2008 J.League Division 2

J. League Division 2
Season	2008
Champions	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1st J2 title 1st D2 title
Promoted	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata
Matches played	315
Goals scored	851 (2.7 per match)
Top goalscorer	Hisato Satō (28 goals total)
Highest attendance	36,945 (Round 24, Yokohama vs. Thespa)
Lowest attendance	1,036 (Round 17, HollyHock vs. Vortis)
Average attendance	7,072
← 2007 2009 →

The 2008 J. League Division 2 season is the 37th season of the second-tier club football in Japan and the 10th season since the establishment of J2 League. The season started on March 8 and ended on December 6.

In this season, the number of participating clubs was increased by two, making the total number, fifteen. Unlike the first nine seasons, the clubs played in triple round-robin format, instead of quadruple round-robin format. At the end of the season, top two clubs were promoted and third-placed club advanced to the Pro/Rele Series. There were no relegation to third-tier Japan Football League.

General

Promotion and Relegation

At the end of the 2007 season, Consadole Sapporo !Consadole Sapporo, Tokyo Verdy 1969 !Tokyo Verdy 1969 and Kyoto Sanga !Kyoto Sanga were promoted to J1
At the end of the 2007 season, Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu and Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC were relegated to J2
At the end of the 2007 season, Rosso Kumamoto !Rosso Kumamoto and FC Gifu !FC Gifu were promoted from the JFL.

Changes in Competition Formats

The Division 2 was expanded to 15 clubs.
The new J2 format will consist of triple round-robin instead of quadruple round-robin to reduce the games played by team to 42 games.

Changes in Clubs

Rosso Kumamoto !Rosso Kumamoto was renamed Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto before joining the League.

Participating clubs

Following fifteen clubs played in J. League Division 2 during 2008 season. Of these clubs, Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Ventforet Kofu, and Yokohama F.C. relegated from Division 1 last year. Also, Roasso Kumamoto and F.C. Gifu newly joined from Japan Football League.

Vegalta Sendai
Montedio Yamagata
Mito HollyHock
Thespa Kusatsu
Yokohama F.C.
Shonan Bellmare
Ventforet Kofu
F.C. Gifu
Cerezo Osaka
Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Tokushima Vortis
Ehime F.C.
Avispa Fukuoka
Sagan Tosu
Roasso Kumamoto

League Format

Fifteen clubs will play in triple round-robin format, a total of 42 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 top two clubs will be promoted to J1, while the 3rd placed club plays a two-legged Promotion/Relegation series.

Changes from Previous Year

Thirteen participating clubs (2006–2007) to fifteen clubs (2008)
Quadruple round-robin format (1999–2007) to triple round-robin format (2008–2009)
Introduction of Disciplinary points for tie breaker (2008–)

Final league table


Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Promotion or relegation
1	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima (C) (P)	42	31	7	4	99	35	+64	100	Promotion to 2009 J. League Division 1
2	Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata (P)	42	23	9	10	66	40	+26	78	Promotion to 2009 J. League Division 1
3	Vegalta Sendai !Vegalta Sendai	42	18	16	8	62	47	+15	70	2008 Promotion/Relegation Series
4	Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka	42	21	6	15	81	60	+21	69
5	Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare	42	19	8	15	68	48	+20	65
6	Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu	42	19	7	16	50	51	−1	64
7	Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu	42	15	14	13	56	47	+9	59
8	Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka	42	15	13	14	55	66	−11	58
9	Thespa Kusatsu !Thespa Kusatsu	42	13	14	15	45	52	−7	53
10	Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC	42	11	17	14	51	56	−5	50
11	Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock	42	13	8	21	52	70	−18	47
12	Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto	42	10	13	19	46	72	−26	43
13	FC Gifu !FC Gifu	42	10	12	20	41	69	−28	42
14	Ehime FC !Ehime FC	42	9	10	23	39	66	−27	37
15	Tokushima Vortis !Tokushima Vortis	42	7	8	27	40	72	−32	29

Updated to games played on December 6, 2008.
Source: J. League Division 2
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.

