J1 League 2026: professional football league

About the Japan Football Championship

The J1 League is a professional football league for Japanese players. It runs from March to December and features 18 teams.

Until 1993, Japanese football was at an amateur level.

J.League 2026/27

J.League 2026/27 is the new season of Japan’s top-flight football championship and the first to be played on an autumn–spring calendar. The J1 League 2026/27 season started on August 7, 2026, and will run until June 6, 2027. The tournament features 20 clubs, with each team playing two matches against every opponent — 38 rounds and 380 games in total.

The transition to the new calendar was preceded by the special J1 100 Year Vision League, held in 2026. The tournament served as a transitional stage before the launch of the first full season under the autumn–spring system.

Vissel Kobe won the 2026 special tournament, with Kashima Antlers finishing second and Cerezo Osaka taking third place.

The 2026/27 J.League season features 20 clubs, including Kashima Antlers, Urawa Red Diamonds, Kawasaki Frontale, Yokohama F. Marinos, FC Tokyo, Gamba Osaka, Vissel Kobe, FC Machida Zelvia, and Kashiwa Reysol.

J.League 2026/27 Favorites

Among the main contenders for the Japanese football championship are Kashima Antlers, Vissel Kobe, Yokohama F. Marinos, and Sanfrecce Hiroshima. These clubs have a strong track record of competing for titles and finishing near the top of Japanese football.

FC Machida Zelvia and Kashiwa Reysol also deserve attention. Both teams made strong starts to the 2026/27 season and moved into the top positions after the opening rounds. FC Machida Zelvia currently leads the table, while Kashiwa Reysol has also taken the maximum number of points available at the start of the season.

Kashima Antlers are also among the leading favorites. The team finished second in the 2026 special tournament and made a strong start to the new championship. Vissel Kobe, meanwhile, enter the season as the winners of the J1 100 Year Vision League.

J.League 2026/27 Format

The new J1 League season follows a double round-robin format. Each club plays every other team twice — once at home and once away.

A win is worth 3 points, a draw earns 1 point, and a loss earns 0 points. The club with the most points at the end of the season is crowned champion. If teams are level on points, goal difference is used as the first tiebreaker, followed by goals scored.

The move to an autumn–spring calendar is one of the major changes to the structure of the J.League. Going forward, J1 seasons will span two calendar years.

In 2026, the Japanese league will be held in a transitional format – the J1 100 Year Vision League, which runs from February 6 to June 7, 2026. The tournament serves as a preparatory stage for the transition to the new autumn-spring calendar system, which will be used starting in the 2026/27 season.

The league matches are held at club stadiums across the country, from Tokyo and Yokohama to Osaka and Kobe. After the completion of the transitional tournament in the summer of 2026, the Japanese league will begin a new season, which will be played according to the European calendar for the first time and will last until the spring of 2027.

History of the Japan Football Championship

The history of professional J.League football dates back to 1993, when the inaugural season featured 10 clubs. Before the creation of the J.League, Japan’s main national football competition was the Japan Soccer League, founded in 1965.

The championship went through several format changes during its early years. From 1996, the J.League adopted a single two-round league format. From 2005, J1 featured 18 teams playing each other home and away, with the championship awarded to the club that collected the most points over the course of the season.

Foreign players also played an important role in the development of Japanese football. Among the most prominent players in the early years of the J.League were Brazilian Zico and German Pierre Littbarski. Their involvement helped popularize professional football in Japan and increase interest in the national championship.

In 2026, the J.League moved to a new autumn–spring calendar. Before the first full season under the new system, the special J1 100 Year Vision League was held. Vissel Kobe won the tournament after defeating Kashima Antlers 5–2 on aggregate in the final.

The J1 League 2026/27 season is the first full championship to be played under the new calendar. It began in August 2026 and will conclude in June 2027.