2012 season

Japanese football in 2012

Domestic leagues

Promotion and relegation

Teams relegated from J.League Division 1

Teams promoted to J.League Division 1

Teams relegated from J.League Division 2

No relegation to the Japan Football League

Teams promoted to J.League Division 2

J.League Division 1

Sanfrecce Hiroshima won the J. League title, their first in 42 years and first in the J. League era, marking their sixth time overall atop the Japanese football league system. Vegalta Sendai, which led the table riding on the wave of their fourth-place finish the previous year, ended up in second place after Albirex Niigata defeated them in the round before last. Urawa Red Diamonds was able to pass four other teams, including newly promoted Sagan Tosu, who surprisingly was in third place in the penultimate round.

Consadole Sapporo was relegated on September 30, the earliest a team has been relegated in the modern-day era. Niigata's victory enabled them to climb to safety while Vissel Kobe was relegated after six seasons. Gamba Osaka, despite scoring more goals than anyone else, had a poor defense and allowed many goals in, causing them to be relegated after 26 seasons in the top division.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Sanfrecce Hiroshima (C) 34 19 7 8 63 34 +29 64 Qualification to 2012 Club World Cup and 2013 Champions League
2 Vegalta Sendai 34 15 12 7 59 43 +16 57 Qualification to 2013 Champions League[lower-alpha 1]
3 Urawa Red Diamonds 34 15 10 9 47 42 +5 55
4 Yokohama F. Marinos 34 13 14 7 44 33 +11 53
5 Sagan Tosu 34 15 8 11 48 39 +9 53
6 Kashiwa Reysol 34 15 7 12 57 52 +5 52 Qualification to 2013 Champions League[lower-alpha 1]
7 Nagoya Grampus 34 15 7 12 46 47 −1 52
8 Kawasaki Frontale 34 14 8 12 51 50 +1 50
9 Shimizu S-Pulse 34 14 7 13 39 40 −1 49
10 FC Tokyo 34 14 6 14 47 44 +3 48
11 Kashima Antlers 34 12 10 12 50 43 +7 46
12 Júbilo Iwata 34 13 7 14 57 53 +4 46
13 Omiya Ardija 34 11 11 12 38 45 −7 44
14 Cerezo Osaka 34 11 9 14 47 53 −6 42
15 Albirex Niigata 34 10 10 14 29 34 −5 40
16 Vissel Kobe (R) 34 11 6 17 41 50 −9 39 Relegation to 2013 J.League Division 2
17 Gamba Osaka (R) 34 9 11 14 67 65 +2 38
18 Consadole Sapporo (R) 34 4 2 28 25 88 −63 14
Updated to match(es) played on 1 December 2012. Source: J.League Division 1
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. 1 2 The winners of the 2012 Emperor's Cup qualified for the group stage of the 2013 AFC Champions League.

J.League Division 2

Ventforet Kofu returned to the top flight at the first attempt, but this time they did so as champions. Shonan Bellmare returned to the top division as well, after two seasons. Oita Trinita, despite overwhelming odds due to its position and the playoff rules which favored the three higher-ranked teams, won the playoff and returned to the top flight after three seasons.

