[8] He later also played for Beşiktaş in Turkey, Real Zaragoza in Spain, PAOK in Greece, and Sint-Truiden in Belgium before returning to Japan, as he rejoined his boyhood club, Cerezo Osaka at the end of January 2023.

The relatively modest cost of the transfer was because of a release clause in Kagawa's contract with Cerezo, which allowed him to leave the club cheaply if he had an opportunity to play in Europe.

[17] In the Revierderby against arch-rivals Schalke 04, which Dortmund won 3–1, Kagawa claimed pre-match that he would score two goals; he accomplished the feat, making him a fan favourite in the process.

[18] Kagawa missed half of the Bundesliga season because of an injury he picked up on international duty with Japan, but managed to score eight goals in 18 appearances.

[21] Kagawa scored again on 5 November, as Dortmund brushed aside VfL Wolfsburg 5–1 and moved within two points of league leaders Bayern Munich.

Kagawa scored the only goal of the game against Werder Bremen on 17 March, heading in a pass from İlkay Gündoğan in the eighth minute.

On 5 June 2012, Manchester United announced that they had reached an agreement with Borussia Dortmund and Kagawa for his transfer,[24] a deal that made him the first Japanese player to join the club.

[26] The transfer was completed on 22 June after Kagawa passed his medical at Manchester United and received his UK work permit.

"[29] On 18 July 2012, Kagawa was handed a two-minute appearance to mark his Manchester United debut in Durban, South Africa, against AmaZulu in a pre-season friendly match.

[30] Kagawa made his first start for the Red Devils against Ajax Cape Town on 21 July 2012,[31] and scored his first goal against Shanghai Shenhua four days later.

After Tom Cleverley's shot was parried by Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, Kagawa scored on the rebound from close range.

[38] On 22 April, Kagawa played a part in the title-winning match against Aston Villa in which United won 3–0; he became the first Japanese player to win a Premier League title.

On 31 August 2014, Kagawa officially returned to his former club, Borussia Dortmund, for an undisclosed fee thought to be around £6.5 million and signing a contract until 30 June 2018.

[43] On 9 August 2019, Kagawa completed a transfer to Real Zaragoza of Spain's Segunda División, penning a two-year contract.

[44] He debuted for the club on 17 August 2019, in the 2019–20 Segunda División opening match against Tenerife at La Romareda, which Zaragoza won 2–0.

On 18 December 2021, due to not being part of Răzvan Lucescu's plans, despite some opportunities at the start of the 2021–22 season, Kagawa mutually terminated his contract with the club and for no recompense for the remaining six months.

[57] In the semi-final against South Korea, Kagawa broke his metatarsal bone[58] and missed the final where Japan beat Australia after extra-time.

Kagawa was named in Japan's 23-man squad for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and scored the second goal for his country during the group stage match against Italy, which ended in a 4–3 loss.

[59] At the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, Kagawa scored Japan's second goal during a 2–0 defeat of Jordan in the group stage and was named as man of the match.