Final Results

Rounds 1 & 2

Home ╲ Away	Avispa Fukuoka !AVI	Shonan Bellmare !BEL	Cerezo Osaka !CER	Ehime FC !EHI	FC Gifu !GIF	Mito HollyHock !HOL	Montedio Yamagata !MON	Roasso Kumamoto !ROS	Sagan Tosu !SAG	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !SFR	Thespa Kusatsu !SPA	Vegalta Sendai !VEG	Ventforet Kofu !VEN	Tokushima Vortis !VOR	Yokohama FC !YFC
Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka		2–2	0–1	2–0	1–5	2–1	0–3	2–4	2–0	0–3	1–1	2–0	0–2	2–1	3–2
Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare	4–0		3–0	4–1	4–2	0–1	1–1	4–1	2–1	0–2	2–3	1–0	1–0	2–3	4–1
Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka	2–1	2–0		2–0	1–0	1–2	1–3	1–0	0–1	1–2	1–2	2–1	3–3	1–0	1–2
Ehime FC !Ehime FC	1–1	1–1	1–4		0–0	2–0	0–0	2–1	1–2	0–2	1–2	1–1	2–1	1–0	2–2
FC Gifu !FC Gifu	0–1	0–0	0–5	0–3		0–1	2–1	0–0	0–1	1–1	0–1	0–1	1–1	2–1	2–3
Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock	2–3	0–2	0–2	1–0	1–3		2–1	2–2	2–1	1–2	2–2	3–4	1–0	1–0	2–2
Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata	0–0	1–0	0–2	3–0	3–5	3–1		3–1	3–0	2–1	1–0	3–0	0–0	2–0	1–0
Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto	1–2	0–2	3–2	1–0	0–2	1–3	1–2		0–1	1–2	2–1	2–2	2–1	3–0	1–1
Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu	1–3	1–0	1–0	2–1	0–0	3–0	1–0	1–1		0–1	1–1	1–2	2–1	2–1	1–0
Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	1–1	5–2	4–1	3–0	4–0	2–2	1–0	2–2	1–0		1–0	0–1	1–2	2–1	1–0
Thespa Kusatsu !Thespa Kusatsu	1–2	1–2	1–3	2–1	1–1	2–1	1–1	2–0	1–0	0–2		0–0	0–0	2–0	0–0
Vegalta Sendai !Vegalta Sendai	1–0	2–2	0–0	0–1	1–1	3–3	3–2	0–0	3–0	1–1	1–0		2–0	1–1	2–0
Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu	2–2	0–4	3–2	1–0	1–1	2–0	1–0	3–1	1–2	0–2	1–2	2–2		0–0	2–1
Tokushima Vortis !Tokushima Vortis	3–1	1–1	2–0	0–3	0–1	2–0	1–2	2–0	0–4	1–4	2–3	1–3	1–3		0–2
Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC	2–1	3–2	1–1	1–0	0–1	1–0	2–5	5–0	0–0	1–2	0–0	1–1	0–0	1–1

Updated to games played on August 10, 2008.
Source: J. League Division 2
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Round 3

Home ╲ Away	Avispa Fukuoka !AVI	Shonan Bellmare !BEL	Cerezo Osaka !CER	Ehime FC !EHI	FC Gifu !GIF	Mito HollyHock !HOL	Montedio Yamagata !MON	Roasso Kumamoto !ROS	Sagan Tosu !SAG	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !SFR	Thespa Kusatsu !SPA	Vegalta Sendai !VEG	Ventforet Kofu !VEN	Tokushima Vortis !VOR	Yokohama FC !YFC
Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka		3–1	3–2	2–2				2–2	2–2					3–1	0–0
Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare					3–0	1–0		0–1			4–0	1–2	1–0		1–0
Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka		2–1		2–1		2–1	2–2			2–3		3–4		3–2
Ehime FC !Ehime FC		2–2				2–2	2–3	0–1	0–2		1–0		0–1
FC Gifu !FC Gifu	1–1		0–6	0–1			1–2		1–0					1–1	0–1
Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock	0–0				1–4				1–1	1–4			1–2	2–0	2–3
Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata	1–0	1–0				1–0		1–1	0–1	0–4			1–1
Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto			2–2		1–1	0–2				1–2		0–4		2–2	1–0
Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu		0–1	1–4					1–2			3–2	4–1	1–1		3–2
Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	4–0	2–0		4–1	7–1				5–1		4–3			3–0
Thespa Kusatsu !Thespa Kusatsu	1–1		0–4		3–1	0–1	0–0	0–0						1–0
Vegalta Sendai !Vegalta Sendai	3–0			1–0	1–0	2–3	0–1			1–1	1–0
Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu	0–1		2–3		4–0			5–1		2–0	2–2	1–1
Tokushima Vortis !Tokushima Vortis		0–0		5–0			0–3		2–0			1–1	0–2		1–2
Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC			2–2	2–2			1–4			1–1	1–1	2–2	0–0

Updated to games played on December 6, 2008.
Source: J. League Division 2
1 ^{^} The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers

Rank	Scorer	Club	Goals^[1]
1	Hisato Satō	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	28
2	Yutaka Takahashi	Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto	19
3	Naoki Ishihara	Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare	18
3	Yoshihito Fujita	Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu	18
5	Tomoyuki Arata	Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock	17
6	Anderson	Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC	16
	Rui Komatsu	Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka	16
	Shinji Kagawa	Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka	16
9	Kōji Morisaki	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	14
	Yojiro Takahagi	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	14
	Tetsuya Ōkubo	Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka	14