Newly promoted Machida Zelvia, despite hiring Osvaldo Ardiles as their manager, could not cope with professionalism and finished in bottom place, being relegated as V-Varen Nagasaki won the JFL championship.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Ventforet Kofu (C, P) 42 24 14 4 63 35 +28 86 Promotion to 2013 J.League Division 1
2 Shonan Bellmare (P) 42 20 15 7 66 43 +23 75
3 Kyoto Sanga 42 23 5 14 61 45 +16 74 Qualification for promotion playoffs
4 Yokohama FC 42 22 7 13 62 45 +17 73
5 JEF United Chiba 42 21 9 12 61 33 +28 72
6 Oita Trinita (O, P) 42 21 8 13 59 40 +19 71
7 Tokyo Verdy 42 20 6 16 65 46 +19 66
8 Fagiano Okayama 42 17 14 11 41 34 +7 65
9 Giravanz Kitakyushu 42 19 7 16 53 47 +6 64
10 Montedio Yamagata 42 16 13 13 51 49 +2 61
11 Tochigi SC 42 17 9 16 50 49 +1 60
12 Matsumoto Yamaga 42 15 14 13 46 43 +3 59
13 Mito HollyHock 42 15 11 16 47 49 −2 56
14 Roasso Kumamoto 42 15 10 17 40 48 −8 55
15 Tokushima Vortis 42 13 12 17 45 49 −4 51
16 Ehime FC 42 12 14 16 47 46 +1 50
17 Thespa Kusatsu 42 12 11 19 31 45 −14 47
18 Avispa Fukuoka 42 9 14 19 53 68 −15 41
19 Kataller Toyama 42 9 11 22 38 59 −21 38
20 Gainare Tottori 42 11 5 26 33 78 −45 38
21 FC Gifu 42 7 14 21 27 55 −28 35
22 Machida Zelvia (R) 42 7 11 24 34 67 −33 32 Relegation to 2013 Japan Football League[lower-alpha 1]
Updated to match(es) played on 11 November 2012. Source: J.League Division 2
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd goal differential; 3rd goals scored; 4th head-to-head results; 5th disciplinary points; 6th draw. If two clubs are tied for first place, both clubs will be declared champions.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ↑ The promotion and relegation between J2 and JFL will take place only if more than one promotion-eligible (i.e. having a J.League Associate Membership) JFL team finished above second place and playoff will be played only if a eligible JFL team finished in second place(See the corresponding section for further details). As only 2012 Japan Football League Champion V-Varen Nagasaki has the Associate Membership among the top 2 teams. Machida Zelvia was relegated immediately but no relegation/playoff was taken place for FC Gifu which finished 21st.

Japan Football League

Although Arte Takasaki withdrew from the league due to economic problems, the JFL decided to go with a 17-team format. V-Varen Nagasaki won the tournament, joining the professional ranks automatically.

Sagawa Shiga withdrew after the league following parent company Sagawa Express's decision to close the team, leaving Tochigi Uva to playout against the Regional League promotion series third place.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 V-Varen Nagasaki[lower-alpha 1] (C, P) 32 20 7 5 57 24 +33 67 Promotion to 2013 J.League Division 2
2 Nagano Parceiro 32 17 7 8 57 34 +23 58
3 Sagawa Shiga (R) 32 16 9 7 61 37 +24 57 Withdrawn[lower-alpha 2]
4 Kamatamare Sanuki 32 15 8 9 49 29 +20 53
5 Honda FC 32 16 5 11 55 39 +16 53
6 YSCC Yokohama 32 15 4 13 58 50 +8 49
7 SP Kyoto 32 12 9 11 43 43 0 45
8 MIO Biwako Shiga 32 11 10 11 53 52 +1 43
9 FC Ryukyu 32 12 7 13 58 62 −4 43
10 Yokogawa Musashino 32 11 8 13 35 50 −15 41
11 Fujieda MYFC 32 11 7 14 39 48 −9 40
12 Sony Sendai 32 9 12 11 27 29 −2 39
13 Blaublitz Akita 32 9 10 13 33 41 −8 37
14 Zweigen Kanazawa 32 8 12 12 33 41 −8 36
15 Hoyo Oita 32 9 8 15 40 57 −17 35
16 Honda Lock 32 7 7 18 28 56 −28 28
17 Tochigi Uva 32 4 10 18 36 70 −34 22 Qualification for pro/rel playoffs
Updated to match(es) played on 18 November 2012. Source: Japan Football League
Rules for classification: 1st points; 2nd goal differential; 3rd goals scored; 4th head-to-head results; 5th disciplinary points; 6th draw.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ↑ V-Varen Nagasaki topped the table at the end of the 17th round and thus were awarded JFL seed for 2012 Emperor's Cup.[1]
  2. ↑ On 21 October Sagawa Express Co., the owner and operator of Sagawa Shiga FC, have announced that after the season the club will withdraw from JFL and cease its operations.[2]

Japanese Regional Leagues

Kantō champions SC Sagamihara and Tōhoku champions Fukushima United won first and second place in the Regional League promotion series, thus being promoted automatically, while Hokkaidō champions Norbritz Hokkaido battled in the playout against Tochigi Uva but lost.

