2025 Japan Football League
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| Season | 2025 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 8 March – 23 November 2025 |
| Champions | Honda FC |
| Promoted | Reilac Shiga FC |
| Relegated | Atletico Suzuka Asuka FC |
| Matches | 240 |
| Goals | 596 (2.48 per match) |
← 2024 2026–27 → | |
The 2025 Japan Football League (Japanese: 第27回日本フットボールリーグ[第27回 JFL 2025], Hepburn: Dai Nijūnana Nihon Futtobōru Rīgu [Dai Nijūnana JFL 2025]) was the 27th season of JFL, since its establishment in 1999. This was also the twelfth season of the league having a fourth-tier status in Japanese football since 2014.
This marked the final Japan Football League season scheduled within a single calendar year, running from late winter to early winter, as future seasons would shift to a summer-to-spring format.
The number of teams stayed the same at 16 for the 2025 season, just as it was in 2024.
The league's champion team earns automatic promotion to the J3 League, while the 2nd place team competes in a promotion/relegation play-off against the 19th-placed team from the J3 League.
As league champions, Honda FC were ineligible for promotion to the professional ranks because of their amateur status. This meant only the second-place team, Reilac Shiga, qualified for the promotion/relegation play-off, where they faced Azul Claro Numazu.
Schedule
The league and match format was revealed on 21 December 2024. The season kicked off on 8 March and wrapped up on 23 November. The format consists of a round-robin with 30 matches.
The J3/JFL play-offs were held over two legs, with the dates confirmed in December.
Changes from the previous season
Iwate Grulla Morioka and YSCC Yokohama were relegated from the 2024 J3 League after finishing 19th and 20th, respectively. Iwate played in the JFL for the first time in their history for this season while YSCC Yokohama returned to the fourth tier after 12 years' absence.
Asuka FC, 2024 Kansai Soccer League Division 1 champion, was the sole promoted team to the JFL as they won the 2024 Regional Champions League.[1][2] Asuka also played in the JFL for the first time in their history for this season.
Vonds Ichihara could have joined Briobecca Urayasu as Chiba's representatives in the JFL, had they won the 2024 JFL play-off against Minebea Mitsumi.
Sony Sendai withdrew from the JFL due to dissolution after financial troubles and ended 25 years in the fourth tier.[3]
On 1 January 2025, Briobecca Urayasu was renamed Briobecca Urayasu Ichikawa for this season due to aiming for the J.League.[4]
Participating clubs
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Honda FC (C) | 30 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 51 | 28 | +23 | 60 | |
| 2 | Reilac Shiga (O, P) | 30 | 16 | 8 | 6 | 47 | 35 | +12 | 56 | Qualification for promotion playoffs |
| 3 | Briobecca Urayasu Ichikawa | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 35 | 25 | +10 | 52 | |
| 4 | Tiamo Hirakata | 30 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 58 | 42 | +16 | 50 | |
| 5 | ReinMeer Aomori | 30 | 14 | 8 | 8 | 40 | 33 | +7 | 50 | |
| 6 | Verspah Oita | 30 | 14 | 7 | 9 | 41 | 33 | +8 | 49 | |
| 7 | Veertien Mie | 30 | 11 | 12 | 7 | 38 | 25 | +13 | 45 | |
| 8 | Okinawa SV | 30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 39 | 41 | −2 | 43 | |
| 9 | Iwate Grulla Morioka | 30 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 45 | 49 | −4 | 39 | |
| 10 | Minebea Mitsumi | 30 | 9 | 7 | 14 | 40 | 41 | −1 | 34 | |
| 11 | Maruyasu Okazaki | 30 | 9 | 7 | 14 | 29 | 38 | −9 | 34 | |
| 12 | Criacao Shinjuku | 30 | 8 | 9 | 13 | 29 | 34 | −5 | 33 | |
| 13 | YSCC Yokohama | 30 | 8 | 6 | 16 | 35 | 56 | −21 | 30 | |
| 14 | Yokogawa Musashino | 30 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 17 | 37 | −20 | 29 | |
| 15 | Atletico Suzuka (R) | 30 | 7 | 7 | 16 | 30 | 46 | −16 | 28 | Qualified for relegation playoffs |
| 16 | Asuka FC (R) | 30 | 4 | 12 | 14 | 22 | 33 | −11 | 24 | Relegation to 2026–27 Japanese Regional Leagues |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Head-to-head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Head-to-head goal scored; 7) Fair-play points.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
J3/JFL Play-offs
The play-offs, officially called the 2025 J3/JFL Play-offs (Japanese: 2025 J3・JFL入れ替え戦[A]), took place on 7 and 14 December 2025. If the two teams had been level after 180 minutes, the second match would have gone to extra time and penalties if required. The away goals rule wouldn't be in effect.
Overview
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reilac Shiga(JFL) | 4 - 3 | Azul Claro Numazu (J3) | 3 – 2 | 1 - 1 |
Matches
JFL/Regional Leagues promotion/relegation playoff
The play-off (Japanese: 2025年度JFL·地域入れ替え戦) took place on 30 November 2025.
| Atletico Suzuka (2025 JFL 15th) | 0–1 (a.e.t.) | Vonds Ichihara (2025 JRFCL runners-up) |
|---|---|---|
| Match report (in Japanese) | Kato  98' |
Atletico Suzuka relegated to the Tōkai Soccer League Division 1; Vonds Ichihara promoted to the JFL.