The J-League For Dummies

Liam Ring

Welcome to the J-League. Is this your first time? Well, here's the lowdown…

Why J League?

Before the J-League, Japan lacked any kind of professional football structure. Indeed with the exception of a third place finish at the Mexico Olympics in the late sixties, Japanese soccer fans had little or nothing to shout about. Company teams dotted the landscape but this was hardly the ideal starting point for Japan to launch itself into the international football community.

The gradual introduction of Japanese players to foreign leagues helped to change this, as did television coverage of European and South American competitions. But for a baseball-obsessed nation, soccer still seemed a poor relation. The start of J-league in 1993, coupled with Japan's co-hosting of the 2002 World Cup, has helped to raise the profile of the beautiful game to, if not a similar level to baseball, then at least to a comparable one.

A foreigner's perspective

Back in the heady days of J League's beginnings, it was probably most famous in the UK for one man, Gary Lineker. The former England striker arrived at Nagoya Grampus Eight in '93 amid much fanfare and not a little suspicion as to just how much money it took to bring him over. A similar path was to be trod by such maturing luminaries as Zico and Guido Buchwald. The idea of playing in Japan was seen by some as the 'last chance saloon' for a flagging career and even though crowds flocked to see their heroes, the idea that "he must be good 'cos he's a foreigner" led to more than one dodgy import trying to ply his trade over here.

Facilities

Japan's co-hosting of the 2002 World Cup has made top of the range stadiums available to many clubs. Many of these stadiums can house 40,000 or more fans. Pick of the bunch are Saitama Stadium, home of the Urawa Red Diamonds and Vissel Kobe's "Wing" Stadium. Both are brand new, football-only arenas with no running tracks to separate the fans from the action.

The world famous Sapporo Dome is perhaps the crowning achievement with a real grass pitch that can be "hovered" in and out of the covered arena. Japan's excellent transport infrastructure means that most stadiums are easily reached and you can buy food and beer at the venue or bring your own. You can also drink in the stands - something that may surprise some European fans.

Most successful teams

A quick look at the honor roll of J-league and Cup winners shows a small group of top names. Tokyo Verdy will be hoping their recent Emperor's Cup triumph marks a return to the old days. Other top clubs include Jubilo Iwata, Kashima Antlers and of course Yokohama F Marinos under the tutelage of Takeshi Okada, the former national team boss. Urawa Red Diamonds too are gunning for a place in the elite but the trophy cabinet isn't as full as the fans would wish.

Outside of Kanto (Eastern Japan, Tokyo area), teams have struggled to build on the J-League's initial bubble of popularity due to inconsistent support and financial problems. Diehard baseball culture may have something to do with the relative weakness of teams from Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. Top of the Kansai ladder are Cerezo Osaka who have given fans little to celebrate since coming within a whisker of winning the first stage of the J-league in 2000.

Players

Perhaps it is a measure of J1's success that so many top Japanese players are plying their trade abroad. Hidetoshi Nakata and Shunsuke Nakamura are both well established in Italy, Naohiro Takahara is with Hamburg SV and Shinji Ono is a regular at Feyenoord. Yoshito Okubo has gotten off to a blistering start at Mallorca in Spain, which is a source of both pride and dismay for fans of his previous club, Cerezo Osaka. Koji Nakata (no relation of the aforementioned Hidetoshi) has joined former Japan coach Philippe Trousier at Marseilles. Two players who are returning to the J-league this year are former Portsmouth goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi (at Jubilo Iwata) and ex-Tottenham Hotspur player Kazuyuki Toda (at Tokyo Verdy).
Among the current crop of foreign stars in J1, Cameroon international, Patrick Mboma has recently joined Vissel Kobe while Urawa will hope that star striker Emerson continues the form which almost brought them championship gold last year.

Support your local gunfighter

Ticket prices depend upon where you'd like to sit, starting from as little as ¥1,500. They can be bought on the day or through the club in advance. They can also be picked up at convenience stores such as Lawsons or Family Mart. Though some knowledge of Japanese will be necessary to work the machines, friendly convenience store employees are usually willing to help.

Match tickets are also often cheaper if they're bought in advance. For the really committed, season tickets or 'passports' as they are known are the best option. Again prices vary depending both on seating and the relative strength of your chosen outfit. Expect to pay between ¥10,000 and ¥30,000 for your J-league passport.

Teams are dotted throughout the country, with a particular concentration in the Kanto area. Kansai are represented in J1 by Vissel, Gamba and Cerezo. Kyushu's only J1 outfit is Oita Trinita though they have two sides in J2, Sagan Tosu and Avispa Fukuoka, the latter being narrowly beaten to place in J1 last year by Kashiwa Reysol. Fans in Hokkaido have only J2's Consadole Sapporo to cheer for. Shikoku has just gained its first J2 representative in the form of Tokushima Vortis.

So how about 2004 then?

2004 saw the last Suntory Championship, where the winners of the two J-league stages faced off for the grand prize. The season began promisingly for Jubilo Iwata as they beat Cerezo Osaka to win the Emperor's Cup. What followed for Cerezo was not as bad as Kyoto Purple Sanga's 2003 experience (namely relegation to J2) but what started well turned into a season to forget. They only managed to avoid a relegation play-off due to an excellent finish to their season and Kashiwa's collapse.

At the top, 2004 initially looked like it would be a repeat of 2003 with Yokohama F Marinos winning the first stage. However Okada's men faded in the second stage and Urawa Red Diamonds, led by goal machine Emerson won the second stage with a few games to spare. In spite of missing key players, Yokohama came through in the final courtesy of a penalty shoot-out. As Okada had said before the game, we don't need a lot of goals, just one or two.

And for 2005?

This year's World Cup qualifiers will see soccer hitting the front pages, especially in the politically charged matches with North Korea. In spite of last year's Asian Cup success in China, Zico will be under a lot of pressure to get Japan to Germany.

Domestically Urawa and Yokohama are set to continue their rivalry. It's been reported that the two clubs tussled in the transfer market, particular over Urawa midfielder Koji Yamase, indicating another challenging season ahead. Watch out for Tokyo Verdy too who have made some interesting signings in the close season and will hope that Brazilian striker Washington will make as big an impact as his fellow countryman Emerson.

Outside Kanto, Gamba are gearing up for what they hope will be a sustained effort at wresting the title from Eastern dominance. Looking at the strugglers from 2004, time will tell whether or not Cerezo will be able to fend off challenges from the newly promoted sides without their star man, Okubo.

The combination of World Cup football and the new single stage J-League will ensure a high profile for football in what is expected to be one of the most exciting seasons since its inception.

Liam Ring