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2014 J.League Division 1
The 2014 J.League Division 1 season was the 49th season of top-flight football in Japan, and the 22nd since the establishment of the J.League in 1992. The season began on 1 March and ended on 8 December. Sanfrecce Hiroshima were the defending champions.
| Season |
|---|
| Gamba Osaka2nd J.League title2nd Japanese title |
| Omiya ArdijaCerezo OsakaTokushima Vortis |
| Gamba OsakaUrawa Red DiamondsKashima Antlers |
| 306 |
| 774 (2.53 per match) |
| Yoshito Ōkubo (18 goals) |
| 56,758Reds vs Gamba |
| 0Reds vs S-Pulse |
| 17,240 |
| ← 2013 2015 → |
The 2014 J.League Division 1 season was the 49th season of top-flight football in Japan, and the 22nd since the establishment of the J.League in 1992. The season began on 1 March and ended on 8 December. Sanfrecce Hiroshima were the defending champions.
Due to Japan's participation in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, there was an extended break to allow for preparation after the 14th-week matches on 17 and 18 May, with the league resuming on 15 July for four clubs who participated in the 2014 AFC Champions League to play rescheduled 12th-week matches, and 19 July for other 14 clubs.
2014 saw the league played via a home and away system over a single season for the last time until at least 2020. From 2015 the league will revert to an Apertura and Clausura system, with a multi-team play-off 'super stage' to decide the champions, similar to the format used when the J.League began.
The league was won by Gamba Osaka, who won their second J.League title following a 0–0 away draw against Tokushima Vortis. They became the second league champions (after Kashiwa Reysol) to win the first division after being promoted as second division champions.
18 teams competed in this year's competition. Both Gamba Osaka and Vissel Kobe returned to J1 after a single season outside the top flight; they finished as the 2013 J.League Division 2 champions and runners-up, respectively. Tokushima Vortis, who finished fourth in the regular season and won the promotion playoff, will make their top-flight debut, becoming the first club from Shikoku to do so. Those three teams replaced Oita Trinita, Shonan Bellmare and Júbilo Iwata; Júbilo were relegated from J1 for the first time after twenty seasons in the top tier, while Bellmare and Trinita were bumped down after cameo appearances in J1.
| Club name | Hometown(s) | Stadium | Capacity | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata | Niigata & Seirō, Niigata | Denka Big Swan Stadium | 42,300 | |
| Cerezo Osaka | Osaka | Nagai Stadium | 47,816 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League Division 1 fourth-place team) |
| FC Tokyo | Tokyo | Ajinomoto Stadium | 49,970 | |
| Gamba Osaka | Suita, Osaka | Expo '70 Commemorative Stadium | 21,000 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 (as champions) |
| Kashima Antlers | Kashima, Ibaraki | Kashima Soccer Stadium | 40,728 | |
| Kashiwa Reysol | Kashiwa, Chiba | Kashiwa Soccer Stadium | 15,900 | |
| Kawasaki Frontale | Kawasaki, Kanagawa | Todoroki Athletics Stadium | 26,232 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League Division 1 third-place team) |
| Nagoya Grampus | Nagoya, Aichi | Paloma Mizuho Stadium | 27,000 | |
| Omiya Ardija | Ōmiya, Saitama | NACK5 Stadium | 15,500 | |
| Sagan Tosu | Tosu, Saga | Tosu Stadium | 24,490 | |
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Hiroshima | Hiroshima Big Arch | 50,000 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League Division 1 winners) |
| Shimizu S-Pulse | Shizuoka | IAI Stadium Nihondaira | 20,339 | |
