Japanese association football league system

The Japanese association football league system is organized in a pyramidal shape similar to football league systems in many other countries around the world. The leagues are bound by the principle of promotion and relegation; however, there are stringent criteria for promotion from the JFL to J3, which demands a club being backed by the town itself including the local government, a community of fans and corporate sponsors rather than a parent company or a corporation.

The top three levels of the Japanese football league system are operated by the J. League, which consists of J1 League (J1), J2 League, and J3 League. All of the clubs in the J. League are fully professional.

The fourth level, the Japan Football League (JFL) is a semi-professional league consisting of amateur, professional, and company clubs from all over Japan.

At the fifth and sixth levels, nine parallel regional leagues are operated by nine different regional football associations, some of which have multiple divisions. The regional associations are divided by political or geographical boundaries.

At the seventh level and below, parallel prefectural leagues are hosted by each of the 46 different prefectural football associations, again divided by political or geographical boundaries. Some have multiple divisions.

(Meiji Yasuda J1 League)
18 clubs

↓ 3 relegation spots (2017 season)

(Meiji Yasuda J2 League)

22 clubs

↑ 2 promotion spots + 4 promotion playoffs spots (2017 season)

↓ 2 relegation spots

(Meiji Yasuda J3 League)

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Wikipedia