The 2008 J.League Division 1 season was the 44th season of the top-flight club football in Japan and the 16th season since the establishment of

J.League Division 1 The , the J.League or the for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Japan and the highest level of the Japanese football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation ...

. The season began on March 8 and ended on December 6. A total of eighteen clubs participated in double round-robin format. Starting this season, top three clubs received automatic qualification to the following years'

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League Elite (abbreviated as the ACL Elite) is an annual continental club association football, football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's List of top-division football clubs i ...

. The bottom two clubs were relegated to J.League Division 2 by default, while 16th-placed club had to defend their spot in the top-flight in the pro/rele series.

Clubs

The following 18 clubs participated in J.League Division 1 during 2008 season. Of these clubs, Consadole Sapporo, Tokyo Verdy, and Kyoto Purple Sanga are newly promoted clubs.

Personnel

Foreign players

Format

Eighteen clubs will play in double round-robin (home and away) format, a total of 34 games each. A club receives 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss. The clubs are ranked by points, and tie breakers are, in the following order: * Goal differential * Goals scored * Head-to-head results * Disciplinary points A draw would be conducted, if necessary. However, if two clubs are tied at the first place, both clubs will be declared as the champions. The bottom two clubs will be relegated to J2, while the 16th placed club plays a two-legged promotion/relegation Series. The champions of this season qualifies to the

and one to three more clubs may also qualify. ;Changes from Previous Year * Introduction of Disciplinary points for tie breaker (2008–) * Top three clubs will qualify to

* The J.League will not qualify to the abolished

A3 Champions Cup A3 Champions Cup (also known as East Asian Champions Cup) was an annual football (soccer) tournament jointly organized by the China PR, Japan and Korea Republic football Association. It began in 2003, involving the league champions of Chinese Supe ...

Table

Results

Player statistics

Top scorers

Top assists

Awards

Individual awards

Best Eleven

Attendances

References

External links

J. League Official Site (English)
{{J1 League champions J1 League seasons 1

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...