# 2015 J3 League

The 2015 Meiji Yasuda J3 League (2015 明治安田生命J3リーグ) was the 19th season of the third tier in Japanese football, and the 2nd season of the professional J3 League.

## Clubs

To participate, a club must have held an associate membership, or have submitted an application before 30 June 2014, and then passed an inspection to obtain a participation license issued by J.League Council. J.League has confirmed the following clubs participating in the 2015 J3 season:
| Club Name | Home Town | Notes |
| Blaublitz Akita | All cities/towns in Akita | |
| Fukushima United | Fukushima | |
| Gainare Tottori | All cities/towns in Tottori | Withdrew a J2 license due to financial reasons. |
| Grulla Morioka | Morioka, Iwate | |
| Kataller Toyama | All cities/towns in Toyama | Relegated from 2014 J2, eligible for J2 promotion |
| Fujieda MYFC | Fujieda, Shizuoka | |
| Nagano Parceiro | Nagano | Eligible for J2 promotion |
| FC Ryukyu | All cities/towns in Okinawa | |
| SC Sagamihara | Sagamihara, Kanagawa | |
| YSCC Yokohama | Yokohama, Kanagawa | |
| Machida Zelvia | Machida, Tokyo | Eligible for J2 promotion |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Yamaguchi | Promoted from 2014 JFL, eligible for J2 promotion |
| J.League U-22 Selection | n/a | A special team, composed of best J1 and J2 youngsters to prepare them for the 2016 Olympics. Folded by the JFA after the season. |

## Competition rules

The league is played in three rounds, each team playing a total of 36 matches. J.League U-22 Selection played all their matches on the road.
Each team must have at least 3 players holding professional contracts. Two foreign players are allowed per team, plus 1 more from the ASEAN partner country of J. League. The matchday roster will consist of 16 players, and up to 5 substitutes will be allowed in a game.

### Promotion and relegation

Rules for promotion to J2 are largely similar to those of Japan Football League in the recent seasons: to be promoted, a club must hold a J2 license and finish in top 2 of the league. The U-22 team is not eligible for promotion regardless of their final position. The champions will be promoted directly, in exchange with 22nd-placed J2 club, and the runners-up will participate in the playoffs with 21st J2 club. If either or both top 2 finishers are ineligible for promotion, the playoffs and/or direct exchange will not be held in accordance to the exact positions of promotion-eligible clubs.
No relegation to JFL is planned. Up to 2 clubs may be promoted if they are licensed by J. League for J3 participation and finish in top 4 of JFL.

### Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Manager$^1$ | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Blaublitz Akita | Shuichi Mase | Toshio Shimakawa | Athleta | TDK |
| Fukushima United | Keisuke Kurihara | Kazuto Ishido | Hummel | TOHO BANK |
| Gainare Tottori | Masanobu Matsunami | Ryosuke Kawanabe | Hummel | Tottori Gas Co. |
| Grulla Morioka | Naoki Naruo | Kenta Matsuda | SVOLME | PalcoHome |
| Kataller Toyama | Yasuyuki Kishino | Taijiro Mori | Goldwin | YKK |
| Fujieda MYFC | Atsuto Oishi | Hiroki Narabayashi | Razzoli | Chang |
| Nagano Parceiro | Naohiko Minobe | Yuji Unozawa | DUELO | Hokto |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Nobuhiro Ueno | Kiyohiro Hirabayashi | FINTA | upr |
| FC Ryukyu | Norihiro Satsukawa | Satoshi Nakayama | mitre | GOO |
| SC Sagamihara | Keiju Karashima | Naohiro Takahara | gol. | Gion |
| YSCC Yokohama | Kenji Arima | Akio Yoshida | SVOLME | Kaspersky |
| Machida Zelvia | Naoki Soma | Ri Han-jae | SVOLME | Eagle Kenso |
| J.League U-22 Selection | Tsutomu Takahata | Various | Adidas | None |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Date of separation | Manner of departure | Incoming manager | Date of announcement |
| Nagano Parceiro | Naohiko Minobe | 5 August | Resigned on health issues | Hajime Eto | 5 August |
| Kataller Toyama | Yasuyuki Kishino | 27 August | Mutual consent | Shigeo Sawairi (acting) | 27 August |
| SC Sagamihara | Keiju Karashima | 2 November | Resigned | Yoshika Matsubara | 2 November |