Domestic cups

Emperor's Cup

Gamba Osaka0–1Kashiwa Reysol
Watanabe 35'
Attendance: 46,480

J. League Cup

Shimizu S-Pulse1–2 (a.e.t.)Kashima Antlers
Omae 77' (pen.) Report Shibasaki 73' (pen.), 93'
Attendance: 45,228

Japanese Super Cup

Kashiwa Reysol2–1FC Tokyo
Wagner 27'
Leandro 45' (pen.)		 Report 64' Aria
Attendance: 35,453[3]

International club competitions

Suruga Bank Championship

FIFA Club World Cup

Will take place between 6 and 16 December 2012. Since the tournament is hosted in Japan the winners of the J. League will be invited to take part. If the AFC Champions League winner is from Japan, then the highest placed non-Japanese team of the AFC Champions League will be invited in place of the J. League winner.

National team (Men)

Results

23 February 2012 International Friendly (2012 Kirin Cup) Japan  3–1  Iceland Japan Osaka, Japan
19:20 JST (UTC+9) Maeda 2'
Fujimoto 53'
Makino 79'		 [ JFA]
Summary		 Smárason 90+3' (pen.) Stadium: Nagai Stadium
Attendance: 42,579
Referee: Chris Beath (Australia)
29 February 2012 2014 World Cup Qualifier Japan  0–1  Uzbekistan Japan Aichi, Japan
19:30 JST (UTC+9) Report
Summary		 Shadrin 54' Stadium: Toyota Stadium
Attendance: 42,720
Referee: Abdullah Balideh (Qatar)
23 May 2012 International Friendly
(2012 Kirin Cup)		 Japan  2–0  Azerbaijan Japan Fukuroi, Japan
19:15 JST (UTC+9) Kagawa 43'
Nabiyev 58' (o.g.)		 [ JFA]
Summary		 Stadium: Shizuoka Stadium
Attendance: 35,000
Referee: Malik Abdul Bashir (Singapore)
3 June 2012 2014 World Cup Qualifier Japan  3–0  Oman Japan Saitama, Japan
19:30 JST (UTC+9) Honda 11'
Maeda 51'
Okazaki 54'		 JFA Report Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002
Attendance: 63,551
Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)
8 June 2012 2014 World Cup Qualifier Japan  6–0  Jordan Japan Saitama, Japan
19:30 JST (UTC+9) Maeda 19'
Honda 22', 31', 54' (pen.)
Kagawa 34'
Kurihara 90'		 Report Deeb Yellow card 25' Yellow-red card 27' Stadium: Saitama Stadium 2002
Attendance: 60,874
Referee: Kim Dong Jin (Korea Republic)
12 June 2012 2014 World Cup Qualifier Australia  1–1  Japan Australia Brisbane, Australia
19:00 JST (UTC+9) Milligan Yellow card 25' Yellow-red card 55'
Wilkshire 69 pen'		 Report Kurihara 64'
Kurihara Yellow card 23' Yellow-red card 89'		 Stadium: Suncorp Stadium
Attendance: 40,189
Referee: Khalil Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabia)
15 August 2012 International Friendly (2012 Kirin Cup) Japan  1–1  Venezuela Japan Hokkaidō, Japan
19:30 JST (UTC+9) Endō 15' Summary Miku 62' Stadium: Sapporo Dome
Attendance: 39,396
Referee: Min-Hu Lee (Korea Republic)
7 September 2012 International Friendly (2012 Kirin Cup) Japan  1–0  United Arab Emirates Japan Niigata, Japan
19:20 JST (UTC+9) Havenaar 69' Summary Stadium: Tohoku Denryoku Big Swan Stadium
Attendance: 42,020
Referee: Mingyu Ma (China PR)
13 October 2012 International Friendly France  0–1  Japan France Saint-Denis, France
04:00 JST (UTC+9) Summary Hasebe Yellow card 34'
Kagawa 88'		 Stadium: Stade de France
Attendance: 55,000
Referee: William Collum (Scotland)
16 October 2012 International Friendly Japan  0–4  Brazil Poland Wrocław, Poland
21:10 JST (UTC+9) Summary Paulinho 12'
Neymar 25' (pen.), 48'
Kaká 76'		 Stadium: Municipal Stadium
Referee: Marcin Borski (Poland)

