reysol on 26th November 2017 was a draw, with both teams maintaining clean sheets at 0-0 in the J1 League.
