# 2017 J2 League

The 2017 Meiji Yasuda J2 League (2017 明治安田生命J2リーグ) season was the 46th season of the second-tier club football in Japan and the 19th season since the establishment of J2 League.

## Clubs

The participating clubs are listed in the following table:
| Club Name | Home Town(s) | Note(s) |
| Avispa Fukuoka | Fukuoka City, Fukuoka | Relegated from J1 League in 2016 |
| Ehime FC | All cities/towns in Ehime | |
| Fagiano Okayama | All cities/towns in Okayama | |
| FC Gifu | All cities/towns in Gifu | |
| JEF United Chiba | Chiba & Ichihara, Chiba | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Takamatsu, Kagawa | |
| Kyoto Sanga | Southwestern cities/towns in Kyoto | |
| Machida Zelvia | Machida, Tokyo | |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Central cities/towns in Nagano | |
| Mito HollyHock | Mito, Ibaraki | |
| Montedio Yamagata | All cities/towns in Yamagata | |
| Nagoya Grampus | All Aichi Prefecture | Relegated from J1 League in 2016 |
| Oita Trinita | Ōita | Promoted from J3 League in 2016 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | All cities/towns in Yamaguchi | |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Kumamoto | |
| Shonan Bellmare | Shonan part of Kanagawa | Relegated from J1 League in 2016 |
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | All cities/towns in Gunma | |
| Tokushima Vortis | All cities/towns in Tokushima | |
| Tokyo Verdy | All cities/towns in Tokyo | |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | All cities/towns in Nagasaki | |
| Yokohama FC | Yokohama, Kanagawa | |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | Kanazawa | Won J2-J3 Relegation Playoff |
* ↑ centering on Matsuyama
* ↑ centering on Okayama, Kurashiki, Tsuyama
* ↑ centering on Gifu
* ↑ Kyoto, Uji, Joyo, Kyōtanabe, Mukō, Nagaokakyō, Kizugawa, Kameoka, Nantan, Kyotanba
* ↑ Matsumoto, Nagano, Azumino, Yamagata, Shiojiri, Ōmachi, Ikeda
* ↑ centering on Yamagata, Tendō, Tsuruoka
* ↑ centering on Nagoya, Toyota, Miyoshi
* ↑ centering on Yamaguchi, Shimonoseki, Sanyoonoda, Ube
* ↑ Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Atsugi, Isehara, Odawara, Chigasaki, Hadano, Fujisawa, Ōiso, Samukawa, Ninomiya, Kamakura, Minamiashigara, Oi, Kaisei, Nakai, Hakone, Matsuda, Manazuru, Yamakita, Yugawara
* ↑ centering on Kusatsu, Maebashi
* ↑ centering on Tokushima, Naruto, Mima, Matsushige, Itano, Aizumi, Kitajima
* ↑ centering on Nagasaki, Isahaya

### Personnel and kits

| Club | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer |
| Avispa Fukuoka | Masami Ihara | Yuta Mikado | ATHLETA |
| Ehime FC | Shuichi Mase | Shuto Kojima | Mizuno |
| Fagiano Okayama | Tetsu Nagasawa | Kohei Kiyama | Penalty |
| FC Gifu | Takeshi Oki | Yoshihiro Shoji | New Balance |
| JEF United Chiba | Juan Esnáider | Naoya Kondo | Kappa |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Makoto Kitano | Kenta Shimizu | ATHLETA |
| Kyoto Sanga | Takanori Nunobe | Takanori Sugeno | Wacoal |
| Machida Zelvia | Naoki Soma | Ri Han-jae | SVOLME |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Yasuharu Sorimachi | Masaki Iida | Adidas |
| Mito HollyHock | Takayuki Nishigaya | Keisuke Funatani | GAViC |
| Montedio Yamagata | Takashi Kiyama | Takuya Honda | New Balance |
| Nagoya Grampus | Yahiro Kazama | Hisato Sato | Mizuno |
| Oita Trinita | Tomohiro Katanosaka | Satoru Yamagishi | Puma |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Carlos Mayor | Yuya Torikai | Finta |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Hiroyuki Kiyokawa | Takuya Sonoda | Puma |
| Shonan Bellmare | Cho Kwi-jea | Kaoru Takayama | Penalty |
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | Hitoshi Morishita | Yuya Yamagishi | Finta |
| Tokushima Vortis | Ricardo Rodríguez | Ken Iwao | Mizuno |
| Tokyo Verdy | Miguel Ángel Lotina | Akira Ibayashi | ATHLETA |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | Takuya Takagi | Yusuke Murakami | hummel |
| Yokohama FC | Hitoshi Nakata | Kensuke Sato | SOCCER JUNKY |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | Masaaki Yanagishita | Tomonobu Hiroi | Adidas |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Date of separation | Manner of departure | Incoming manager | Date of announcement |
| Nagoya Grampus | Boško Gjurovski | 6 November 2016 | End of caretaker spell | Yahiro Kazama | 4 January 2017 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Nobuhiro Ueno | 23 May 2017 | Sacked | Carlos Mayor | 5 June 2017 |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Hiroyuki Kiyokawa | 14 June 2017 | Sacked | Tomoyoshi Ikeya | 14 June 2017 |
| Yokohama FC | Hitoshi Nakata | 15 October 2017 | Sacked | Edson Tavares | 24 October 2017 |