## Foreign players

| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Asian Player | Non-Visa Foreign | Type-C Contract |
| Blaublitz Akita | Agustin Ortega | Leonardo | | | | |
| Fukushima United | Kim Kong Chyong | Kim Hong-yeon | | | | |
| Gainare Tottori | Fernandinho | | | | | |
| Grulla Morioka | Jung Hoon-sung | | | | | |
| Kataller Toyama | Tam Sheang Tsung | Lee Jae-won | | | | |
| Fujieda MYFC | Park Iru-gyu | | | | | |
| Nagano Parceiro | Kim Yeong-gi | Ko Kyung-dae | Murilo | | | |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Kim Jeong-seok | Choi Ju-yong | | | | |
| FC Ryukyu | Mac | Park Riki | | | |
| SC Sagamihara | Leozinho | Toró | Mobi Fehr | | | |
| YSCC Yokohama | None | None | None | None | None | None |
| Machida Zelvia | Bae Dae-won | Ri Han-jae | Lee Min-soo | | | |
| J.League U-22 Selection | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Note:
^1 A special team, composed of best J1 and J2 youngsters to prepare them for the 2016 Olympics

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Renofa Yamaguchi (C, P) | 36 | 25 | 3 | 8 | 96 | 36 | +60 | 78 | Promotion to 2016 J2 League |
| 2 | Machida Zelvia (P) | 36 | 23 | 9 | 4 | 52 | 18 | +34 | 78 | Qualification to J2 League promotion playoffs |
| 3 | Nagano Parceiro | 36 | 21 | 7 | 8 | 46 | 28 | +18 | 70 | |
| 4 | SC Sagamihara | 36 | 17 | 7 | 12 | 59 | 51 | +8 | 58 | |
| 5 | Kataller Toyama | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 37 | 36 | +1 | 52 | |
| 6 | Gainare Tottori | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 47 | 41 | +6 | 50 | |
| 7 | Fukushima United | 36 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 42 | 48 | −6 | 49 | |
| 8 | Blaublitz Akita | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 37 | 40 | −3 | 45 | |
| 9 | FC Ryukyu | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 45 | 51 | −6 | 45 | |
| 10 | Fujieda MYFC | 36 | 11 | 4 | 21 | 37 | 61 | −24 | 37 | |
| 11 | Grulla Morioka | 36 | 8 | 11 | 17 | 36 | 47 | −11 | 35 | |
| 12 | J.League U-22 Selection (W) | 36 | 7 | 7 | 22 | 28 | 71 | −43 | 28 | Folded by JFA after the season. |
| 13 | YSCC Yokohama | 36 | 7 | 6 | 23 | 24 | 58 | −34 | 27 | |
* ↑ Only teams that hold a J2 license are eligible for promotion.

## Results
### Rounds 1–13

| Home \ Away | BLA | FUK | GAI | GRU | KAT | MYF | PAR | REN | RYU | SGM | YSC | ZEL | J22 |
| Blaublitz Akita | | | 1–2 | 1–0 | | | | 1–2 | | 3–0 | 0–1 | | 1–0 |
| Fukushima United | 1–1 | | | 1–0 | | 0–2 | 1–2 | 3–4 | | | | | 1–4 |
| Gainare Tottori | | 1–2 | | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | | 1–0 | | 1–1 | | 2–0 |
| Grulla Morioka | | | 0–1 | | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | | | | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 |
| Kataller Toyama | 1–0 | 1–2 | | | | 1–0 | | | | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| Fujieda MYFC | 0–2 | | | | | | 0–1 | | 0–0 | 0–2 | | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| Nagano Parceiro | 1–0 | | | | 0–1 | | | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | | | 2–0 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | | | 2–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | | | 4–3 | 2–0 | | | 8–0 |
| FC Ryukyu | 2–0 | 1–1 | | 3–1 | 0–0 | | | | | | 0–1 | | 2–1 |
| SC Sagamihara | | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | | | | | 0–1 | | | 2–1 | 3–0 |
| YSCC Yokohama | | 0–1 | | | | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | | 0–4 | | 0–1 | 0–0 |
| Machida Zelvia | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | | | | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | | | | 6–0 |
| J.League U-22 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

### Rounds 14–26

| Home \ Away | BLA | FUK | GAI | GRU | KAT | MYF | PAR | REN | RYU | SGM | YSC | ZEL | J22 |
| Blaublitz Akita | | 2–3 | 1–2 | | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | | | | | 0–1 | 0–0 |
| Fukushima United | | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–3 | | | | | 1–1 | | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| Gainare Tottori | | | | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | | 1–1 | | | | 0–0 | 1–1 |
| Grulla Morioka | 0–0 | | | | | 0–2 | | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 1–1 | | 5–0 |
| Kataller Toyama | | | | 1–0 | | | | 2–5 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | | 0–0 |
| Fujieda MYFC | | 3–0 | | | 1–4 | | 2–1 | 0–4 | 0–1 | | | | 2–0 |
| Nagano Parceiro | | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | | | | | 0–0 | 1–0 | | 0–1 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | 3–1 | 3–0 | | | | | 3–2 | | 5–0 | | 6–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 |
| FC Ryukyu | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | | | | 1–1 | | | | 2–1 | | 2–1 |
| SC Sagamihara | 3–1 | | 2–1 | | | 5–0 | | 0–3 | 1–1 | | | 0–1 | 1–2 |
| YSCC Yokohama | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | | | 1–2 | | | | 0–1 | | | 0–3 |
| Machida Zelvia | | | | 0–1 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–0 | | 2–0 | | 2–1 | | 3–1 |
| J.League U-22 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

