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The 2021 J3 League, referred to as the 2021 Meiji Yasuda J3 League (Japanese: 2021 明治安田生命J3リーグ, Hepburn: 2021 Meiji Yasuda Seimei J3 Rīgu) for sponsorship reasons, was the 8th season of J3 League under its current name.
| Season | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 13 March – 5 December |
| Champions | Roasso Kumamoto (1st title) |
| Promoted | Roasso Kumamoto Iwate Grulla Morioka |
| Relegated | No relegation |
| Matches played | 210 |
| Goals scored | 533 (2.54 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Shota Kawanishi, FC Gifu (13 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Azul Claro Numazu v Vanraure Hachinohe 7-2 |
| Highest scoring | Gainare Tottori v Nagano Parceiro 1-8 Azul Claro Numazu v Vanraure Hachinohe 7-2 |
| Longest winning run | Roasso Kumamoto 7 (28/08/21 - 16/10/2021) |
| Longest unbeaten run | Roasso Kumamoto 12 (13/06/21 - 24/10/2021) |
| Highest attendance | 11,314 Roasso Kumamoto 2–0 FC Gifu (5 December 2021) |
| Lowest attendance | 264 Fukushima United FC 2–1 Iwate Grulla Morioka (26 May 2021) |
| Total attendance | 401,776 |
| Average attendance | 1,913 |
← 2020 2022 →
All statistics correct as of complete. | |
Roasso Kumamoto won the J3 title for the first time in their history, in their debut campaign at the J3 League, just three years after being relegation from the J2 League. They were promoted to the 2022 J2 League alongside Iwate Grulla Morioka. Iwate team won promotion for the J2 League for the first time.
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There were no relegations from J2 League in 2020 and the number of teams decreased for 2021.
This is first season without three U-23 teams from J1 in 2021 season. Four teams from J2 League automatically relegation for 2021 and two teams from J3 League automatically promotion. J3 League has been scheduled for a expansion to 18 clubs before the 2022 season. This is the last season played with 15 teams.
| Promoted from 2020 JFL | Promoted to 2021 J2 League | Withdrawn / Disbanded |
|---|---|---|
| Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Blaublitz Akita SC Sagamihara | Cerezo Osaka U-23 Gamba Osaka U-23 FC Tokyo U-23 |
2020 was also the last season where U-23 teams played in the professional setup. After two separate stints involving youth clubs in this division. First it was the J.League U-22 Selection in 2014 and 2015, and then three U-23 teams were involved from 2016 to 2020. FC Tokyo U-23 pulled out of the competition prior to the start of the 2020 season. Cerezo Osaka U-23 and Gamba Osaka U-23 were disbanded at the end of 2020 after completing the full season.[1]
Blaublitz Akita and SC Sagamihara were promoted to J2 League, the later being the last club from the original clubs which started the maiden season in 2014 to be promoted from the third division.
One new team was promoted to the professional ranks of Japanese football, Tegevajaro Miyazaki, as runners-up in the 2020 JFL season and were promoted.[2]
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Personnel and kits
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| Team | Outgoing | Manner | Exit date | Position in table | Incoming | Incoming date | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Announced on | Departed on | Announced on | Arrived on | ||||||
| Kamatamare Sanuki |  Nobuyuki Uenoyama |
Resigns | 31 March 2021 | 31 March 2021 | 15th | Toshihiro Nishimura (Interim) |
1 April 2021 | 1 April 2021 | [10] |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Toshihiro Nishimura |
End of Interim period | 11 April 2021 | 11 April 2021 | 15th |  Zdravko Zemunovic |
12 April 2021 | 12 April 2021 | [11] |
| Gainare Tottori | Riki Takagi |
Dismissed | 6 May 2021 | 4 May 2021 | 12th |  Kim Jong-song |
10 May 2021 | 10 May 2021 | [12][13] |
| FC Imabari |  Lluís Planagumà |
Dismissed | 19 May 2021 | 18 May 2021 | 13th | Kazuaki Hashikawa (Interim) |
19 May 2021 | 19 May 2021 | [14] |
| FC Imabari | Kazuaki Hashikawa |
End of Interim period | 23 May 2021 | 23 May 2021 | 13th | Keiichiro Nuno |
24 May 2021 | 24 May 2021 | [15] |
| Kagoshima United |  Arthur Papas |
Resigned | 28 May 2021 | 28 May 2021 | 9th | Yasuaki Oshima |
28 May 2021 | 28 May 2021 | [16] |
| Fujieda MYFC | Yasuharu Kurata |
