J.League 2024 and beyond

Overseas Football
121

Last weekend was the end of the Kewell experiment, ironically one of the best performances of the club under his tenure, a strong second half saw F Marinos come away 4-1 winners over Kashima Antlers.

Another fantastic Kokuritsu Day fixture at the National Stadium, over 57k in the house to see FC Tokyo pick up a 2-0 win over Albirex Niigata. Mitch Duke played around the first hour for Machida Zelvia as they won a derby against Tokyo Verdy to continue their miracle season into another week.

J1 League Round 23 results:

Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo 1-1 Vissel Kobe (16,495)
FC Tokyo 2-0 Albirex Niigata (57,885)
Tokyo Verdy 0-1 FC Machida Zelvia (22,480)
Nagoya Grampus 2-1 Kashiwa Reysol (31,961)
Kyoto Sanga 0-0 Urawa Red Diamonds (18,730)
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1-0 Avispa Fukuoka (24,766)
Shonan Bellmare 5-0 Jubilo Iwata (12,113)
Sagan Tosu 0-2 Gamba Osaka (9,913)
Kawasaki Frontale 1-1 Cerezo Osaka (20,725)
Yokohama F. Marinos 4-1 Kashima Antlers (31,463)

J1 League Round 23 standings:

  1. FC Machida Zelvia - 49
  2. Gamba Osaka - 44
  3. Vissel Kobe - 41
  4. Kashima Antlers - 41
  5. Sanfrecce Hiroshima - 37
  6. Cerezo Osaka - 37
  7. FC Tokyo - 36
  8. Avispa Fukuoka - 35
  9. Urawa Red Diamonds - 33
  10. Tokyo Verdy - 31
  11. Nagoya Grampus - 30
  12. Yokohama F. Marinos - 29
  13. Kashiwa Reysol - 29
  14. Kawasaki Frontale - 25
  15. Albirex Niigata - 25
  16. Jubilo Iwata - 24
  17. Sagan Tosu - 23
  18. Shonan Bellmare - 22
  19. Kyoto Sanga - 22
  20. Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo - 12

Gotta love those J.League amazing scenes games. Kagoshima United score in the 90th to lead lowly Thespa Gunma. Gunma grabbed a point with an equaliser in the 97th! V-Varen Nagasaki left it until even later, their equaliser against Ventforet Kofu came in the 99th minute.

J2 League Round 24 results:

Fujieda MYFC 0-1 Ehime FC (9,640)
Kagoshima United 1-1 Thespa Gunma (5,227)
Blaublitz Akita 1-0 Renofa Yamaguchi (3,457)
Mito Hollyhock 2-2 Yokohama FC (4,482)
Ventforet Kofu 2-2 V-Varen Nagasaki (8,003)
Montedio Yamagata 1-2 Iwaki FC (9,670)
Tochigi SC 1-1 Fagiano Okayama (6,211)
JEF United Chiba 0-2 Roasso Kumamoto (12,135)
Tokushima Vortis 2-0 Vegalta Sendai (5,974)
Oita Trinita 0-2 Shimizu S-Pulse (9,773)

J2 League Round 24 standings:

  1. Shimizu S-Pulse - 52
  2. V-Varen Nagasaki - 51
  3. Yokohama FC - 50
  4. Fagiano Okayama - 41
  5. Renofa Yamaguchi - 38
  6. Vegalta Sendai - 38
  7. JEF United Chiba - 36
  8. Iwaki FC - 34
  9. Ehime FC - 34
  10. Tokushima Vortis - 32
  11. Blaublitz Akita - 31
  12. Fujieda MYFC - 30
  13. Montedio Yamagata - 29
  14. Oita Trinita - 28
  15. Roasso Kumamoto - 27
  16. Ventforet Kofu - 26
  17. Mito Hollyhock - 23
  18. Kagoshima United - 23
  19. Tochigi SC - 21
  20. Thespa Gunma - 13

J3 League Round 21 results:

Vanraure Hachinohe 1-0 Gainare Tottori (1,347)
YSCC 2-1 Fukushima United (1,843)
SC Sagamihara 1-0 Azul Claro Numazu (2,817)
AC Nagano Parceiro 0-0 Iwate Grulla Morioka (2,987)
Kataller Toyama 3-0 FC Ryukyu (3,706)
Omiya Ardija 1-0 Kamatamare Sanuki (8,338)
FC Gifu 1-1 Nara Club (4,162)
Matsumoto Yamaga 2-0 FC Osaka (5,213)
Giravanz Kitakyushu 1-0 Tegevajaro Miyazaki (3,670)
FC Imabari 3-0 Zweigen Kanazawa (3,672)

