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The 2018 Meiji Yasuda J2 League (2018 明治安田生命J2リーグ) season was the 47th season of the second-tier club football in Japan and the 20th season since the establishment of J2 League.
| Season | 2018 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Matsumoto Yamaga |
| Promoted | Matsumoto Yamaga Oita Trinita |
| Relegated | Roasso Kumamoto Kamatamare Sanuki |
| Matches played | 462 |
| Goals scored | 1,143 (2.47 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Genki Omae Omiya Ardija, 24 goals |
| Highest attendance | 22,465[1] Niigata 1–1 Matsumoto (3 March) |
| Lowest attendance | 1,510[1] Sanuki 1-1 Yamagata (19 September) |
| Average attendance | 7,049 |
← 2017 2019 → | |
The participating clubs are listed in the following table:
| Club Name | Home Town(s) | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata | Niigata & Seirō, Niigata | Relegated from J1 |
| Omiya Ardija | Saitama | Relegated from J1 |
| Avispa Fukuoka | Fukuoka City, Fukuoka | |
| Ehime FC | All cities/towns in Ehime[a] | |
| Fagiano Okayama | All cities/towns in Okayama[b] | |
| FC Gifu | All cities/towns in Gifu[c] | |
| JEF United Chiba | Chiba & Ichihara, Chiba | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Takamatsu, Kagawa | |
| Kyoto Sanga | Southwestern cities/towns in Kyoto[d] | |
| Machida Zelvia | Machida, Tokyo | |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Central cities/towns in Nagano[e] | |
| Mito HollyHock | Mito, Ibaraki | |
| Montedio Yamagata | All cities/towns in Yamagata[f] | |
| Oita Trinita | Ōita | |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | All cities/towns in Yamaguchi[g] | |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Kumamoto | |
| Tochigi SC | Utsunomiya, Tochigi | Promoted from J3 |
| Tokushima Vortis | All cities/towns in Tokushima[h] | |
| Ventforet Kofu | All Yamanashi Prefecture[i] | Relegated from J1 |
| Tokyo Verdy | All cities/towns in Tokyo | |
| Yokohama FC | Yokohama, Kanagawa | |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | Kanazawa | |
- centering on Matsuyama
- centering on Gifu
- centering on Yamaguchi, Shimonoseki, Sanyoonoda, Ube
Personnel and kits
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Date of vacancy | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ventforet Kofu |  Tatsuma Yoshida |
30 April 2018[2] | Nobuhiro Ueno |
30 April 2018 |
| Kyoto Sanga | Takanori Nunobe |
11 May 2018[3] |  Boško Gjurovski |
11 May 2018 |
| Ehime FC | Shuichi Mase |
15 May 2018[4] | Kenta Kawai |
15 May 2018 |
| Albirex Niigata | Masakazu Suzuki |
8 August 2018[5] | Koichiro Katafuchi |
22 August 2018 |
The total number of foreign players is restricted to five per club. Clubs can register up to four foreign players for a single match-day squad, of which a maximum of three are allowed from nations outside the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Players from J.League partner nations (Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, and Qatar) are exempt from these restrictions.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matsumoto Yamaga (C, P) | 42 | 21 | 14 | 7 | 54 | 34 | +20 | 77 | Promotion to 2019 J1 League |
| 2 | Oita Trinita (P) | 42 | 23 | 7 | 12 | 76 | 51 | +25 | 76 | |
| 3 | Yokohama FC | 42 | 21 | 13 | 8 | 63 | 44 | +19 | 76 | Qualification for promotion play-offs[a] |
| 4 | Machida Zelvia | 42 | 21 | 13 | 8 | 62 | 44 | +18 | 76 | |
| 5 | Omiya Ardija | 42 | 21 | 8 | 13 | 65 | 48 | +17 | 71 | Qualification for promotion play-offs[a] |
| 6 | Tokyo Verdy | 42 | 19 | 14 | 9 | 56 | 41 | +15 | 71 | |
| 7 | Avispa Fukuoka | 42 | 19 | 13 | 10 | 58 | 42 | +16 | 70 | |
| 8 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 42 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 63 | 64 | −1 | 61 | |
| 9 | Ventforet Kofu | 42 | 16 | 11 | 15 | 56 | 46 | +10 | 59 | |
| 10 | Mito HollyHock | 42 | 16 | 9 | 17 | 48 | 46 | +2 | 57 | |
| 11 | Tokushima Vortis | 42 | 16 | 8 | 18 | 48 | 42 | +6 | 56 | |
| 12 | Montedio Yamagata | 42 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 49 | 51 | −2 | 56 | |
| 13 | Zweigen Kanazawa | 42 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 52 | 48 | +4 | 55 | |
| 14 | JEF United Chiba | 42 | 16 | 7 | 19 | 72 | 72 | 0 | 55 | |
| 15 | Fagiano Okayama | 42 | 14 | 11 | 17 | 39 | 43 | −4 | 53 | |