Resigned | 12 July 2021 | 12 July 2021 | 12th | Daisuke Sudo |
12 July 2021 | 12 July 2021 | [17] |
| FC Imabari | Keiichiro Nuno |
Resigned | 29 September 2021 | 29 September 2021 | 12th | Kazuaki Hashikawa |
29 September 2021 | 29 September 2021 | [18][19] |
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roasso Kumamoto (C, P) | 28 | 15 | 9 | 4 | 39 | 20 | +19 | 54 | Promotion to J2 League[a] |
| 2 | Iwate Grulla Morioka (P) | 28 | 15 | 8 | 5 | 43 | 28 | +15 | 53 | |
| 3 | Tegevajaro Miyazaki[b] | 28 | 16 | 5 | 7 | 44 | 31 | +13 | 53 | |
| 4 | Kataller Toyama | 28 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 40 | 34 | +6 | 46 | |
| 5 | Fukushima United[b] | 28 | 13 | 6 | 9 | 41 | 32 | +9 | 45[c] | |
| 6 | FC Gifu | 28 | 12 | 5 | 11 | 38 | 35 | +3 | 41 | |
| 7 | Kagoshima United | 28 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 34 | 35 | −1 | 40 | |
| 8 | YSCC Yokohama | 28 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 31 | 33 | −2 | 40 | |
| 9 | Nagano Parceiro | 28 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 35 | 28 | +7 | 36 | |
| 10 | Fujieda MYFC | 28 | 8 | 8 | 12 | 42 | 42 | 0 | 32 | |
| 11 | FC Imabari[b] | 28 | 7 | 9 | 12 | 34 | 33 | +1 | 30 | |
| 12 | Gainare Tottori | 28 | 9 | 2 | 17 | 36 | 53 | −17 | 29 | |
| 13 | Vanraure Hachinohe | 28 | 7 | 8 | 13 | 24 | 44 | −20 | 29[c] | |
| 14 | Azul Claro Numazu[b] | 28 | 7 | 6 | 15 | 32 | 44 | −12 | 27 | |
| 15 | Kamatamare Sanuki | 28 | 4 | 9 | 15 | 20 | 41 | −21 | 21 |
Source: 2021 MEIJI YASUDA J3 LEAGUE League table, J.League Data Site
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Head-to-head points; 4) Head-to-head goal difference; 5) Head-to-head goal scored; 6) Number of wins; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fair-play points
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Head-to-head points; 4) Head-to-head goal difference; 5) Head-to-head goal scored; 6) Number of wins; 7) Goals scored; 8) Fair-play points
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Notes:
- The match between Fukushima United and Vanraure Hachinohe resulted in a 2–0 win for Fukushima, but was changed to an awarded 0–3 scoreline by the J.League, after Fukushima allowed a player who had not received a negative test to play in the game.[20] The original result was restored following a decision by the JFA Appeal Committee.[21]
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Primary venues used in the J3 League:
| Vanraure Hachinohe | Iwate Grulla Morioka | Fukushima United FC | YSCC Yokohama | Nagano Parceiro | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prifoods Stadium | Iwagin Stadium | Toho Stadium | Nippatsu Mitsuzawa Stadium | Nagano U Stadium | |
| Capacity: 5,124 | Capacity: 5,046 | Capacity: 6,464 | Capacity: 15,440 | Capacity: 15,515 | |
 |  |  |  |  | |
| Kataller Toyama | Fujieda MYFC | Azul Claro Numazu | FC Gifu | Gainare Tottori | |
| Toyama Stadium | Fujieda Soccer Stadium | Ashitaka Park Stadium | Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium | Axis Bird Stadium | |
| Capacity: 18,588 | Capacity: 5,056 | Capacity: 5,104 | Capacity: 16,310 | Capacity: 11,999 | |
 |  |  |  |  | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | FC Imabari | Roasso Kumamoto | Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Kagoshima United FC | |
| Pikara Stadium | Arigato Service Dream Stadium | Egao Kenko Stadium | Unilever Stadium Shintomi | Shiranami Stadium | |
| Capacity: 22,338 | Capacity: 5,063 | Capacity: 30,449 | Capacity: 5,354 | Capacity: 12,606 | |
 |  |  |  |  | |
Top scorers
- As of December 5th, 2021[22]
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naoki Sanda |
Nagano Parceiro | Gainare Tottori | 1–8 (A)[23] | 13 June 2021 |
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![[icon]](#/media/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2023) |
- League
- Japanese association football league system
- J.League
- 2021 J1 League (Tier 1)
- 2021 J2 League (Tier 2)
- 2021 Japan Football League (JFL; Tier 4)
- 2021 Regional Champions League (Promotion playoffs to JFL)
- 2021 Regional Leagues (Tier 5/6)
- Cup(s)
- 2021 Fuji Xerox Super Cup (Super Cup)
- 2021 Emperor's Cup (National Open Cup)
- 2021 J.League YBC Levain Cup (League Cup)
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