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41-570: Before the inception of the J.League , the highest level of club football was the Japan Soccer League (JSL), which was formed in 1965 and consisted of amateur clubs. Despite being well-attended during the boom of the late 1960s and early 1970s (when Japan's national team won the bronze Olympic medal at the 1968 games in Mexico ), the JSL went into decline in the 1980s, in general line with

82-460: A conclusion that they were heading in the wrong direction. They subsequently came up with two solutions to solve the problem. Firsty, they announced the J.League Hundred Year Vision, in which they aimed to create or endorse 100 professional association football clubs throughout Japan by 2092, which would mark the hundredth season since the establishment of the J1 League. The league also encouraged

123-481: A confusing situation, where for the championship race stage standings were used, while overall standing was used for relegation survival. At end of the 2004 season, Division 1 again expanded from 16 to 18 clubs. No clubs were relegated; however, the last-placed (16th) club had to play the Promotion/Relegation Series against the 3rd placed club from J2. Again, to determine the 16th placed club,

164-455: A loss. The clubs are ranked by points, and tiebreakers are, in the following order: A draw would be conducted, if necessary. However, if two clubs are tied for first place, both clubs will be declared as co-champions. The top two clubs will qualify to the following season's AFC Champions League Elite, the third-placers qualify to the following season's AFC Champions League Two, while the bottom three clubs will be relegated to J2. In addition to

205-606: A regulation win, 2 pts for an extra time win, and 1 pt for a tie. League or status at 2023: Clubs in bold compete in top flight for the 2024 season . Only four clubs have never been relegated from J1. Among those, only two clubs – Kashima Antlers and Yokohama F. Marinos – have participated in every league season since its establishment in 1993 . Sagan Tosu were promoted to the first division in 2012, and remain there ever since. The former J.League club Yokohama Flügels never experienced relegation before their merger with Yokohama Marinos in 1999. JEF United Chiba holds

246-410: A third and final championship stage. The third stage was composed of three to five teams. The top point accumulator in each stage and the top three point accumulators for the overall season qualified. If both of the stage winners finished in the top three teams for the season, then only three teams qualified for the championship stage. These teams then took part in a championship playoff stage to decide

287-560: The AFC Champions League final against Al Hilal. After a draw in the first leg, Urawa Red Diamonds won the second leg 1-0 and were crowned Asian Champions. In the past 10–15 years, Japanese clubs have risen also intercontinentally. Clubs Gamba Osaka and Urawa Red Diamonds have been crowned Asian champions and participated in the Club World Cup, always targeting at least the semi-finals. Kashima Antlers were finalists of

328-481: The Japanese league system as of 2023 season . In this ranking, three points are awarded for a win, one for a draw, and zero for a loss, regardless of the transition of regulation through the time as follows: 2008 AFC Champions League knockout stage The 2008 AFC Champions League knockout stage was played from 17 September to 12 November 2008. A total of eight teams competed in the knockout stage to decide

369-399: The 2007 ACL season, instead of the 2006 season). In order to fix this one-year lag issue, the 2007 Emperor's Cup winner, Kashima Antlers ' turn was waived. Nonetheless, Kashima Antlers ended up participating in the 2009 ACL season by winning the J.League title in the 2008 season . Three major changes were seen starting in the 2009 season . First, starting that season, four clubs entered

410-524: The 2016 edition and eventually lost to Real Madrid. Beginning in 2026/27, the J.League will use a fall–spring format. The regular season will begin in August and pause for a winter break between December and February, with the final matches played in May. Twenty clubs play in double round-robin (home and away) format, a total of 38 games each. A club receives 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for

451-707: The 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan and its effects. Instead, four relegations were in place for the 2021 season to bring back the number of teams from 20 to 18. * Bold designates relegated clubs; † Won the Pro/rele Series or entry playoff; ‡ Lost the Pro/rele Series or entry playoff and relegated DAZN brought exclusive digital broadcasting rights for the entire J.League matches (including J1 League itself) until 2033. The league

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492-615: The AFC Champions League. Secondly, the number of relegation slots increased to three. Finally, the AFC Player slot was implemented starting this season. Each club will be allowed to have a total of four foreign players; however, one slot is reserved for a player that derives from an AFC country other than Japan. Also, as a requirement of being a member of the Asian Football Confederation , in 2012

533-607: The AFC awarded J.League the highest league ranking and a total of four slots starting from the 2009 season . The league took this as an opportunity to sell TV broadcasting rights to foreign countries, especially in Asia. Also starting from the 2008 season, the Emperor's Cup Winner was allowed to participate in the upcoming Champions League season, rather than waiting a whole year (i.e. 2005 Emperor's Cup winner, Tokyo Verdy , participated in

574-612: The Asian continent, both the league and the clubs paid more attention to Asian competition. For example, Kawasaki Frontale built up a notable fan base in Hong Kong, owing to their participation in the Asian Champions League during the 2007 season . Continuous effort led to the success of Urawa Red Diamonds in 2007 and Gamba Osaka in 2008. Thanks to excellent league management and competitiveness in Asian competition,

