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 lea ...

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) ** Smal ...

for club

Sagan Tosu is a Japanese professional Association football, football club based in Tosu, Saga, Tosu, Saga Prefecture. The club plays in the J2 League, the second tier of Japanese football, since 2025 following relegation from the J1 League in 2024 J1 Leag ...

. During his time at

Albirex Niigata (S) , simply known as Albirex Niigata (S), is a football (soccer), football club based in Jurong East, Singapore, which plays in the Singapore Premier League. The club is a satellite team of Albirex Niigata of J2 League, Japan. Mostly the team is mad ...

, 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

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 Life, Great Eastern Yeo Hiap Seng, Yeo's S ...

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

squad that won both the 2015 Singapore Cup and the 2015 Singapore League Cup. 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 is a professional football club based in Niigata, Japan. Formed in 1955 as Niigata Eleven SC, it was renamed Albireo Niigata FC in 1995, and Albirex Niigata in 1997. They currently play in J1 League after being promoted from J2 League as cha ...

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 estab ...

season. He scored his first goal for the club against

Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo is a Japanese professional football club based in Sapporo, on the island of Hokkaido. They will play in the 2025 J2 League, the second tier league of Japanese football, after relegation from the J1 League at conclusion of the 2024 season. Th ...

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 Japanese professional association football, football team based in Iwata, Shizuoka, Iwata, located in Shizuoka Prefecture. The club competes in J2 League following relegation from J1 League in 2024 J1 League, 2024. Etymology The team's ...

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 Yasud ...

club,

Tokushima Vortis is a Japanese professional football club located in Tokushima, capital of Tokushima Prefecture. The club currently playing in the J2 League, the Japanese second tier of professional football league. Name origin The name, "Vortis" was named in 19 ...

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

Machida Zelvia commonly known as is a Japanese professional football club based in Machida, Tokyo. They currently play in the J1 League, following promotion as J2 League champions in 2023. History Formation and election to the Prefectural League (1989–2 ...

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 is a Japanese professional football club based in Okinawa. The club plays in the J3 League, Japanese third tier of professional football. The team's home stadium is Okinawa Athletic Park Stadium, in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The team derive ...

which resulted in a 6–1 win. He ended the

2019 season Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' Dici ...

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 , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

. 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 a ...

which they lost 2–0 to

Gamba Osaka is a Japanese professional association football, football club based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The club's home stadium is Panasonic Stadium Suita. They form a ...

. 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 1992. This was seventh season of J1 League as re ...

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 Japanese professional association football club based in Ōmiya-ku, Saitama, Ōmiya, Saitama Prefecture. Its "hometown" (as designated by the league) is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds. The team currently play in J2 League, the ...

on a permanent deal. On 9 August 2021, he make his debut for the club against his former club,

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 (city), Akita, capital of Akita Prefecture. The club currently play in the J2 League, Japanese second tier of professional football league. Due to the club's former ownership b ...

. 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,

donning the no.9 jersey which was previously worn by former

2010 FIFA World Cup The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...

winner,

Fernando Torres Fernando José Torres Sanz (; born 20 March 1984) is a Spanish Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former Football player, player who played as a Striker (association football), striker. He is the curr ...

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

FC Tokyo , commonly known as , is a Japanese professional football club based in Chōfu, Tokyo. The club plays in the J1 League, the top tier of football in the country. From 2025, FC Tokyo is one of the few J.League clubs to be simply called ''Footb ...

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 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Singapore Cup The Singapore Cup is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Singaporean football. Established in 1998, it is the foremost prestigious cup competition in the country. It is open to clubs in the Singapore Premier League. Since ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Singapore League Cup The Singapore League Cup was an annual association football competition in Singapore. It was launched in 2007 and was open to teams who competed in the S.League. Albirex Niigata (S), a satellite club of Albirex Niigata of the J League, has won t ...

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 association football, football season in Singapore. The match is contested between the ch ...

Tokushima Vortis

2020 The year 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 even ...

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 F.C. players 21st-century Japanese sportsmen J1 League players J2 League players Albirex Niigata players Tokushima Vortis players RB Omiya Ardija players Sagan Tosu players category:Thespa Gunma players Men's association football midfielders