Players statistics

Player-201102.2402.2905.2306.0306.0806.1208.1509.0609.1110.1210.1611.142012Total
Yasuhito Endo113(9)OO-OOOO(1)OOOOO11(1)124(10)
Yuichi Komano67(1)OO----OOO---5(0)72(1)
Kengo Nakamura56(6)O-O-O-OO-OO-7(0)63(6)
Yasuyuki Konno55(1)OO-OOO---OOO8(0)63(1)
Yoshito Okubo53(5)O-----------1(0)54(5)
Makoto Hasebe52(2)-OOOOOOOOOOO11(0)63(2)
Shinji Okazaki49(26)-OO(1)O(1)OOOOO--O(1)9(3)58(29)
Atsuto Uchida45(1)-OOOOO---OO-7(0)52(1)
Yuto Nagatomo44(3)-OOOOOO-OOOO10(0)54(3)
Keisuke Honda31(8)--OO(1)O(3)OOOO-OO9(4)40(12)
Shinji Kagawa28(9)-OO(1)OO(1)OOO-O(1)O-9(3)37(12)
Eiji Kawashima28(0)-OOOOOOOOOOO11(0)39(0)
Ryoichi Maeda16(6)O(1)-OO(1)O(1)OO-O(1)--O8(4)24(10)
Maya Yoshida13(2)-O-OO-OOOOOO9(0)22(2)
Tadanari Lee10(2)-O----------1(0)11(2)
Hajime Hosogai10(1)--OO--OOOOOO8(0)18(1)
Jungo Fujimoto10(0)O(1)O----O-----3(1)13(1)
Takayuki Morimoto9(3)--O---------1(0)10(3)
Masahiko Inoha9(1)O-O-OOOOO---7(0)16(1)
Yuzo Kurihara8(0)O-O-O(1)O(1)----O-5(2)13(2)
Tomoaki Makino8(0)O(1)-O---O-----3(1)11(1)
Shusaku Nishikawa7(0)O-----------1(0)8(0)
Mike Havenaar5(2)-O-----O(1)OO--4(1)9(3)
Hiroshi Kiyotake5(0)---O-O-OOOOO(1)7(1)12(1)
Naohiro Ishikawa5(0)O-----------1(0)6(0)
Takashi Inui3(0)-O-------OO-3(0)6(0)
Hiroki Mizumoto3(0)------OO----2(0)5(0)
Yosuke Kashiwagi3(0)O-----------1(0)4(0)
Ryota Moriwaki1(0)O-----------1(0)2(0)
Hiroki Sakai0(0)--OO-O-O-OOO7(0)7(0)
Hideto Takahashi0(0)--O----O-O-O4(0)4(0)
Ryo Miyaichi0(0)--O-------O-2(0)2(0)
Gotoku Sakai0(0)-------O---O2(0)2(0)
Chikashi Masuda0(0)O-----------1(0)1(0)
Junya Tanaka0(0)O-----------1(0)1(0)
Naoya Kondo0(0)O-----------1(0)1(0)

Goal scorers

Place Position Name Friendlies Kirin Cup WC Qualifying Total
1MFKeisuke Honda0044
FWRyoichi Maeda0134
3MFShinji Kagawa0112
DFYuzo Kurihara0022
FWShinji Okazaki0022
6MFJungo Fujimoto0101
DFTomoaki Makino0101
MFYasuhito Endō0101
Own Goal0101
FWMike Havenaar0101
FWHiroshi Kiyotake0011
TOTALS 161320

National team (Women)