| 16 | Albirex Niigata | 42 | 15 | 8 | 19 | 48 | 56 | −8 | 53 | |
| 17 | Tochigi SC | 42 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 38 | 48 | −10 | 50 | |
| 18 | Ehime FC | 42 | 12 | 12 | 18 | 34 | 52 | −18 | 48 | |
| 19 | Kyoto Sanga | 42 | 12 | 7 | 23 | 40 | 58 | −18 | 43 | |
| 20 | FC Gifu | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 44 | 62 | −18 | 42 | |
| 21 | Roasso Kumamoto (R) | 42 | 9 | 7 | 26 | 50 | 79 | −29 | 34 | Relegation to 2019 J3 League[b] |
| 22 | Kamatamare Sanuki (R) | 42 | 7 | 10 | 25 | 28 | 72 | −44 | 31 |
Source: 2018 MEIJI YASUDA J2 LEAGUE League table
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- Direct exchange between J2 and J3 is subject to eligibility of J2-licensed teams in top 2 of 2018 J3 League.
| Home \ Away | ALB | ARD | AVI | EHI | FAG | GIF | HOL | JEF | KAM | MON | REN | ROS | SAN | TOC | TRI | VEN | VER | VOR | YAM | YFC | ZEL | ZWE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–5 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | |
| Omiya Ardija | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 4–4 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | |
| Avispa Fukuoka | 0–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 | |
| Ehime FC | 0–0 | 2–3 | 1–5 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | |
| Fagiano Okayama | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–3 | |
| FC Gifu | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 2–0 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–4 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | |
| Mito HollyHock | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 5–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | |
| JEF United Chiba | 1–2 | 1–3 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 0–0 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 3–4 | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 0–4 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 | |
| Montedio Yamagata | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 2–1 | |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 4–3 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 2–2 | |
| Roasso Kumamoto | 3–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–4 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 3–5 | 2–3 | 0–1 | |
| Kyoto Sanga | 0–3 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | |
| Tochigi SC | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–5 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–4 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | |
| Oita Trinita | 4–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 5–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–3 | 2–1 | |
| Ventforet Kofu | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 6–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | |
| Tokyo Verdy | 4–3 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | |
| Tokushima Vortis | 0–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 5–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–3 | |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–4 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 5–0 | |
| Yokohama FC | 0–3 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 2–3 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 0–4 | |
| Machida Zelvia | 0–0 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | 2–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 |
2018 J.League J1/J2 Play-Offs (2018 J1参入プレーオフ)
Because Machida Zelvia did not own a J1 license for the 2019 season, they were ineligible to participate in the play-offs. Thus, Yokohama FC, finishing third in the season, received a bye into the second round, from which the winner will play the team finishing 16th in J1.
| 1st Semi-Final | 2nd Semi-Final | Final | |||||||||||
| J1 (16) | Júbilo Iwata | 2 | |||||||||||
| J2 (3) | Yokohama FC | 0 | J2 (6) | Tokyo Verdy | 0 | ||||||||
| J2 (5) | Omiya Ardija | 0 | J2 (6) | Tokyo Verdy | 1 | ||||||||
| J2 (6) | Tokyo Verdy | 1 | |||||||||||
First Semi-Final
| Omiya Ardija | 0–1 | Tokyo Verdy |
|---|---|---|
Taira  71' |
Second Semi-Final
| Yokohama FC | 0–1 | Tokyo Verdy |
|---|---|---|
| Douglas Vieira 90+7' |
Final
| Júbilo Iwata | 2–0 | Tokyo Verdy |
|---|---|---|
| K. Ogawa 41' (pen.) Taguchi 80' |
Report |
Attendance: 14,588
Júbilo Iwata remains in J1 League.