### Rounds 27–39

| Home \ Away | BLA | FUK | GAI | GRU | KAT | MYF | PAR | REN | RYU | SGM | YSC | ZEL | J22 |
| Blaublitz Akita | | | | | | | 1–1 | 3–1 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 1–0 | | 1–0 |
| Fukushima United | 1–2 | | | | | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | | 3–0 | | 3–0 |
| Gainare Tottori | 0–1 | 1–1 | | | | | | 2–2 | 3–0 | 6–2 | | 1–1 | 0–1 |
| Grulla Morioka | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–2 | | | | | 1–4 | | | | 1–1 | 1–0 |
| Kataller Toyama | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | | 1–0 | 0–0 | | | | | | 2–1 |
| Fujieda MYFC | 3–1 | | 4–2 | 2–1 | | | | | | 1–3 | 2–3 | 1–2 | 1–4 |
| Nagano Parceiro | | | 1–0 | 2–2 | | 2–1 | | | 2–1 | | 5–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | | | | | 1–2 | 2–3 | 1–2 | | | 5–0 | 4–0 | | 0–0 |
| FC Ryukyu | | | | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | | 0–2 | | 4–6 | | 0–2 | 6–0 |
| SC Sagamihara | | 0–2 | | 2–2 | 5–1 | | 2–0 | | | | 0–2 | | 3–2 |
| YSCC Yokohama | | | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–2 | | | | 1–0 | | | 0–2 | 4–0 |
| Machida Zelvia | 2–0 | 1–0 | | | 2–0 | | | 1–3 | | 1–0 | | | 1–0 |
| J.League U-22 | | | | | | | | | | | | | |

### Promotion/relegation playoffs

2015 J2/J3 Play-Offs (2015 J2・J3入れ替え戦)
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Oita Trinita | 1–3 | Machida Zelvia | 1–2 | 0-1 |
Machida Zelvia was promoted to J2 League. Oita Trinita was relegated to J3 League.

## Top scorers

| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Kazuhito Kishida | Renofa Yamaguchi | 32 |
| 2 | Takaki Fukumitsu | Renofa Yamaguchi | 19 |
| 3 | Yatsunori Shimaya | Renofa Yamaguchi | 16 |
| 4 | Tsugutoshi Oishi | Fujieda MYFC | 14 |
| 5 | Koji Suzuki | Machida Zelvia | 12 |
| 5 | Yuki Sato | Nagano Parceiro | 12 |
| 7 | Hiroki Higuchi | SC Sagamihara | 11 |
| 8 | Kyohei Maeyama | Blaublitz Akita | 10 |
| 8 | Takafumi Suzuki | Machida Zelvia | 10 |
| 8 | Masato Nakayama | Gainare Tottori | 10 |
| 11 | Keita Tanaka | FC Ryukyu | 9 |
Updated to games played on 23 November 2015 Source: Meiji Yasuda J3 League Stats & Data - Ranking:Goals

## Attendances

| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | Nagano Parceiro | 94,665 | 8,681 | 3,159 | 4,733 | +31.7%$^†$ |
| 2 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 87,348 | 8,474 | 1,697 | 4,367 | +90.1%$^‡$ |
| 3 | Machida Zelvia | 75,312 | 7,803 | 2,005 | 3,766 | +20.2%$^†$ |
| 4 | SC Sagamihara | 62,533 | 9,040 | 1,660 | 3,291 | +5.0%$^†$ |
| 5 | Kataller Toyama | 56,392 | 4,542 | 1,870 | 2,820 | −33.9%$^†$ |
| 6 | Blaublitz Akita | 37,955 | 3,233 | 1,237 | 1,998 | +12.7%$^†$ |
| 7 | Gainare Tottori | 38,637 | 4,013 | 1,096 | 1,932 | −37.0%$^†$ |
| 8 | FC Ryukyu | 28,466 | 8,993 | 673 | 1,498 | +7.2%$^†$ |
| 9 | Fukushima United | 24,497 | 3,207 | 692 | 1,289 | −2.4%$^†$ |
| 10 | Grulla Morioka | 24,784 | 3,025 | 635 | 1,239 | −18.6%$^†$ |
| 11 | Fujieda MYFC | 20,962 | 1,516 | 618 | 1,103 | −16.4%$^†$ |
| 12 | YSCC Yokohama | 17,465 | 1,723 | 461 | 919 | −9.7%$^†$ |
| | League total | 569,016 | 9,040 | 461 | 2,432 | +8.2%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 23 November 2015 Source: J.League data Notes: $^†$ Team played previous season in J2. $^‡$ Team played previous season in JFL.