### Foreign players

Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the summer transfer window.
| Clubs | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Player 5 | Other | Former |
| Nagoya Grampus | Felipe Garcia | Gabriel Xavier | Washington | Lim Seung-gyeom | Robin Simović | | Charles |
| Shonan Bellmare | Tando Velaphi | André Bahia | Dinei | Dragan Mrđa | | | Chiquinho |
| Avispa Fukuoka | Euller | Gilsinho | Wellington | Willian Popp | Won Du-jae | | Danilson Córdoba |
| Ehime FC | Ju Feng | Park Seung-su | | | | | |
| Fagiano Okayama | Nicolás Orsini | Jang Suk-won | Kim Jong-min | Lee Kyung-tae | Park Hyung-jin | | |
| FC Gifu | Cristian | Henik | Sisinio | Víctor Ibáñez | | | |
| Oita Trinita | Chiquinho | | | | | | |
| Mito HollyHock | Paulão | | | | | | Kwon Young-jin |
| JEF United Chiba | Joaquín Larrivey | Luis Ojeda | Eduardo Aranda | Jorge Salinas | Kim Byeom-yong | | Lee Joo-young |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Alex | Allan | Evson | Lee Joo-young | Yoon Seon-ho | Ri Yong-jik | |
| Montedio Yamagata | Lee Je-seung | | | | | | Koo Bon-hyeok |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | Abel Luciatti | Leonardo Ramos | Marcelo Vidal | Park Chan-yong | | | |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Gustavo | Júnior Fell | Morbeck | Lim Jin-woo | Yang Sang-jun | An Byong-jun | |
| Kyoto Sanga | Kevin Oris | Ha Sung-min | Lee Yong-jae | | | | |
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | Matheus | Choi Joon-gi | Kang Su-il | Yeo Sung-hye | Park Gon | Park Seung-ri | Han Ho-dong |
| Tokyo Verdy | Alan Pinheiro | Douglas | Carlos Martínez | | | | |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | Juanma | Miguel Pallardó | Song Young-Min | | | | |
| Tokushima Vortis | Carlinhos | Nikola Vasiljević | Kim Jong-pil | | | | Nikola Ašćerić |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Davi | Diego | Paulinho | Serginho | Goh Dong Min | | Yeo Sung-hye |
| Yokohama FC | Leandro Domingues | Calvin Jong-a-Pin | Ibba Laajab | Jeong Chung-geun | | | |
| Machida Zelvia | Boris Tatar | Kim Song-gi | | | | Ri Han-jae | |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | Byeon Jun-byum | Kim Tea-sung | | | | | Mendes |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Shonan Bellmare (C, P) | 42 | 24 | 11 | 7 | 58 | 36 | +22 | 83 | Promotion to 2018 J1 League |
| 2 | V-Varen Nagasaki (P) | 42 | 24 | 8 | 10 | 59 | 41 | +18 | 80 | Promotion to 2018 J1 League |
| 3 | Nagoya Grampus (O, P) | 42 | 23 | 6 | 13 | 85 | 65 | +20 | 75 | Qualification for promotion playoffs |
| 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 42 | 21 | 11 | 10 | 54 | 36 | +18 | 74 | Qualification for promotion playoffs |
| 5 | Tokyo Verdy | 42 | 20 | 10 | 12 | 64 | 49 | +15 | 70 | Qualification for promotion playoffs |
| 6 | JEF United Chiba | 42 | 20 | 8 | 14 | 70 | 58 | +12 | 68 | Qualification for promotion playoffs |
| 7 | Tokushima Vortis | 42 | 18 | 13 | 11 | 71 | 45 | +26 | 67 | |
| 8 | Matsumoto Yamaga | 42 | 19 | 9 | 14 | 61 | 45 | +16 | 66 | |
| 9 | Oita Trinita | 42 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 58 | 50 | +8 | 64 | |
| 10 | Yokohama FC | 42 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 60 | 49 | +11 | 63 | |
| 11 | Montedio Yamagata | 42 | 14 | 17 | 11 | 45 | 47 | −2 | 59 | |
| 12 | Kyoto Sanga | 42 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 55 | 47 | +8 | 57 | |
| 13 | Fagiano Okayama | 42 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 44 | 49 | −5 | 55 | |
| 14 | Mito HollyHock | 42 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 45 | 48 | −3 | 54 | |
| 15 | Ehime FC | 42 | 14 | 9 | 19 | 54 | 68 | −14 | 51 | |
| 16 | Machida Zelvia | 42 | 11 | 17 | 14 | 53 | 53 | 0 | 50 | |
| 17 | Zweigen Kanazawa | 42 | 13 | 10 | 19 | 49 | 67 | −18 | 49 | |
| 18 | FC Gifu | 42 | 11 | 13 | 18 | 56 | 68 | −12 | 46 | |
| 19 | Kamatamare Sanuki | 42 | 8 | 14 | 20 | 41 | 61 | −20 | 38 | |
| 20 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 42 | 11 | 5 | 26 | 48 | 69 | −21 | 38 | |
| 21 | Roasso Kumamoto | 42 | 9 | 10 | 23 | 36 | 59 | −23 | 37 | Spared from relegation |
| 22 | Thespakusatsu Gunma (R) | 42 | 5 | 5 | 32 | 32 | 88 | −56 | 20 | Relegation to 2018 J3 League |
* ↑ Only teams that meet J1 license criteria can participate in promotion playoffs. If one or more teams fail to meet the criteria, only eligible teams that finished 3rd to 6th will participate and no replacement teams will be added.
* ↑ Direct exchange between J2 and J3 is subject to eligibility of J2-licensed teams in top 2 of 2017 J3 League.

