J.League side Kashima Antlers will become the first Japanese football club to set up an office outside of its home country, opening one in N.Y, according to Ian Thomas of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. Kashima, Japan’s "most successful club" and the reigning J.League champion, gained int'l recognition when it played Real Madrid in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup in December, losing in extra time. That result, "as well as the celebration of the club’s 25th anniversary," has led to the push overseas, said Yohei Kasuga, who heads Antlers’ communications group within its commercial department. He said, "Everything we have been doing has been targeted to the domestic market, but we really feel for our club to step up a gear or two we need to put ourselves on the global map." Kasuga said that this is a push "not only into the U.S. market but the rest of the English-speaking world as well." The time difference from Japan "makes it hard to arrange meetings" with European or South American businesses, and he said he hopes the N.Y. time zone and easier access to those markets by air will help broaden the club’s business (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 4/3 issue).
