2025 J3 League

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The 2025 J3 League, also known as the 2025 Meiji Yasuda J3 League (Japanese: 2025 明治安田J3リーグ, Hepburn: 2025 Meiji Yasuda J3 Rīgu) for sponsorship reasons, is the 12th season of the J3 League, the third-tier Japanese professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 2013.

This is the last J.League season played in a whole calendar year from late winter to early winter, with the following season onwards played from summer to spring.

The league continued with 20 teams for 2025 season since 2023.

The top two teams in the league will be automatically promoted to the J2 League, teams ranked 3rd to 6th dispute the promotion play-offs. There is the possibility that as many as two clubs will be relegated to the Japan Football League. Promotion from the JFL is conditional on holding a valid J3 license. If the JFL champions hold a license, the club will be automatically promoted and the J3's 20th-placed team will be automatically relegated. If the JFL runners-up hold a license, the club will need to play promotion/relegation play-offs against J3's 19th or 20th-placed team for the season, depending on whether the JFL champions hold the J3 license. The club(s) who do not hold a license cannot be promoted and no teams will be relegated from the J3 League.^[1]

The league and match format was announced on 25 November 2024. The league began on 15 February and ended on 29 November in a round-robin format of 38 matches.^[1]

The J3 promotion play-offs were held in a similar manner to the J2 playoffs, with the dates will be confirmed in November^[2]

Tochigi SC, Kagoshima United and Thespakusatsu Gunma were relegated to the J3 League, finishing the previous J2 League season as 18th, 19th and 20th places. Tochigi gets relegated after eight years in the second division. Meanwhile, Kagoshima United come back to the third tier after one season in J2 and Thespa Gunma back to the league after five years in J2 League.

From J3 win promotion RB Omiya Ardija (Formerly only Omiya Ardija) team recently acquired for the Red Bull Group who gets promoted after only one season in J3, runner-up FC Imabari gets promoted for first time ever and will play the Ehime Derby against Ehime FC in J2 League, the last team promoted was Kataller Toyama after eleven seasons in J3 thanks to an epic draw in the play-off final against Matsumoto Yamaga with a double from the striker Shosei Usui in the last ten minutes.

From Japan Football League teams gets promoted after two seasons. 2024 Japan Football League champions, Tochigi City FC gets promoted for first time ever and will play the Tochigi Derby against Tochigi SC. The second and final team promoted was Kochi United SC finished as runner-up and after won the relegation play-off defeated YSCC Yokohama with a aggregate of 1-3, the first team of Kochi Prefecture who play in the J League.

Azul Claro Numazu

Fukushima United

Gainare Tottori

FC Gifu

Giravanz Kitakyushu

Kagoshima United

Kamatamare Sanuki

Kochi United

Nara Club

FC Osaka

Ryukyu Okinawa

Tegevajaro Miyazaki

Vanraure Hachinohe

Matsumoto Yamaga

Zweigen Kanazawa

Nagano Parceiro

† Greater Tokyo Area teams
SC Sagamihara
Thespa Gunma
Tochigi City FC
Tochigi SC

Greater Tokyo Area

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Locations of the 2025 J3 League teams

SC Sagamihara

Thespa Gunma

Tochigi City FC

Tochigi SC

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Greater Tokyo Area J3 League teams

