The Kashima Antlers battled to a scoreless draw with South Korean K. League champion Seongnam Ilhwa and thereby clinched the inaugural A3 Mazda Champions Cup on Saturday afternoon at Tokyo's National Stadium.
Kashima midfielder Koji Nakata tries to clear the ball as a Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma player looks on during their tri-nation Mazda Champions Cup game at Tokyo's National Stadium.
Following their previous two wins in the four-team round-robin tournament, a draw was good enough for the Nabisco Cup-winning Antlers to earn their first ever Asian title, finishing with a 2-1-0 record and seven points.