is a Japanese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

for club Sagan Tosu. During his time at Albirex Niigata (S), Kawata led the White Swans to being the first club in Singapore football history to achieve all the unprecedented sweep of all four of the league's major trophies, the

2016 S.League The 2016 S.League (also known as the Great Eastern Yeo's S.League for sponsorship reasons) was the 21st season of the S.League, the top-flight Singaporean professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1996. The ...

2016 Singapore Cup The 2016 Singapore Cup (also known as the RHB Singapore Cup for sponsorship reasons) is the 19th edition of Singapore's annual premier club football tournament organised by the Football Association of Singapore. Albirex Niigata (S) are the defendi ...

2016 Singapore League Cup The 2016 Singapore League Cup (known as The New Paper League Cup for sponsorship reasons) is the tenth edition of the Singapore League Cup, Singapore's premier club football tournament organised by the Football Association of Singapore. Albirex N ...

and the

2016 Singapore Community Shield The 2016 Singapore Community Shield (also known as the Great Eastern Community Shield for sponsorship reasons) was the 9th edition of the Singapore Community Shield held on 13 February 2016 at Jalan Besar Stadium, between the winners of the previ ...

which led him to won the

Player Of The Year.

Club career

Albirex Niigata (Singapore)

Atsushi Kawata signed for Albirex Niigata (S) for the

2015 S.League The 2015 S.League was the 20th season since the establishment of the S.League, the top-flight Singaporean professional league for association football clubs. The league was also known as the Great Eastern Yeo's S.League due to sponsorship reason ...

season. He made 30 appearances, scoring 11 goals in all competitions that season. He renewed his contract with the club for the

season. He was also part of the Albirex Niigata (S) squad that won both the 2015 Singapore Cup and the

2015 Singapore League Cup The 2015 Singapore League Cup (known as the TNP League Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth season of Singapore's premier club football tournament organised by the Football Association of Singapore. DPMM FC were the defending champions, hav ...

. In the

season, Kawata was part of the team which completed an unprecedented sweep of all four of the league's major trophies. As a result, he was named the 2016 S.League Player of the Year, scoring 20 goals and contributing 8 assists in all competitions.

Albirex Niigata

After a stellar 2016 season in Singapore, Kawata earned a move back to parent club, Albirex Niigata for the

2017 J1 League The 2017 J1 League (known as the 2017 Meiji Yasuda J1 League (2017 明治安田生命J1リーグ) for sponsorship reasons) was the 25th season of the J1 League, the top Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its esta ...

season. He scored his first goal for the club against Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo on 23 September 2017. In the match, he scored twice and this was the first time he started a match for the team. He also scored on 21 October 2017 against

Júbilo Iwata is a professional Japanese association football team that currently play in the J2 League. The team name ''Júbilo'' means 'joy' in Spanish and Portuguese. The team's hometown is Iwata, Shizuoka prefecture and they play at Yamaha Stadium. For ...

Tokushima Vortis

On 6 January 2019, Kawata moved to

J2 League The or simply J2 is the second division of the and the second level of the Japanese association football league system. The top tier is represented by the J1 League. It (along with the rest of the J.League) is currently sponsored by Meiji Yas ...

club, Tokushima Vortis. On 8 June 2019, he scored his first goal for the club against

Machida Zelvia is a Japanese football club based in Machida, Tokyo. History Machida is known as "Brazil of Tokyo" due to the popularity of football in the city; it has, in fact, produced the second-largest number of J. League players though its football scho ...

scoring the only goal in the match. On 24 August 2019, Kawata scored a 7-minute hat-trick in a league match against

FC Ryukyu are an Association football club from the Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. In 2022, after spending four years in the J2 League, the club was relegated. They will play on J3 League from the 2023 season. The team derive their name from Ryukyu, the hist ...

which resulted in a 6–1 win. He ended the 2019 season with 33 appearances scoring 14 goals and contributing 4 assists in all competitions. Kawata was featured more often in the

2020 J2 League The 2020 J2 League, also known as the for sponsorship reasons, was the 28th season of J2 League, the top Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1993. The league started on 21 February 2020. For this ...

season where he would go on to make 39 appearances and scoring 9 goals in all competitions. Despite he scoring much lesser than the previous season, Kawata would go on to help Tokushima Vortis become the

2022 J2 League The 2022 J2 League, also known as the for sponsorship reasons, was the 24th season of the J2 League, the second-tier Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1999. Clubs Personnel and kits ...

Champions thus promoting them to the top tier of the Japan football division, the

J1 League The , known as the for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the system. Founded in 1992, it is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football. Contested by 18 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the J ...

. He also helped them to a semi-finals cup run in the

2020 Emperor's Cup The 2020 Emperor's Cup () was the 100th edition of the annual Japanese national football cup tournament. The tournament, originally scheduled to begin on 23 May, was rescheduled to begin on 16 September and ended with the final on 1 January 2021 at ...

which they lost 2–0 to Gamba Osaka. Kawata goes on to have a bad start playing in the

2021 J1 League The 2021 J1 League, also known as the for sponsorship reasons, was the 29th season of the J1 League, the top Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1993. The league began on 26 February and ended ...

where he found himself scoring 1 goal in 24 matches. Midway throughout the season, Tokushima Vortis announced that will leave the club to venture for new challenges. In his time with Tokushima Vortis, he had played over 94 matches scoring 24 goals and contributing 4 assists in all competitions with the club.

Omiya Ardija

On 21 July 2021, Kawata joined J2 League club,

Omiya Ardija is a professional association football club based in Ōmiya in Saitama, Japan. Its "hometown" as designated by the league is the whole of Saitama city, which is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds. Omiya competed in the J1 League follow ...

on a permanent deal. On 9 August 2021, he make his debut for the club against his former club, Albirex Niigata in a 2–2 draw. In the next game, he went on to score his first goal for the club against

Blaublitz Akita is a Japanese professional association football team based in Akita, Akita Prefecture. In 2014 they entered the J3 League after previously playing in the Japan Football League, the third tier of the Japanese association football league system. ...

. He went on to finished the season finding his form scoring 7 goals in 19 appearances for the club. He went on to make 64 appearances scoring 14 goals and contributing 3 assists in all competitions in his 2 years stay at Omiya Ardija.

Sagan Tosu

On 28 March 2023, Kawata find himself transferring to

club, Sagan Tosu donning the no.9 jersey which was previously worn by former

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

winner, Fernando Torres. On 1 April 2023, he made his debut for the club in a match against

FC Tokyo Football Club Tokyo, commonly known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chōfu, Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The team is one of only four in the J.League to be si ...

where he would go on to grab a win at the last kick of the game scoring in the 90+5 injury time from Jakub Slowik error.

Career statistics

Honours

Club

Albirex Niigata (S) * S.League:

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

* Singapore Cup :

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

* Singapore League Cup:

Singapore Charity Shield The Singapore Community Shield (also known as the AIA Community Shield due to sponsorship reasons; formerly the Charity Shield) is the curtain-raiser to the football season in Singapore. The match is contested between the champions of the previou ...

Tokushima Vortis

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Individual

* S.League Player of the Year: 2016

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kawata, Atsushi 1992 births Living people Association football people from Osaka Prefecture People from Fujiidera, Osaka Japanese men's footballers Singapore Premier League players Albirex Niigata Singapore FC players J1 League players J2 League players Albirex Niigata players Tokushima Vortis players Omiya Ardija players Sagan Tosu players Men's association football midfielders