Teams	Location	Stadium	Capacity	Position 2024 season	License
Azul Claro Numazu	Numazu, Shizuoka	Ashitaka Park Stadium	5,104	10th	J2
Fukushima United	Fukushima, Fukushima	Toho Stadium	15,454	5th	J2
Gainare Tottori	Tottori, Tottori	Axis Bird Stadium	11,999	13th	J2
FC Gifu	Gifu, Gifu	Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium	16,310	8th	J1
Giravanz Kitakyushu	Kitakyushu, Fukuoka	Mikuni World Stadium Kitakyushu	15,300	7th	J1
Kagoshima United	Kagoshima, Kagoshima	Shiranami Stadium	19,934	J2 (19th)	J1
Kamatamare Sanuki	Takamatsu, Kagawa	Pikara Stadium	30,099	16th	J1
Kochi United	Kōchi, Kōchi	Kochi Haruno Athletic Stadium	25,000	JFL (2nd)	J3
Matsumoto Yamaga	Matsumoto, Nagano	Sunpro Alwin	20,000	4th	J1
Nagano Parceiro	Nagano, Nagano	Nagano U Stadium	15,515	18th	J2
Nara Club	Nara, Nara	Rohto Field Nara	30,600	17th	J2
FC Osaka	Higashiōsaka, Osaka	Hanazono Rugby Stadium	27,346	6th	J2
Ryukyu Okinawa	Naha, Okinawa	Tapic Kenso Hiyagon Stadium	15,500	14th	J1
SC Sagamihara	Sagamihara, Kanagawa	Sagamihara Gion Stadium	6,291	9th	J2
Tegevajaro Miyazaki	Miyazaki, Miyazaki	Ichigo Miyazaki Shintomi Football Stadium	5,354	15th	J2
Thespa Gunma	Maebashi, Gunma	Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma	15,253	J2 (20th)	J1
Tochigi City FC	Tochigi, Tochigi	Tochigi Football Station	5,129	JFL (1st)	J3
Tochigi SC	Utsunomiya, Tochigi	Kanseki Stadium Tochigi	25,244	J2 (18th)	J1
Vanraure Hachinohe	Hachinohe, Aomori	Prifoods Stadium	5,124	7th	J2
Zweigen Kanazawa	Kanazawa, Ishikawa	Kanazawa Go Go Curry Stadium	10,444	12th	J1

From the 2021 season onwards, there is no limitations on signing foreign players, but clubs could only register up to five of them for a single matchday squad.^[3] Players from J.League partner nations (Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Qatar) were exempted from these restrictions.

• Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the summer transfer window.
• Player's name in italics indicates the player has Japanese nationality in addition to their FIFA nationality, holds the nationality of a J.League partner nation, or is exempt from being treated as a foreign player due to having been born in Japan and being enrolled in, or having graduated from an approved type of school in the country.^[4]

Club	Player 1	Player 2	Player 3	Player 4	Former players
Azul Claro Numazu	Weverton
Fukushima United
Gainare Tottori	Kojo Dadzie
FC Gifu	Mun In-ju	Kim Yoo-geon	Jon Ander Serantes
Giravanz Kitakyushu	Koh Seung-jin
Kagoshima United	Gaudencio	Renan	Rodrigo Angelotti
Kamatamare Sanuki	Eduardo	Ismael Dunga
Kochi United	Kang Sung-chan
Matsumoto Yamaga	Tiago	Kim Jun-hyun
Nagano Parceiro	Lee Seung-won	Lim Ji-hoon
Nara Club	Marc Vito	Chanapach Buaphan	Thawatchai Inprakhon
FC Osaka	Lee Dong-yeol	Shin Dong-min
Ryukyu Okinawa	Jo Eun-soo	Park Seong-su
SC Sagamihara	Rafael Furtado	Noam Baumann	Robin Maulun	Kevin Pytlik
Tegevajaro Miyazaki	Kim Geon-yeon	Lee Chung-won
Thespa Gunma	Kim Je-hee
Tochigi City FC	Joe Caletti	Carlos Eduardo	Matej Jonjić
Tochigi SC	Rafael Costa	Kim Min-jun
Vanraure Hachinohe	Thales Paula
Zweigen Kanazawa	Patric

The usual format will be applied in the 2025 season. Promotion play-offs, officially called the 2025 J.League Road To J2 Play-offs^[A] (Japanese: 2025 J2昇格プレーオフ), was held from the semi-finals, where the match-ups were previously semi-determined. Based on the J3 placements at the end of the regular season, the third-placed team played against the sixth-placed, while the fourth-placed team played against the fifth-placed. The winners of the semi-finals played the final, with the winners promoted to the J2.

If a match was tied in the play-offs, the team with the highest league position are declared the winner. The rank order was: J3's third, fourth, fifth, and sixth-placed teams.

The relegation play-offs, officially called the 2025 J3/JFL Play-Offs (Japanese: 2025 J3・JFL入れ替え戦^[B]), take place on 7 and 12 December 2025. If two teams are equal on the scoreboard, the match will going to extra time and penalty shoot-out. Away goals rule will not applied.

• Most yellow cards:

• Most red cards:

• Most yellow cards:

• Most red cards:

• 2025 Japanese Super Cup
• 2025 Emperor's Cup
• 2025 J1 League
• 2025 J2 League
• 2025 J.League Cup
• 2025 Japan Football League

• Official website on jleague.co (in English)