2021 season | ||||
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Chairman | Fumiaki Koizumi | |||
Manager | Antônio Carlos Zago (until 13 April)[1] Naoki Soma (interim) (until 5 December)[2] | |||
Stadium | Kashima Soccer Stadium | |||
J1 League | 4th | |||
Emperor's Cup | Quarter finals | |||
J.League Cup | Quarter finals | |||
Top goalscorer | League: Ayase Ueda (14 goals) All: Ayase Ueda (19 goals) | |||
Highest home attendance | 16,518 (v. Urawa Reds, J1 League, 7 November 2021)[3] | |||
Lowest home attendance | 3,586 (v. Gamba Osaka, J1 League, 18 September 2021)[4] | |||
Biggest win | 8–1 (v. YSCC Yokohama, Emperor's Cup, 16 June 2021)[5] | |||
Biggest defeat | 0–3 (v. Avispa Fukuoka, J1 League, 11 September 2021)[6] | |||
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The 2021 season was Kashima Antlers' 29th consecutive season in the J1 League, the top flight of Japanese football since the introduction of professional football in 1993. The club finished the 2021 J1 League in fourth place, one place above their position from the previous season.[7] They also competed in the Emperor's Cup and J.League Cup and reached the quarter-finals of both competitions.
After a poor start to the season losing four of their first six league games, manager Antônio Carlos Zago was dismissed in April 2021 and was replaced by Naoki Soma as interim manager who would take control until the end of the season.