Japan Football League (1992-1998)

This article describes the second highest Japanese football league, which existed from 1992 to 1998. For today's fourth division of the same name see Japan Football League .

Japan Football League
Full name	Japan Football League Japanese ジ ャ パ ン フ ッ ト ボ ー ル リ ー グ
abbreviation	JFL
Association	Japan Football Association
First edition	1992
Teams	16
^ J. League ↓ Several regional leagues

The Japan Football League ( Japanese ジ ャ パ ン フ ッ ト ボ ー ル リ ー グ Japan Futtobōru Līgu ) was a Japanese football league that existed from 1992 to 1998. After founding the professional league J. League , it was located on the second highest level of the Japanese league pyramid.

history

Vissel Kobe versus NTT Kanto at the Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium , 1995

When the Japanese Football Association decided to found a professional league, the Japan Soccer League (JSL), which was the top division in the country until the end of the 1991/92 season, was restructured into two new leagues. Of the total of 28 clubs in the two divisions of the JSL, nine formed the professional league J. League together with Shimizu S-Pulse , one (Yomiuri Junior) was merged with their first team , while the other eighteen teams decided to at least temporarily get their amateur status to keep.

The first season was held in two divisions of ten teams each; in addition to the eighteen former JSL clubs, the two winners of the national regional league finals , Osaka Gas SC and Seino Transportation SC, were included in the league. As early as 1994, however, after a series of withdrawals, both divisions were merged, from then on they played with one division and sixteen clubs.

The league was eventually disbanded with the imminent formation of J. League Division 2 (J2) at the end of the 1998 season. Of the sixteen teams last season, nine were accepted into the J2, while the remaining seven moved to the new Japan Football League .

List of masters, promoted and relegated

season	master	Runner-up	Promoted after the season	Regional league promoted before the season	Relegated after the season
1992	D1 - Yamaha D2 - Chuo Bohan Fujieda	D1 - Hitachi D2 - Kyoto Shiko Club	-	Ōsaka Gas SC Seinō Transportation SC	Tanabe Pharmaceutical SC Osaka Gas SC
1993	D1 - Bellmare Hiratsuka D2 - Honda FC	D1 - Júbilo Iwata D2 - PJM Futures	Bellmare Hiratsuka Júbilo Iwata	Toyota Motors Higashi-Fuji FC PJM Futures	Toho Titanium SC NKK FC (dissolved) Toyota Motors Higashi-Fuji FC (dissolved)
1994	Cerezo Osaka	Kashiwa Reysol	Cerezo Osaka Kashiwa Reysol	NEC Yamagata SC	-
1995	Fukuoka Blux	Kyoto Purple Sanga	Fukuoka Blux Kyoto Purple Sanga	Brummell Sendai Fukushima FC	-
1996	Honda FC	Vissel Kobe	Vissel Kobe	Nippon Denso FC Ōita FC	Cosmo Oil Yokkaichi (dissolved) Tosu Futures (dissolved)
1997	Consadole Sapporo	Tokyo Gas FC	Consadole Sapporo	Prima Ham FC Tsuchiura Jatco FC Sagan Tosu (new club, replaces Tosu Futures)	Fukushima FC (dissolved) Seino Transportation FC (dissolved)
1998	Tokyo Gas FC	Kawasaki Frontale	-	Albirex Niigata Sony Sendai FC Kokushikan University SC (proposed by the University Association)	-
			* The following clubs were accepted into the J. League Division 2 : Brummell Sendai, Montedio Yamagata , Ōmiya Ardija , Tokyo Gas FC, Kawasaki Frontale, Ventforet Kofu , Albirex Niigata , Sagan Tosu, Ōita FC

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Japan 1991/92 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
2. ↑ Japan 1993 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
3. ↑ Japan 1994 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
4. ↑ Japan 1995 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
5. ↑ Japan 1996 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
6. ↑ Japan 1997 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
7. ↑ Japan 1998 . Rec.Sport.Soccer. Retrieved December 15, 2014.