## Results

| Home \ Away | AVI | BEL | EHI | FAG | GIF | GRA | HOL | JEF | KAM | MON | REN | ROS | SAN | SPA | TRI | VVN | VER | VOR | YAM | YFC | ZEL | ZWE |
| Avispa Fukuoka | | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 0–2 |
| Shonan Bellmare | 0–3 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 4–2 |
| Ehime FC | 0–1 | 0–1 | | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 |
| Fagiano Okayama | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 |
| FC Gifu | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | | 2–6 | 2–1 | 4–6 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 4–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 |
| Nagoya Grampus | 3–1 | 3–2 | 7–4 | 2–0 | 1–1 | | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 0–2 | 5–2 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 2–3 |
| Mito HollyHock | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | | 3–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 4–0 |
| JEF United Chiba | 0–0 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | | 4–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 5–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | 2–2 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | | 0–0 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 0–4 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 |
| Montedio Yamagata | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | | 3–2 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–6 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 2–1 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | 1–2 | 3–5 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 0–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 |
| Roasso Kumamoto | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | | 0–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 1–4 |
| Kyoto Sanga | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1–3 |
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | | 0–4 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 |
| Oita Trinita | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 4–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–3 | 1–0 |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–1 | | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 |
| Tokyo Verdy | 0–0 | 2–3 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 4–0 | 3–0 | 3–3 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 |
| Tokushima Vortis | 2–1 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | | 0–2 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 4–0 | 3–2 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | | 3–1 | 1–1 | 4–0 |
| Yokohama FC | 1–3 | 0–1 | 4–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | | 2–2 | 2–0 |
| Machida Zelvia | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–4 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | | 1–1 |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | 0–5 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 3–4 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 3–2 | 2–2 | |

## Play-offs
### J1 League Promotion Playoffs

2017 J.League Road To J1 Play-Offs (2017 J1昇格プレーオフ)
| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| 3 | Nagoya Grampus | 4 | | | |
| 6 | JEF United Chiba | 2 | | | |
| 6 | JEF United Chiba | 2 | 3 | Nagoya Grampus | 0 |
| | | | 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 0 |
| 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 1 | 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 0 |
| 5 | Tokyo Verdy | 0 | | | |

### Final

Nagoya Grampus was promoted to J1 League.