| Tokushima Vortis | All cities/towns in Tokushima | Pocarisweat Stadium | 20,441 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 (through a play-off system) |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | Urawa, Saitama | Saitama Stadium | 63,700 | |
| Vegalta Sendai | Sendai, Miyagi | Yurtec Stadium | 19,694 | |
| Ventforet Kofu | Kōfu, Yamanashi | Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium | 17,000 | |
| Vissel Kobe | Kobe, Hyōgo | Misaki Park Stadium | 30,132 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 (as runners-up) |
| Yokohama F. Marinos | Yokohama, Kanagawa & Yokosuka, Kanagawa | Nissan Stadium | 72,327 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League Division 1 runners-up) |
| Club name | Head coach | Kit manufacturer | Front shirt sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata | Masaaki Yanagishita | Adidas | Kameda Seika |
| Cerezo Osaka | Yuji Okuma | Mizuno | Yanmar |
| FC Tokyo | Massimo Ficcadenti | Adidas | Lifeval |
| Gamba Osaka | Kenta Hasegawa | Umbro | Panasonic |
| Kashima Antlers | Toninho Cerezo | Nike | Lixil |
| Kashiwa Reysol | Nelsinho Baptista | Yonex | Hitachi |
| Kawasaki Frontale | Yahiro Kazama | Puma | Fujitsu |
| Nagoya Grampus | Akira Nishino | Le Coq Sportif | Toyota |
| Omiya Ardija | Hiroki Shibuya | Under Armour | NTT Docomo |
| Sagan Tosu | Megumu Yoshida | Warrior | DHC |
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Hajime Moriyasu | Nike | EDION |
| Shimizu S-Pulse | Katsumi Oenoki | Puma | Suzuyo |
| Tokushima Vortis | Shinji Kobayashi | Mizuno | Pocari Sweat |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | Mihailo Petrović | Nike | Polus |
| Vegalta Sendai | Susumu Watanabe | Asics | Iris Ohyama |
| Ventforet Kofu | Hiroshi Jofuku | Mizuno | Hakubaku |
| Vissel Kobe | Ryo Adachi | Asics | Rakuten |
| Yokohama F. Marinos | Yasuhiro Higuchi | Adidas | Nissan |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Incoming manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vegalta Sendai | Graham Arnold | Mutual consent | Susumu Watanabe |
| Cerezo Osaka | Ranko Popović | Marco Pezzaiuoli | |
| Shimizu S-Pulse | Afshin Ghotbi | Katsumi Oenoki | |
| Sagan Tosu | Yoon Jong-hwan | Sacked | Megumu Yoshida |
| Omiya Ardija | Kiyoshi Okuma | Hiroki Shibuya | |
| Cerezo Osaka | Marco Pezzaiuoli | Yuji Okuma |
| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | AFC player | Non-visa foreign | Type-C contract | Former player(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata | Léo Silva | Rafael Silva | Lee Myung-jae | Song Ju-hun | Michael Fitzgerald | Roger Gaúcho Kim Jin-su | |
| Cerezo Osaka | Cacau | Kim Jin-hyeon | Diego Forlán | Kim Sung-joon | Gu Sung-yun | Mitch Nichols Gojko Kačar | |
| FC Tokyo | Edu | Michele Canini | Matheus Ferraz Kwak Hee-ju | ||||
| Gamba Osaka | Lins | Patric | Oh Jae-suk | Evson | |||
| Kashima Antlers | Davi | Jorge Wagner | Luís Alberto | Caio | Jair | ||
| Kashiwa Reysol | Dudu | Eduardo | Leandro | Kim Chang-soo | Leandro Domingues Han Kook-young | ||
| Kawasaki Frontale | Jeci | Paulinho | Renatinho | An Byong-jun | |||
| Nagoya Grampus | Leandro Domingues | Régis | Danilson Córdoba | Joshua Kennedy | Gustavo | ||
| Omiya Ardija | Carlinhos Paraíba | Dragan Mrđa | Zlatan Ljubijankić | Cho Won-hee | Mateus | Dženan Radončić | |
| Sagan Tosu | Choi Sung-keun | Kim Min-hyeok | Kim Min-woo | ||||
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Mihael Mikić | Byeon Jun-byum | Hwang Seok-ho | Park Hyung-jin | |||
| Shimizu S-Pulse | Dejan Jaković | Calvin Jong-a-Pin | Milivoje Novaković | Lee Ki-je | Bueno | ||