615-412: The J.League Club Licence became one criterion of whether a club was permitted to be promoted to a higher tier in professional level leagues. No major changes happened to J.League Division 1 as the number of clubs stayed at 18. In 2015 the J.League Division 1 was renamed J1 League. Also, the tournament format was changed to a three-stage system. The season was split into first and second stages, followed by

656-675: The JSL consisted of a single division, but in 1972 a Second Division was added. Clubs could join in by winning the All Japan Senior Football Championship cup competition and then winning a promotion/relegation series against the bottom teams in the JSL. From 1973 to 1980, both the champions and runners-up of the Second Division had to play the promotion/relegation series against the First Division's bottom clubs; afterwards and until 1984, only

697-400: The Second Division and kept this distinction until 2009. JSL played its final season in 1991/92 and the J.League began play in 1993. Top nine JSL clubs, (along with the independent Shimizu S-Pulse ) became the original J.League members. The others except Yomiuri Junior who merged with their parent club Yomiuri Club joined the newly formed Japan Football League . All clubs are listed under

738-565: The champions of the 2008 AFC Champions League . The winners of each of the seven groups in the group stage qualified for the knockout stage. West Asia Zone had four teams qualified, East Asia Zone had three plus the title holders. The first leg matches were played on 17 September, and the second leg matches were played on 24 September 2008. Bunyodkor won 7–3 on aggregate. Gamba Osaka won 4–1 on aggregate. Urawa Red Diamonds won 4–3 on aggregate. Adelaide United won 2–1 on aggregate. The first leg matches were played on 8 October, and

779-422: The clubs to promote football or non-football related sports and health activities, to acquire local sponsorships, and to build good relationships with their hometowns at the grassroots level . The league administration believed that this would allow the clubs to bond with their respective cities and towns, and obtain support from local government, companies, and citizens. In other words, clubs will be able to rely on

820-554: The deteriorating situation worldwide. Fans were few, the grounds were not of the highest quality, and the Japanese national team was not on a par with the Asian powerhouses. To raise the level of play domestically, to attempt to garner more fans, and to strengthen the national team, the Japan Football Association (JFA) decided to form a professional league. The professional association football league, J.League

861-439: The following regions) via J.League International YouTube channel. Japan Soccer League Japan Soccer League ( 日本サッカーリーグ , Nihon Sakkā Rīgu ) ; JSL ) was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League . JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professional Japanese Baseball League that

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902-401: The inaugural season. J.League officially kicked off its first season with ten clubs in early 1993. Despite its success in the first three years, in early 1996 the league attendance declined rapidly. In 1997 the average attendance was 10,131, compared to more than 19,000 in 1994. Notably, Arsène Wenger managed Nagoya Grampus Eight during this period. By 1999, the league's management came to

943-443: The locals, rather than major national sponsors. Secondly, the infrastructure of the league was heavily changed in 1999. The league acquired nine clubs from the semi-professional JFL and one club from the J.League to create a two-division system. The top flight became the J.League Division 1 (J1) with 16 clubs while the J.League Division 2 (J2) was launched with ten clubs in 1999. The former second-tier Japan Football League now became

984-431: The names they were using in 1991–92, when the league ceased to exist. Clubs in italic no longer exist. All clubs are listed under the names they were using in 1991–92, when the league ceased to exist. Clubs in italic no longer exist. See JSL Cup . See Konica Cup (football) . Current J.League identity and/or standing in the Japanese football league system follows each name. In order of their promotion to

1025-444: The need for the playoff series. The league abolished the split-season system in 2005. Since the 2005 season , the J1 League consisted of 18 clubs (from 16 in 2004) and the season format adopted a system similar to European club football. The number of relegated clubs also increased from 2 to 2.5, with the 3rd-to-last club going into a promotion/relegation playoff with the third-placed J2 club. Since then, other than minor adjustments,

1066-523: The overall standing was used instead of stage standings. For two seasons starting in 2015, the three bottom clubs were relegated based on overall standings. For the next four seasons, 2005 to 2008, the number of relegating clubs was increased to 2.5, with two clubs from each division being promoted and relegated directly, and two more (15th in J1 and 3rd in J2) competing in the Promotion/Relegation Series . In 2009,

1107-501: The prize, the top 4 clubs are awarded with the following funds. Source for teams participating: Primary venues used in the J1 League: The all-time J1 League table is a cumulative record of all match results, points, and goals of every team that has played in the J1 League. The table that follows is accurate as of the end of the 2022 season. Teams in bold are part of the 2023 J1 League . Note : For statistical purposes,

1148-465: The promotion/relegation series was abandoned and three teams were directly exchanged between divisions. In 2012, promotion playoffs were introduced in J2, allowing teams that finished from 3rd to 6th to compete for the last J1 promotion place. For the 2018, 2019 and 2022 seasons, the bottom two teams are relegated and the entry playoff has the 16th team play the J2 playoff winner. No teams descended to J2 after