Attendance Figures

Pos	Team	Total	High	Low	Average	Change
1	Vegalta Sendai !Vegalta Sendai	295,679	23,745	10,317	14,080	-0.95880149812734−4.1%^†
2	Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima	227,631	19,349	4,622	10,840	-0.9489626192769−5.1%^†
3	Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka	221,629	21,200	5,554	10,554	0.59257582616569+59.2%^†
4	Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu	217,428	14,521	7,267	10,354	-0.75389544196884−24.6%^†
5	Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka	211,651	15,158	5,729	10,079	0.05771854339385+5.7%^†
6	Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu	152,486	21,029	3,869	7,261	0.18760222440301+18.7%^†
7	Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC	142,655	36,945	2,536	6,793	-0.48386637224874−51.6%^†
8	Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata	131,725	15,422	2,479	6,273	0.47843506952628+47.8%^†
9	Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare	125,865	11,660	3,543	5,994	0.28159076330981+28.1%^†
10	Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto	110,860	20,635	2,026	5,279	0.47912580554777+47.9%^‡
11	Thespa Kusatsu !Thespa Kusatsu	88,510	8,096	1,819	4,215	0.10688025210084+10.6%^†
12	Tokushima Vortis !Tokushima Vortis	81,093	11,897	2,146	3,862	0.17421708726057+17.4%^†
13	FC Gifu !FC Gifu	78,650	8,374	2,028	3,745	0.061207140833097+6.1%^‡
14	Ehime FC !Ehime FC	77,775	7,809	2,088	3,704	0.11667169128731+11.6%^†
15	Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock	63,933	5,573	1,036	3,044	0.26045548654244+26.0%^†
	League total	2,227,570	36,945	1,036	7,072	0.08449624290753+8.4%^†

Updated to games played on December 6, 2008
Source: J. League Division 2
Notes:
^† Team played previous season in J1.
^‡ Team played previous season in JFL.

References

↑ "2008 J2 Top Scorers". j-league.or.jp. J-League. Retrieved 17 April 2010.

First-tier club football seasons, 1965–present

Japan Soccer League 1965–1992 Japan Soccer League Division 1 since 1972	1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92

J.League 1993–present J1 League since 1999	1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

List of champions J.League Championship Promotion / Relegation series Super Cup

Second-tier club football seasons, 1972–present

Japan Soccer League Division 2 1972–1992	1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92

(former) Japan Football League 1992–98 (former) Japan Football League Division 1 1992–93	1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998

J2 League 1999–present	1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

List of champions Promotion / Relegation series

Third-tier club football seasons, 1992–93, 1999–present

(former) Japan Football League Division 2 1992–93	1992 1993

No national third tier, 1994–98

Japan Football League 1999–2013	1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

J3 League 2014–present	2014 2015 2016 2017

List of champions

Fourth-tier club football seasons, 2014–present

Japan Football League 2014–present	2014 2015 2016 2017

Regional level club football seasons, 1966–present

Japanese Regional Leagues 1966–present	1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Regional Promotion Series Shakaijin Cup

Emperor's Cup seasons, 1921–present

Emperor's Cup 1921–present	1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 ~~1926~~ 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 ~~1934~~ 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 WW II 1946 ~~1947~~ ~~1948~~ 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Super Cup

League Cup seasons, 1976–present

JSL Cup 1976–1991	1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991

J.League Cup 1992–present	1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Suruga Bank Championship

Football clubs in Japan, 2016

J1 League	Albirex Niigata !Albirex Niigata Kashima Antlers !Kashima Antlers Omiya Ardija !Omiya Ardija Avispa Fukuoka !Avispa Fukuoka Shonan Bellmare !Shonan Bellmare Yokohama F. Marinos !Yokohama F. Marinos Kawasaki Frontale !Kawasaki Frontale Gamba Osaka !Gamba Osaka Nagoya Grampus !Nagoya Grampus Júbilo Iwata !Júbilo Iwata Urawa Red Diamonds !Urawa Red Diamonds Kashiwa Reysol !Kashiwa Reysol Sagan Tosu !Sagan Tosu Sanfrecce Hiroshima !Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC Tokyo !FC Tokyo Vegalta Sendai !Vegalta Sendai Ventforet Kofu !Ventforet Kofu Vissel Kobe !Vissel Kobe