| Tokushima Vortis | Adriano | Alex | Julián Estiven Vélez | Kim Jong-min | Ri Yong-jik | Son Se-hwan | Douglas Kleiton Domingues |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | Márcio Richardes | ||||||
| Vegalta Sendai | Ramon Lopes | Wilson | Ryang Yong-gi Daniel Schmidt | Danny Vukovic Michael McGlinchey | |||
| Ventforet Kofu | Cristiano | Marquinhos Paraná | Thiago Quirino | Irfan Bachdim | Gilsinho | ||
| Vissel Kobe | Fábio Simplício | Marquinhos | Pedro Júnior | Jung Woo-young | |||
| Yokohama F. Marinos | Fábio Aguiar | Rafinha |
| Qualification to 2015 AFC Champions League group stage |
| Qualification to 2015 AFC Champions League qualifying play-off |
| Relegation to 2015 J2 League |
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yoshito Ōkubo | Kawasaki Frontale | 18 | |
| Yohei Toyoda | Sagan Tosu | 15 | |
| Marquinhos | Vissel Kobe | 14 | |
| Pedro Júnior | Vissel Kobe | 13 | |
| Yoshinori Muto | FC Tokyo | ||
| Milivoje Novaković | Shimizu S-Pulse | ||
| Kensuke Nagai | Nagoya Grampus | 12 | |
| Shinzo Koroki | Urawa Red Diamonds | ||
| Yu Kobayashi | Kawasaki Frontale | ||
| Edu | FC Tokyo | 11 | |
| Leandro | Kashiwa Reysol | ||
| Hisato Satō | Sanfrecce Hiroshima |
Updated to games played on 8 December 2014
Source: J. League Data
| Award | Recipient | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Yasuhito Endō | Gamba Osaka |
| Rookie of the Year | Caio | Kashima Antlers |
| Manager of the Year | Kenta Hasegawa | Gamba Osaka |
| Top Scorer | Yoshito Ōkubo | Kawasaki Frontale |
| Position | Footballer | Club | Nationality |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Shusaku Nishikawa (3) | Urawa Red Diamonds | Japan |
| DF | Kosuke Ota (1) | FC Tokyo | Japan |
| DF | Masato Morishige (2) | FC Tokyo | Japan |
| DF | Tsukasa Shiotani (1) | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Japan |
| MF | Léo Silva (1) | Albirex Niigata | Brazil |
| MF | Gaku Shibasaki (1) | Kashima Antlers | Japan |
| MF | Yasuhito Endō (11) | Gamba Osaka | Japan |
| MF | Yoshinori Muto (1) | FC Tokyo | Japan |
| FW | Patric (1) | Gamba Osaka | Brazil |
| FW | Takashi Usami (1) | Gamba Osaka | Japan |
| FW | Yoshito Ōkubo (2) | Kawasaki Frontale | Japan |
- The number in brackets denotes the number of times that the footballer has appeared in the Best 11.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Urawa Red Diamonds | 603,770 | 56,758 | 0 | 35,516 | −4.3%† |
| 2 | FC Tokyo | 428,184 | 42,059 | 13,048 | 25,187 | +0.5%† |
| 3 | Yokohama F. Marinos | 392,496 | 40,571 | 11,088 | 23,088 | −16.0%† |
| 4 | Albirex Niigata | 390,648 | 35,533 | 2,104 | 22,979 | −12.0%† |
| 5 | Cerezo Osaka | 367,651 | 42,723 | 10,262 | 21,627 | +14.9%† |
| 6 | Kashima Antlers | 300,310 | 32,099 | 8,840 | 17,665 | +7.6%† |
| 7 | Nagoya Grampus | 284,474 | 38,966 | 5,599 | 16,733 | +3.7%† |
| 8 | Kawasaki Frontale | 283,241 | 19,668 | 10,609 | 16,661 | +0.1%† |
| 9 | Vegalta Sendai | 257,949 | 18,914 | 11,144 | 15,173 | +2.1%† |
| 10 | Vissel Kobe | 255,185 | 25,382 | 9,375 | 15,010 | +30.3%† |
| 11 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 254,951 | 24,734 | 9,515 | 14,997 | −7.5%† |
| 12 | Gamba Osaka | 250,738 | 19,569 | 10,898 | 14,749 | +20.0%† |
| 13 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 241,577 | 19,824 | 8,539 | 14,210 | +0.5%† |
| 14 | Sagan Tosu | 240,323 | 23,277 | 8,276 | 14,137 | +22.8%† |
| 15 | Ventforet Kofu | 206,904 | 36,505 | 5,416 | 12,170 | −3.5%† |
| 16 | Omiya Ardija | 183,791 | 14,182 | 7,001 | 10,811 | −2.9%† |
| 17 | Kashiwa Reysol | 182,161 | 14,623 | 6,115 | 10,715 | −14.6%† |
| 18 | Tokushima Vortis | 151,034 | 17,274 | 3,594 | 8,884 | +104.3%† |
| League total | 5,275,387 | 56,758 | 0 | 17,240 | +0.1%† |
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