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The J.League and Rakuten held a joint press conference on Monday to announce their newly-formed partnership, with the e-commerce company set to become the J.League’s Official EC Platform Partner. The deal will see the J.League Online Store re-launched in late July on Rakuten’s online shopping platform, Rakuten Marketplace. “We recogn…

The fifth match day of the 2017 AFC Champions League Group Stage wrapped up on Wednesday night with both Japanese representatives earning full points in resounding fashion. Urawa Reds advanced to the Round of 16 with a 6-1 win over visiting Western Sydney Wanderers. Takahiro Sekine, Zlatan and Tadanari Lee made it 3-0 in the first half at Saitama Stadium…

The third round of the 2017 J.League YBC Levain Cup Group Stage took place on Wednesday night, with six matches taking place across the two groups. Group A leaders Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo took the lead against Omiya Ardija when Japanese legend Shinji Ono scored in the 16th minute, but they were unable to extend their winning streak to three matches af…

The penultimate match day of the 2017 AFC Champions League group stage took place on Tuesday night, with two J.League clubs in need of big results to stay in contention for qualification to next month’s Round of 16. After opening their campaign with four straight draws, Kawasaki Frontale hoped for their first win of the tournament when they travele…

The 97th Emperor’s Cup kicked off over the weekend with an opening round featuring representatives from each of Japan’s prefectures, including 10 clubs from the MEIJI YASUDA J3 League. While Giravanz Kitakyushu got off to an enthusiastic start with a 10-0 win over R-Velho Takamatsu, teams such as AC Nagano Parceiro, Azul Claro Numazu and Kata…

The ninth round of the MEIJI YASUDA J2 League saw Tokyo Verdy climb back to the top of the ladder with a 3-1 win over Thespa Kusatsu Gunma. A goal from Douglas Viera as well as an Alan Pinheiro brace were enough to overcome Shohei Okada’s strike on the hour, ending Verdy’s two-match losing streak and maintaining Thespa’s status as the o…

Urawa Reds grind out a 3-2 win over Consadole Sapporo on Saturday to maintain their lead at the top of the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League. Gamba Osaka’s 6-0 win over bottom side Omiya Ardija saw them put pressure on Mihailo Petrovic’s men before kick-off, and the Reds endured several nervy moments before they secured the win.  Shinzo Koroki a…

Shimizu S-Pulse striker Shota Kaneko scored the J1 League’s 20,000th goal on Friday night, nearly 24 years after the league’s first-ever match. The 21-year-old bundled in captain Chong Tese’s cross from an unmarked position on the far post in the 14th minute, giving the visitors a 1-0 lead at Kawasaki Frontale. While Hiroyuki Abe and…

With the 20,000th goal in the history of the MEIJI YASUDA J1 League expected to be scored in one of Friday night’s matches, there is no better time to remember some of the J.League’s memorial goals: The first goal in the history of the league came on May 15, 1993, when Verdy Kawasaki’s Hennie Meijer found the back of the net against Yok…

The J.League Under-17 Selection has returned to Japan following their third-place finish in the ABN Amro Future Cup, a Netherlands-hosted international tournament featuring some of Europe’s top academy sides. After a flawless group stage featuring wins against Ajax, Juventus, and Benfica, the team narrowly lost to Bayern Munich in the semi-finals b…

Omiya Ardija on Tuesday announced that attacking midfielder Nejc Pecnik will miss the next four weeks due to injury. The Slovenia international tore a muscle in his right hip during the team’s 0-0 draw against Kashiwa Reysol on April 12 in J.League YBC Levain Cup group stages. Pecnik, who is in his second season with Ardija after arriving in Jap…

Officials from the Japan Football Association spoke to reporters in Tokyo on Monday to promote the 97th Emperor’s Cup, which kicks off this coming weekend. The opening round of the country’s top cup tournament will be contested by 47 prefectural representatives as well as reigning Japan Football League champions Honda FC. J1 and J2 League …

FC Tokyo Under-23 striker Takefusa Kubo became the youngest player to score a goal in a J.League match on Saturday during his team’s MEIJI YASUDA J3 League match against Cerezo Osaka U-23. Kubo’s 38th-minute goal came at 15 years, 10 months and 11 days, besting the previous J3 record held by Cerezo’s Reiya Morishita of 17 years, five mo…

Gamba Osaka on Friday announced an injury to star striker Ademilson. The Brazilian, who leads the team with two goals in the 2017 MEIJI YASUDA J1 League, suffered a tear in his right adductor muscle during a training session on April 9. The club has not announced a timetable for his return.

Yokohama F. Marinos on Thursday announced that striker Cayman Togashi will miss three weeks of action after tearing his left hamstring. The 23-year-old sustained the injury in training earlier this week which is expected to further curtail his involvement in the important month of April.  Togashi impact has been limited this season, with one goal…

Japanese teams struggled on Wednesday night in the fourth round of the 2017 AFC Champions League Group Stage. Kashima Antlers found themselves trailing Australia’s Brisbane Roar 2-0 midway through their away match and were unable to complete a comeback after Ryota Nagaki cut the deficit to 2-1 in the 79th minute. The defending J.League champions…

The J.League YBC Levain Cup resumed on Wednesday evening with six group stage matches taking place around the country. Ryosuke Shindo’s goal propelled Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo to the top of Group A in their 1-0 win at Shimizu S-Pulse. Further north, striker Crislan scored his first goal for Vegalta Sendai in their 2-0 victory over Jubilo Iwata…

Two J.League clubs attained mixed results on Tuesday night in their 2017 AFC Champions League group stage matches. Urawa Reds welcomed Chinese powerhouse Shanghai SIPG to Saitama Stadium, escaping with a 1-0 win thanks to Rafael Silva’s goal just before half-time.  Goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa stopped Oscar’s penalty kick in the 65th …

Kashiwa Reysol have upgraded striker Koki Oshima to a ‘Pro A’ contract after the player reached the required amount of playing time. The 20-year-old has earned 450 minutes of playing time in J.League-sanctioned competitions, a number which includes one third of his total playing time in the MEIJI YASUDA J3 League. “I’m happy to…

Nagoya Grampus have moved to the top of the J2 League table after the seventh round of the 2017 MEIJI YASUDA J2 League. Goals by Keiji Tamada and Ryuji Sugimoto were enough to overcome Hironori Ishi’s equaliser in the team’s 2-1 win over Kamatamare Sanuki in the friendly confines of Paloma Mizuho Stadium. Previous leaders Tokyo Verdy fell …