## Season statistics
### Top scorers

    As of match played 19 November 2017.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Ibba Laajab | Yokohama FC | 25 |
| 2 | Daiki Watari | Tokushima Vortis | 23 |
| 3 | Wellington | Avispa Fukuoka | 19 |
| 3 | Hiroyuki Takasaki | Matsumoto Yamaga | 19 |
| 3 | Joaquin Larrivey | JEF United Chiba | 19 |
| 6 | Alan Pinheiro | Tokyo Verdy | 14 |
| 6 | Yusuke Goto | Oita Trinita | 14 |
| 8 | Tulio | Kyoto Sanga | 13 |
| 8 | Robin Simovic | Nagoya Grampus | 13 |
| 8 | Douglas Vieira | Tokyo Verdy | 13 |
| 8 | Daizen Maeda | Mito HollyHock | 13 |

## Attendances

| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | Nagoya Grampus | 322,672 | 36,755 | 7,046 | 15,365 | −13.3%$^†$ |
| 2 | Matsumoto Yamaga | 255,076 | 15,872 | 8,982 | 12,146 | −10.9%$^†$ |
| 3 | JEF United Chiba | 209,637 | 15,994 | 6,230 | 9,983 | −3.0%$^†$ |
| 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 200,546 | 16,336 | 6,021 | 9,550 | −25.7%$^†$ |
| 5 | Fagiano Okayama | 198,883 | 12,286 | 6,275 | 9,471 | −5.5%$^†$ |
| 6 | Shonan Bellmare | 177,527 | 12,480 | 4,453 | 8,454 | −26.7%$^†$ |
| 7 | Oita Trinita | 169,328 | 11,370 | 6,136 | 8,063 | +3.8%$^‡$ |
| 8 | FC Gifu | 146,518 | 17,027 | 3,650 | 6,977 | +23.2%$^†$ |
| 9 | Kyoto Sanga | 141,705 | 10,750 | 4,896 | 6,748 | +3.4%$^†$ |
| 10 | Montedio Yamagata | 138,232 | 12,743 | 3,707 | 6,582 | +5.2%$^†$ |
| 11 | Roasso Kumamoto | 137,698 | 13,990 | 3,944 | 6,557 | +18.3%$^†$ |
| 12 | Tokyo Verdy | 130,334 | 14,541 | 2,786 | 6,206 | +14.9%$^†$ |
| 13 | Yokohama FC | 125,301 | 13,244 | 2,284 | 5,967 | +22.0%$^†$ |
| 14 | V-Varen Nagasaki | 124,756 | 22,407 | 3,189 | 5,941 | +13.7%$^†$ |
| 15 | Renofa Yamaguchi | 114,538 | 9,651 | 3,369 | 5,454 | −18.0%$^†$ |
| 16 | Tokushima Vortis | 104,577 | 7,583 | 3,106 | 4,979 | +9.1%$^†$ |
| 17 | Mito HollyHock | 103,549 | 9,240 | 3,023 | 4,931 | −8.1%$^†$ |
| 18 | Zweigen Kanazawa | 92,336 | 11,173 | 2,780 | 4,397 | +5.2%$^†$ |
| 19 | Machida Zelvia | 85,177 | 8,124 | 2,383 | 4,056 | −20.8%$^†$ |
| 20 | Ehime FC | 81,193 | 7,117 | 1,958 | 3,866 | −5.5%$^†$ |
| 21 | Thespakusatsu Gunma | 80,465 | 6,828 | 1,402 | 3,832 | −19.2%$^†$ |
| 22 | Kamatamare Sanuki | 79,908 | 7,994 | 1,191 | 3,805 | +3.2%$^†$ |
| | League total | 3,219,936 | 36,755 | 1,191 | 6,970 | 0.0%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 19 November 2017 Source: J. League Data Notes: $^†$ Last year in J1 League.$^‡$ Last year in J3 League.