J2 League	Cerezo Osaka !Cerezo Osaka Consadole Sapporo !Consadole Sapporo Ehime FC !Ehime FC Fagiano Okayama !Fagiano Okayama FC Gifu !FC Gifu Giravanz Kitakyushu !Giravanz Kitakyushu Mito HollyHock !Mito HollyHock JEF United Chiba !JEF United Chiba Kamatamare Sanuki !Kamatamare Sanuki Montedio Yamagata !Montedio Yamagata Renofa Yamaguchi !Renofa Yamaguchi Roasso Kumamoto !Roasso Kumamoto Shimizu S-Pulse !Shimizu S-Pulse Kyoto Sanga !Kyoto Sanga Thespakusatsu Gunma !Thespakusatsu Gunma V-Varen Nagasaki !V-Varen Nagasaki Tokyo Verdy !Tokyo Verdy Tokushima Vortis !Tokushima Vortis Matsumoto Yamaga !Matsumoto Yamaga Yokohama FC !Yokohama FC Machida Zelvia !Machida Zelvia Zweigen Kanazawa !Zweigen Kanazawa

J3 League	Blaublitz Akita !Blaublitz Akita Fukushima United !Fukushima United Gainare Tottori !Gainare Tottori Grulla Morioka !Grulla Morioka Kagoshima United !Kagoshima United Kataller Toyama !Kataller Toyama Fujieda MYFC !Fujieda MYFC Nagano Parceiro !Nagano Parceiro FC Ryukyu !FC Ryukyu SC Sagamihara !SC Sagamihara Tochigi SC !Tochigi SC Oita Trinita !Oita Trinita YSCC Yokohama !YSCC Yokohama Cerezo Osaka U-23 Gamba Osaka U-23 FC Tokyo U-23

100 Year Plan clubs	Azul Claro Numazu !Azul Claro Numazu Nara Club !Nara Club Tonan Maebashi !Tonan Maebashi Vanraure Hachinohe !Vanraure Hachinohe Tochigi Uva !Tochigi Uva Tokyo Musashino City !Tokyo Musashino City FC Imabari

Japan Football League	Azul Claro Numazu !Azul Claro Numazu Briobecca Urayasu Fagiano Okayama Next !Fagiano Okayama Next Honda FC !Honda FC Honda Lock !Honda Lock Maruyasu Okazaki !Maruyasu Okazaki MIO Biwako Shiga !MIO Biwako Shiga Nara Club !Nara Club FC Osaka !FC Osaka ReinMeer Aomori !ReinMeer Aomori Ryutsu Keizai Dragons !Ryutsu Keizai Dragons Sony Sendai !Sony Sendai Tochigi Uva !Tochigi Uva Vanraure Hachinohe !Vanraure Hachinohe Verspah Oita !Verspah Oita Tokyo Musashino City !Tokyo Musashino City

Defunct clubs (clubs belong to nationwide leagues only)	SP Kyoto !SP Kyoto Fukushima FC !Fukushima FC Arte Takasaki !Arte Takasaki JEF Reserves !JEF Reserves Sagawa Express Tokyo !Sagawa Express Tokyo NKK SC !NKK SC Yokohama Flügels !Yokohama Flügels ALO's Hokuriku !ALO's Hokuriku Jatco SC !Jatco SC Hagoromo Club Toyota Higashi-Fuji !Toyota Higashi-Fuji Seino Transportation !Seino Transportation Cosmo Oil Yokkaichi !Cosmo Oil Yokkaichi Sagawa Shiga !Sagawa Shiga Sagawa Express Osaka !Sagawa Express Osaka Eidai SC !Eidai SC Teijin SC !Teijin SC Nippon Steel Yawata !Nippon Steel Yawata Tosu Futures !Tosu Futures Profesor Miyazaki !Profesor Miyazaki J.League U-22 Selection

2008 in Japanese football

Domestic leagues	J. League Division 1 J. League Division 2 Japan Football League Regional Leagues (promotion series)

Domestic cups	Emperor's Cup J. League Cup

Asian competitions	AFC Champions League

National teams	FIFA World Cup qualification East Asian Football Championship AFC U-19 Championship qualification AFC U-16 Championship qualification

Club seasons

J. League Division 1	Albirex Niigata Consadole Sapporo F.C. Tokyo Gamba Osaka JEF United Ichihara Chiba Júbilo Iwata Kashima Antlers Kashiwa Reysol Kawasaki Frontale Kyoto Sanga F.C. Nagoya Grampus Oita Trinita Omiya Ardija Shimizu S-Pulse Tokyo Verdy Urawa Red Diamonds Vissel Kobe Yokohama F. Marinos

J. League Division 2	Avispa Fukuoka Cerezo Osaka Ehime F.C. F.C. Gifu Mito HollyHock Montedio Yamagata Roasso Kumamoto Sagan Tosu Sanfrecce Hiroshima Shonan Bellmare Thespa Kusatsu Tokushima Vortis Vegalta Sendai Ventforet Kofu Yokohama F.C.

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