1189-401: The record for the longest top flight participation streak of 44 consecutive seasons in the first divisions of JSL and J.League that lasted from the establishment of JSL in 1965 and ended with their relegation in 2009 . The longest ongoing top flight streak belongs to Yokohama F. Marinos who have played in the top flight since 1982 (43 seasons as of 2023). When the league introduced

1230-472: The record on points. Furukawa Electric holds the record for most seasons, all 27 the JSL played, never been relegated. Name changes made outside First Division play and following the advent of the J.League system are not mentioned; see individual club pages for more information. All statistics are within JSL First Division play except for "Current division" and "Tier", which denote standing in

1271-400: The runners-up had to play the series. Top JSL teams included Hitachi , Furukawa Electric , Mitsubishi Heavy Industries , Nissan , Toyo Industries ( Mazda ) and Yomiuri Shimbun , which are now, respectively, Kashiwa Reysol , JEF United Chiba , Urawa Red Diamonds , Yokohama F. Marinos , Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Tokyo Verdy . Furukawa/JEF United was the only one never to be relegated to

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1312-403: The season's end, and from 2018, the bottom two clubs are relegated and the 16th-placed club enters a playoff with the J2 club that wins a promotion playoff series. If the J2 playoff winner prevails, the club is promoted, with the J1 club being relegated, otherwise the J1 club can retain its position in J1 League with the promotion failure of the J2 club. In November 2017, Urawa Red Diamonds played

1353-419: The third-tier Japan Football League (J3). Also, until 2004 (with the exception of 1996 season ), the J1 season was divided into two stages. At the end of each full season, the champions from each half played a two-legged series to determine the overall season winners and runners-up. Júbilo Iwata in 2002, and Yokohama F. Marinos in 2003, won both "halves" of the respective seasons, thus eliminating

1394-610: The top flight has stayed consistent. Japanese teams did not view the AFC Champions League (ACL) as a major competition in the early years, in part due to the distances travelled and teams involved. Despite this, three Japanese sides made the quarter-finals in the 2008 ACL . However, in recent years, with the inclusion of the A-League in Eastern Asia, introduction to the Club World Cup , and increased marketability in

1435-413: The top-flight: Yokohama Football Club Many of these clubs would only be promoted to the top-flight after the J.League was created. A total of 22 teams played in the JSL First Division between 1965 and 1991–92 . Fifteen of these became professional J.League clubs; the rest were relegated to the regional leagues and/or folded. Despite Mazda and Yomiuri 's record five titles, Mitsubishi holds

1476-409: The traditional 3–1–0 points system is used for all matches. As in the season, 1993–1994 did not use the point system. In seasons 1995–1996 were using 3 pts for any win, 1 pt for PK loss, and 0 pts for regulation or extra time loss. In seasons 1997-1998 were using 3 pts for a regulation win, 2 pts for extra-time win, 1 pt for PK win, and 0 pts for any loss. And from seasons 1999–2002 were using 3 pts for

1517-410: The two-division system in 1999, they also reduced number of Division 1 clubs from 18 to 16. At the end of 1998 season, they ran the J.League Promotion Tournament to determine the two relegated clubs. Throughout 1999 to 2003 seasons, the two bottom clubs were relegated to Division 2. To accommodate the split-season format, combined overall standings were used to determine the relegated clubs. This created

1558-404: The winner of the league trophy. Despite the new multi-stage format being initially reported as locked in for five seasons, due to negative reaction from hardcore fans and failure to appeal to casual fans, after 2016 it was abandoned in favour of a return to a single-stage system. From 2017, the team which accumulates the most points will be named champion, with no championship stage taking place at

1599-412: Was also available to stream on Abema through Abema de DAZN subscription plan. Linear broadcast for 2024 season was limited to selected matches aired on NHK General TV and NHK BS , in addition to some regional network based on their team regions (such as Tokyo MX , MBS TV , SBS Shizuoka , Saga TV , Sapporo TV , Mētele , TSS , NST , etc.) Selected matches are livestreamed globally (excluding

1640-484: Was formed in 1992, with eight clubs drawn from the JSL First Division, one from the Second Division, and the newly formed Shimizu S-Pulse . At the same time, JSL changed its name and became the now–defunct Japan Football League , a semi-professional league. Although the J.League did not officially launch until 1993, the Yamazaki Nabisco Cup competition was held between the ten clubs in 1992 to prepare for

1681-508: Was founded in 1936. JSL was the first-ever national league of an amateur team sport in Japan. Each JSL team represented a corporation, and like Japanese baseball teams, went by the name of the company that owned the team. Unlike in baseball, however, promotion and relegation was followed, as J.League follows today. The players were officially amateur and were employees of the parent corporations, but especially in later years, top players were generally paid strictly to play soccer. Originally,

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