J3 League Round 21 standings:

  1. Omiya Ardija - 49
  2. FC Imabari - 36
  3. SC Sagamihara - 35
  4. Azul Claro Numazu - 34
  5. Kataller Toyama - 33
  6. Zweigen Kanazawa - 33
  7. FC Osaka - 32
  8. Giravanz Kitakyushu - 32
  9. Matsumoto Yamaga - 30
  10. FC Gifu - 30
  11. FC Ryukyu - 30
  12. Fukushima United - 29
  13. Vanraure Hachinohe - 29
  14. AC Nagano Parceiro - 25
  15. YSCC Yokohama - 24
  16. Nara Club - 22
  17. Gainare Tottori - 18
  18. Tegevajaro Miyazaki - 16
  19. Kamatamare Sanuki - 15
  20. Iwate Grulla Morioka - 14
2 Likes
122

60 mins gone. 0-4 up away to Urawa. Sapporo where have you been all season!

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Thespa Gunma last week, Consadole this week, it’s time for the losers to shine!

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I chose to watch Cerezo Osaka vs Albirex Niigata tonight. Mistake.

Vissel Kobe vs Nagoya Grampus is where it was at.

2-1 to Grampus as the 90th minute hits and Vissel equalise. They then go ahead 3-2 in the 93rd. Grampus steal the point with their 3rd goal with a penalty in the 10th minute of stoppage time.

J.League this season is the wildest for goals after 90 minutes. It’s epic.

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Regularly scheduled programming for Sapporo sure returned with a vengeance in the last 25 minutes of that game!

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Yeah, they definitely aren’t right this season. Very weak bench.

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Realised I can watch all the matches live on YouTube here in Europe.

Definitely going to start following

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Welcome aboard!

Do you have a favourite team or jumping on board with any club in particular?

129

Not yet.

Will watch a few matches and see. I’m off work for a bit so I’ll have plenty of time!

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Is this just a blip or is it the beginning of the end of the miracle dream? FC Machida Zelvia lose 2-1 to Kewell-less Yokohama F. Marinos in front of a 46k crowd at Tokyo National Stadium. Mitch Duke did score for Zelvia though, which was something. Gamba Osaka lost to Shonan Bellmare which means the gap remains at 5 points, but there is a long way to go yet for the new boys of J1.

J1 League Round 24 results:

FC Machida Zelvia 1-2 Yokohama F. Marinos (46,401)
Kashima Antlers 2-1 FC Tokyo (24,304)
Urawa Red Diamonds 3-4 Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo (35,429)
Kashiwa Reysol 2-3 Kawasaki Frontale (12,853)
Jubilo Iwata 1-2 Kyoto Sanga (11,831)
Gamba Osaka 0-1 Shonan Bellmare (22,655)
Cerezo Osaka 1-2 Albirex Niigata (18,468)
Vissel Kobe 3-3 Nagoya Grampus (23,650)
Avispa Fukuoka 0-1 Tokyo Verdy (12,356)
Sagan Tosu 1-4 Sanfrecce Hiroshima (12,144)

J1 League Round 24 standings:

  1. FC Machida Zelvia - 49
  2. Gamba Osaka - 44
  3. Kashima Antlers - 44
  4. Vissel Kobe - 42
  5. Sanfrecce Hiroshima - 40
  6. Cerezo Osaka - 37
  7. FC Tokyo - 36
  8. Avispa Fukuoka - 35
  9. Tokyo Verdy - 34
  10. Urawa Red Diamonds - 33
  11. Yokohama F. Marinos - 32
  12. Nagoya Grampus - 31
  13. Kashiwa Reysol - 29
  14. Kawasaki Frontale - 28
  15. Albirex Niigata - 28
  16. Shonan Bellmare - 25
  17. Kyoto Sanga - 25
  18. Jubilo Iwata - 24
  19. Sagan Tosu - 23
  20. Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo - 15

No J2 League this weekend

J3 League Round 22 results:

AC Nagano Parceiro 0-2 FC Imabari (2,839)
Azul Claro Numazu 2-1 FC Gifu (3,581)
FC Osaka 0-0 Omiya Ardija (4,610)
Giravanz Kitakyushu 0-0 Matsumoto Yamaga (5,488)
Fukushima United 3-0 Tegevajaro Miyazaki (1,407)
Zweigen Kanazawa 1-0 Vanraure Hachinohe (6,684)
Gainare Tottori 1-1 YSCC Yokohama (1,806)
Iwate Grulla Morioka 0-1 Kataller Toyama (1,293)
Kamatamare Sanuki 0-0 SC Sagamihara (1,607)
FC Ryukyu 1-4 Nara Club (3,035)

J3 League Round 22 standings:

  1. Omiya Ardija - 50
  2. FC Imabari - 39
  3. Azul Claro Numazu - 37
  4. Kataller Toyama - 36
  5. SC Sagamihara - 36
  6. Zweigen Kanazawa - 36
  7. FC Osaka - 33
  8. Giravanz Kitakyushu - 33
  9. Fukushima United - 32
  10. Matsumoto Yamaga - 31
  11. FC Gifu - 30
  12. FC Ryukyu - 30
  13. Vanraure Hachinohe - 29
  14. Nara Club - 25
  15. AC Nagano Parceiro - 25
  16. YSCC Yokohama - 25
  17. Gainare Tottori - 17
  18. Kamatamare Sanuki - 16
  19. Tegevajaro Miyazaki - 16
  20. Iwate Grulla Morioka - 14
1 Like
131

I can hardly keep up with 3 divisions in Italy, hardly get a look at the rest of Europe, a few highlights at best, how do you plan to watch also football from Japan? :laughing:

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I’m a teacher so I’m on 6 week school holidays at the moment. That’s how hahaha

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133

Olympics has taken over every factor of my life and I have no time for any other sports (or anything else) but this is a noteworthy news story.

Austrian beverage maker Red Bull has reached a broad agreement to acquire Japanese third-tier professional soccer team Omiya Ardija from telecoms operator Nippon Telegraph and Telephone East, Nikkei has learned.

The deal would mark the first time a foreign company takes sole ownership of a Japan Professional Football League team. J. League oversees all divisions of Japanese professional soccer.

Red Bull and NTT East will soon sign a final contract. NTT East currently owns 100% of Omiya Ardija’s management rights, which it plans to sell in its entirety to Red Bull by the end of the year. The club is based in Saitama prefecture, which borders Tokyo to the north.

Options are being discussed to reflect the new ownership in the team’s name, such as RB Omiya Ardija or Omiya RB Ardija. Any name change will require approval from the J. League board of directors. Company names cannot be included.

There are no restrictions or conditions on foreign ownership of J. League clubs. U.K.-based City Football Group, which owns the English Premier League club Manchester City, has about a 20% stake in top-tier J1 team Yokohama F. Marinos. But no club has ever been fully owned by a foreign entity.

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134

Ha! Suck it, Urawa.

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Just wrangled a new Optus login and more excited for a Friday night in with the pup watching the cellar dwellers of the J-League than for the EPL tomorrow.

Consadole Sapporo, 8 points adrift, but 3-0 up inside 15 minutes.

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Typically turgid J-League contest. :sweat_smile:

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137

Where’s the spoiler alert! :grin:

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Alright, after a fairly lengthy break due to the 2024 Olympics taking over my life and every other sporting, work and social relationship and interest being put on hold, I’m back and let’s take a peek at last week’s J.League. A lot has happened since last we had a squiz across the J.Leagues, but Machida Zelvia still hold the slender lead at the top of J1. Can Mitch Duke be a part of an alltime great football story, or will the dream end short of J1 championship glory?

Yokohama F. Marinos have done pretty much nothing but win since saying farewell to H. Kewell, this weekend saw a 4-0 win over Cerezo Osaka, all four coming in the second half.

