The Japan Football League debuted in the 1999 season, along with the J.League's second level (J2). Previously, the J.League had just one level, with the defunct JFL serving as the second-highest tier. The two leagues merged at the end of the 2000 season, but they have maintained separate identities since then.
Originally known as the Nippon Professional Soccer (NPS) League before it was renamed in 2001, the JFL began play that same year with six teams from Tokyo and Osaka. The Yokohama F. Marinos were the first team to win the JFL championship when they defeated the Kawasaki Frontale 2-1 on August 26, 1999. The following year, the Jubilo Iwata won their first title after a 1-0 victory over the Gamba Osaka on the final day of the season. The Nagoya Grampus came into existence in 2003 and immediately became one of the most successful teams in Japanese football, winning five titles between 2004 and 2008. In 2009, the Yomiuri Giants joined the J.League as its 16th club, leaving the JFL with only five teams. The league ended after the 2010 season when all of the remaining JFL clubs were transferred to the newly formed J.League.
See Japan Football League (1992–98) for the defunct former league of the same name. The Japan Football League (JFL), usually known simply as the JFL, is the fourth tier of the Japanese association football league system, located underneath the J.League's three divisions. It began operation in 1992, a few years after the end of the Japan Soccer League. Previously known as the Japan Professional Football League until 1997 when it changed its name to more accurately reflect the role that professional clubs play in the league.
The JFL is currently made up of 16 teams, with each club playing the others twice on a home and away basis. The top eight teams will advance to the playoffs while the bottom eight will go into relegation proceedings. The winner of the JFL championship qualifies for the annual J.League promotion series against one of the three J.League teams who finished in seventh place or lower over the previous season.
In addition to the champion, the other two entrants into the J.League are determined by a playoff between the third-place team from the previous season and a team selected by the JFL chairman from outside Japan. This system was introduced at the start of 2000 to balance out the number of Japanese teams competing in the J.League.
Although no club from the JFL has ever won the J.League, several have come close.
J1 League/Founded in 1992
J. League, Japan's professional association football league, was founded in 1992, with eight clubs picked from the JSL First Division, one from the Second Division, and the newly established Shimizu S-Pulse.
Furukawa/JEF United was the only team to never be relegated to the Second Division, a record they held until 2009. The JSL finished its season in 1991/92, and the J.League debuted in 1993. The initial J.League members were the top nine JSL clubs (together with the independent Shimizu S-Pulse). The remaining teams had one year to join as well.
In 1994, after just one season, Sanfrecce Hiroshima joined the new league while Yokohama F. Marinos decided not to continue in Japan after all. The J.League became a fully professional league at the end of that same season. In 1995, the first national championship was won by Kyoto Purple Sanga who beat Gamba Osaka 3-1 on aggregate in the final.
Copyright © 2020 - 2023 Sportsmanist Inc.