Results

2012.02.29 Japan 2–1 Norway Portugal
Nagasato ?'
Kawasumi ?'		 ? ?'
2012.03.02 Japan 2–0 Denmark Portugal
Sugasawa ?'
Ono ?'
2012.03.07 Japan 3–4 Germany Portugal
Kawasumi ?'
Tanaka ?'
Nagasato ?'		 ? ?'
? ?'
? ?'
? ?'
2012.04.01 Japan 1–1 United States Miyagi, Japan
Kinga ?' ? ?' Stadium: Sendai Stadium
2012.04.05 Japan 4–1 Brazil Hyogo, Japan
?' (o.g.)
Nagasato ?'
Miyama ?'
Sugasawa ?'		 ? ?' Stadium: Kobe Wing Stadium
2012.06.18 Japan 1–4 United States Sweden
Nagasato ?' ? ?'
? ?'
? ?'
? ?'
2012.06.20 Japan 1–0 Sweden Sweden
Nagasato ?'
2012.07.19 Japan 0–2 France France
? ?'
? ?'
2012.07.25 Japan 2–1 Canada England
Kawasumi ?'
Miyama ?'		 ? ?'
2012.07.28 Japan 0–0 Sweden England
2012.08.03 Japan 2–0 Brazil Wales
Ogimi ?'
Ono ?'
2012.08.06 Japan 2–1 France England
Ogimi ?'
Sakaguchi ?'		 ? ?'
2012.08.09 Japan 1–2 United States England
Ogimi ?' ? ?'
? ?'

Players statistics

Player-201102.2903.0203.0503.0704.0104.0506.1806.2007.1107.1907.2507.2807.3108.0308.0608.092012Total
Homare Sawa177(80)O-----OOO(1)OOO-OOO10(1)187(81)
Aya Miyama104(26)OOOOOO(1)OOO(1)OO(1)OOOOO16(3)120(29)
Shinobu Ono97(36)OO(1)OOOOOOOOOO-O(1)OO15(2)112(38)
Kozue Ando97(17)--OOOOOOOOOOOOO-13(0)110(17)
Yuki Ogimi75(32)O(1)OOO(1)OO(1)O(1)O(1)O(1)OOOOO(1)O(1)O(1)16(9)91(41)
Azusa Iwashimizu74(8)-OOO----OOOOOOOO11(0)85(8)
Yukari Kinga72(4)OOOOO(1)OO-OOOOOOOO15(1)87(5)
Kyoko Yano69(1)----OOO-O---O---5(0)74(1)
Karina Maruyama68(14)------OOO---O--O5(0)73(14)
Miho Fukumoto56(0)-OO--O-OOOOO-OOO11(0)67(0)
Mizuho Sakaguchi47(16)O-OOO-OOOOOOOOO(1)O14(1)61(17)
Rumi Utsugi47(5)OOOOOOO---------7(0)54(5)
Aya Sameshima38(2)O-OOOOOOOOOO-OOO14(0)52(2)
Saki Kumagai33(0)OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO16(0)49(0)
Ayumi Kaihori27(0)O--OO-O-OO--O---7(0)34(0)
Nahomi Kawasumi23(6)O(1)OOO(1)OOOOOOO(1)OOOOO16(3)39(9)
Megumi Takase19(4)OOO(1)O-OOOO---OO--10(1)29(5)
Megumi Kamionobe17(2)-------O--------1(0)18(2)
Mana Iwabuchi11(2)---------O-OO--O4(0)15(2)
Kanako Ito10(3)OOO-------------3(0)13(3)
Manami Nakano10(2)-----O----------1(0)11(2)
Asuna Tanaka6(2)OOOO(1)OOOOO--OO-OO13(1)19(3)
Yuika Sugasawa6(0)-O(1)O-OO(1)----------4(2)10(2)
Nanase Kiryu3(0)-O-O------------2(0)5(0)
Kana Osafune3(0)-----O----------1(0)4(0)
Saori Ariyoshi0(0)OO-OO--O--------5(0)5(0)
Mai Kyokawa0(0)OO--------------2(0)2(0)
Yumi Uetsuji0(0)-----O----------1(0)1(0)
Ami Otaki0(0)-------O--------1(0)1(0)

References

  1. ↑ "第92回天皇杯ＪＦＬシードはＶ･ファーレン長崎に決定！" [V-Varen Nagasaki as the JFL-seeded for the 92nd Emperor's Cup]. Japan Football League. 2012-06-24. Retrieved 2012-06-24.
  2. ↑ "SAGAWA SHIGA FC 活動停止に関するお知らせ" [Note on cessation of activity of Sagawa Shiga FC] (in Japanese). Sagawa Express Co. 2012-10-22. Archived from the original on 2012-10-23. Retrieved 2012-10-22.
  3. ↑ http://www.j-league.or.jp/SS/eng/other/201250300101101_W0201_E.html
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