J1 League Round 28 fixtures:

Gamba Osaka 2-2 Avispa Fukuoka (33,878)
Urawa Red Diamonds vs Kawasaki Frontale {POSTPONED}
Yokohama F. Marinos 4-0 Cerezo Osaka (47, 926)
Shonan Bellmare 0-1 Nagoya Grampus (12,797)
Kyoto Sanga 3-0 FC Tokyo (13,193)
Tokyo Verdy 2-1 Kashima Antlers (24,814)
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 2-0 Kashiwa Reysol (25,296)
Albirex Niigata 0-0 FC Machida Zelvia (18,588)
Jubilo Iwata 0-2 Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo (10,684)
Vissel Kobe 2-0 Sagan Tosu (18,875)

J1 League Round 28 standings:

  1. FC Machida Zelvia - 54
  2. Sanfrecce Hiroshima - 52
  3. Vissel Kobe - 49
  4. Kashima Antlers - 48
  5. Gamba Osaka - 48
  6. Yokohama F. Marinos - 41
  7. Avispa Fukuoka - 38
  8. Cerezo Osaka - 38
  9. FC Tokyo - 38
  10. Tokyo Verdy - 38
  11. Nagoya Grampus - 37
  12. Albirex Niigata - 36
  13. Urawa Red Diamonds - 35
  14. Kawasaki Frontale - 34
  15. Kyoto Sanga - 34
  16. Kashiwa Reysol - 33
  17. Shonan Bellmare - 29
  18. Jubilo Iwata - 28
  19. Sagan Tosu - 24
  20. Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo - 22

J2 League Round 28 results:

Yokohama FC 2-0 Tokushima Vortis (5,445)
Fujieda MYFC 0-1 Montedio Yamagata (3,769)
Fagiano Okayama 0-0 Oita Trinita (8,595)
V-Varen Nagasaki 1-2 Renofa Yamaguchi (10,108)
Kagoshima United 0-1 Shimizu S-Pulse (10,406)
Blaublitz Akita 0-0 Ehime FC (2,919)
Iwaki FC 3-4 Roasso Kumamoto (3,668)
Mito Hollyhock 2-1 Thespa Gunma (4,158)
Tochigi SC 1-2 Ventforet Kofu (5,654)
JEF United Chiba 4-2 Ventforet Kofu (12,689)

J2 League Round 28 standings:

  1. Shimizu S-Pulse - 61
  2. Yokohama FC - 60
  3. V-Varen Nagasaki - 52
  4. Renofa Yamaguchi - 47
  5. Vegalta Sendai - 47
  6. Fagiano Okayama - 45
  7. Iwaki FC - 43
  8. JEF United Chiba - 40
  9. Montedio Yamagata - 39
  10. Ehime FC - 38
  11. Blaublitz Akita - 36
  12. Tokushima Vortis - 36
  13. Fujieda MYFC - 36
  14. Ventforet Kofu - 35
  15. Mito Hollyhock - 32
  16. Oita Trinita - 32
  17. Roasso Kumamoto - 30
  18. Tochigi SC - 25
  19. Kagoshima United - 23
  20. Thespa Gunma - 13

J3 League Round 25 results:

AC Nagano Parceiro vs Omiya Ardija {POSTPONED}
Vanraure Hachinohe 2-1 SC Sagamihara (1,393)
Kataller Toyama 3-0 Matsumoto Yamaga (5,816)
Azul Claro Numazu 1-2 FC Imabari (2,671)
Zweigen Kanazawa 1-2 FC Ryukyu (6,759)
Nara Club 0-2 Giravanz Kitakyushu (1,968)
Gainare Tottori 2-1 FC Osaka (5,057)
Tegevajaro Miyazaki 3-0 Iwate Grulla Morioka (2,126)
FC Gifu 5-1 YSCC Yokohama (2,951)
Kamatamare Sanuki vs Fukushima United {POSTPONED}

J3 League Round 25 standings:

  1. Omiya Ardija - 56
  2. FC Imabari - 46
  3. Azul Claro Numazu - 43
  4. Kataller Toyama - 42
  5. Giravanz Kitakyushu - 42
  6. Zweigen Kanazawa - 39
  7. SC Sagamihara - 36
  8. Vanraure Hachinohe - 36
  9. FC Ryukyu - 36
  10. Matsumoto Yamaga - 35
  11. FC Osaka - 34
  12. Fukushima United - 33
  13. FC Gifu - 33
  14. AC Nagano Parceiro - 28
  15. Gainare Tottori - 28
  16. YSCC Yokohama - 26
  17. Nara Club - 25
  18. Kamatamare Sanuki - 22
  19. Tegevajaro Miyazaki - 19
  20. Iwate Grulla Morioka - 14
1 Like
139

WithYokohama F Marinos going so well, how likely is it that Hutchinson gets the job full time?

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It’s almost like Kewell isn’t very good at this managing business.

3 Likes