Tokyo Verdy remains in J2 League.
- As of matches played 17 November 2018.[6]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Genki Omae |
Omiya Ardija | 24 |
2 |
Ado Onaiwu |
Renofa Yamaguchi | 22 |
3 |
Takayuki Funayama |
JEF United Chiba | 19 |
4 |
 Ibba |
Yokohama FC | 17 |
5 |
 Douglas Vieira |
Tokyo Verdy | 13 |
| 6 | Masashi Oguro |
Tochigi SC | 12 |
| Seigo Kobayashi |
Renofa Yamaguchi | ||
| Yuki Nakashima |
Machida Zelvia | ||
| Mateus |
Omiya Ardija | ||
| Kenji Baba |
Oita Trinita | ||
| Noriaki Fujimoto |
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Albirex Niigata | 313,080 | 22,465 | 8,614 | 14,913 | −32.3%† |
| 2 | Matsumoto Yamaga | 278,948 | 19,066 | 9,490 | 13,283 | −21.0% |
| 3 | JEF United Chiba | 207,025 | 12,440 | 6,152 | 9,858 | −1.3% |
| 4 | Omiya Ardija | 193,711 | 12,400 | 6,506 | 9,224 | −19.5%† |
| 5 | Oita Trinita | 187,052 | 15,125 | 4,880 | 8,907 | +10.5% |
| 6 | Avispa Fukuoka | 186,323 | 15,331 | 6,684 | 8,873 | −7.1% |
| 7 | Fagiano Okayama | 180,586 | 13,851 | 5,034 | 8,599 | −9.2% |
| 8 | Ventforet Kofu | 155,054 | 10,192 | 3,130 | 7,384 | −31.9%† |
| 9 | FC Gifu | 144,011 | 12,045 | 3,819 | 6,858 | −1.7% |
| 10 | Montedio Yamagata | 142,094 | 13,609 | 4,675 | 6,766 | +2.8% |
| 11 | Yokohama FC | 128,959 | 10,978 | 3,051 | 6,141 | +2.9% |
| 12 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 128,579 | 12,927 | 3,133 | 6,123 | +12.3% |
| 13 | Tokyo Verdy | 124,654 | 10,529 | 3,048 | 5,936 | −4.4% |
| 14 | Kyoto Sanga | 118,931 | 9,036 | 2,624 | 5,663 | −16.1% |
| 15 | Tochigi SC | 118,805 | 11,562 | 3,203 | 5,657 | +9.9%‡ |
| 16 | Roasso Kumamoto | 110,643 | 10,226 | 3,206 | 5,269 | −19.6% |
| 17 | Tokushima Vortis | 104,941 | 8,753 | 2,974 | 4,997 | +0.4% |
| 18 | Mito HollyHock | 103,698 | 7,858 | 2,736 | 4,938 | +0.1% |
| 19 | Machida Zelvia | 103,215 | 10,013 | 2,414 | 4,915 | +21.2% |
| 20 | Zweigen Kanazawa | 95,093 | 9,645 | 2,108 | 4,528 | +3.0% |
| 21 | Ehime FC | 66,382 | 5,319 | 2,196 | 3,161 | −18.2% |
| 22 | Kamatamare Sanuki | 64,532 | 5,668 | 1,510 | 3,073 | −19.2% |
| League total | 3,256,416 | 22,465 | 1,510 | 7,049 | +1.1% |
Updated to games played on 17 November 2018
Source: J. League Data
Notes:
† Relegated from J1.‡ Promoted from J3.
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