# 2023 J3 League

The 2023 J3 League, referred to as the 2023 Meiji Yasuda J3 League (Japanese: 2023 明治安田生命J3リーグ, Hepburn: 2023 Meiji Yasuda Seimei J3 Rīgu) for sponsorship reasons, was the 10th season of the J3 League under its current name.

## Changes from the previous season

| Promoted from 2022 JFL | Promoted to 2023 J2 League | Relegated from 2022 J2 League |
| Nara Club FC Osaka | Iwaki FC Fujieda MYFC | FC Ryukyu Iwate Grulla Morioka |
Iwaki FC and Fujieda MYFC were promoted to the J2 League after being champions and runners-up of last season's J3.
FC Ryukyu and Iwate Grulla Morioka were relegated from the J2 League after relatively short stints at the 2nd division, with Ryukyu spending four seasons, and Iwate spending just a single season. The clubs finished as 21st and 22nd-placed team at the 2022 J2 League, respectively.
Nara Club and FC Osaka were promoted to the J3 League after being respectively, champions and runners-up of last season's JFL. Both teams are making their debut in the J3 League after obtaining a J.League License, to enable their promotion from the JFL.
This season is the first of the J3 League to have 20 teams, seeing an increase from last season's 18 teams. About the number of teams, there will be no future changes, as the J.League confirmed that from 2024, all the three professional leagues would have 20 teams in each.

## Overview
### Promotion and relegation

This season was the first to feature promotion/relegation from the Japan Football League, enabling the possibility for teams to be relegated from the J3. The system of promotion/relegation between the leagues can be determined by the eligibility (Promotion to J3 requires a J.League license) of the JFL's champions and runners-up for the season.
* If only the JFL champions holds a license, there will be automatic promotion/relegation with the J3's 20th-placed team.
* If only the JFL runners-up holds a license, there will be promotion/relegation play-offs with the J3's 20th-placed team.
* If both the JFL champions and runners-up hold a license, there will be automatic promotion/relegation between the JFL champions and the J3's 20th-placed team, and promotion/relegation play-offs with the J3's 19th-placed team.
* If both the JFL champions and runners-up do not hold a license, no promotion/relegation between J3 and JFL will take place.
The dates and the host teams of the promotion/relegation play-off were pre-determined by the J.League. In case it happens, it will be played in two legs on 9 and 16 December, with the J3 team hosting the second leg.

## Participating clubs

| Club name | Home town | Stadium | Capacity | Last season | Licence |
| Azul Claro Numazu | Numazu | Ashitaka Stadium | 5,104 | J3 (15th) | J2 |
| Ehime FC | All cities/towns in Ehime | Ningineer Stadium | 21,401 | J3 (7th) | J1 |
| Fukushima United | Fukushima | Toho Stadium | 21,000 | J3 (11th) | J1 |
| Gainare Tottori | All cities/towns in Tottori | Axis Bird Stadium | 16,033 | J3 (12th) | J2 |
| FC Gifu | All cities/towns in Gifu | Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium | 26,109 | J3 (14th) | J1 |
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | Kitakyushu, Fukuoka | Mikuni World Stadium Kitakyushu | 15,066 | J3 (13th) | J1 |
| FC Imabari | Imabari | Imabari Satoyama Stadium | 5,316 | J3 (5th) | J2 |
| Iwate Grulla Morioka | All cities/towns in Iwate | Iwagin Stadium & Kitakami Stadium | 4,946 | J2 (22nd; Relegated) | J1 |
| Kagoshima United | Kagoshima | Shiranami Stadium | 19,934 | J3 (3rd) | J1 |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | All cities/towns in Kagawa | Pikara Stadium | 30,099 | J3 (17th) | J1 |
| Kataller Toyama | All cities/towns in Toyama | Toyama Athletic Stadium | 28,494 | J3 (6th) | J1 |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Cities/towns in Nagano | Sunpro Alwin | 20,396 | J3 (4th) | J1 |
| Nagano Parceiro | Nagano | Nagano U Stadium | 15,491 | J3 (8th) | J2 |
| Nara Club | All cities/towns on Nara | Rohto Field Nara | 30,600 | JFL (1st; Promoted) | J2 |
| FC Osaka | Higashiōsaka, Osaka | Hanazono Rugby Stadium | 27,346 | JFL (2nd; Promoted) | J3 |
| FC Ryukyu | All cities/towns in Okinawa | Tapic Kenso Hiyagon Stadium | 12,270 | J2 (21st; Relegated) | J1 |
| SC Sagamihara | Sagamihara | Gion Stadium | 15,300 | J3 (18th) | J2 |
| Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Miyazaki & Shintomi, Miyazaki | Unilever Stadium Shintomi | 5,357 | J3 (9th) | J2 |
| Vanraure Hachinohe | Eastern cities/towns in Aomori | Prifoods Stadium | 5,200 | J3 (10th) | J2 |
| YSCC Yokohama | Yokohama | Nippatsu Mitsuzawa Stadium | 15,454 | J3 (16th) | J2 |
* ↑ centering on Matsuyama
* ↑ centering on Tottori, Yonago, Kurayoshi, Sakaiminato
* ↑ centering on Gifu
* ↑ centering on Takamatsu, Marugame
* ↑ centering on Toyama
* ↑ Matsumoto, Azumino, Yamagata, Shiojiri, Omachi, Ikeda, Ikusaka, Minowa, Asahi
* ↑ Hachinohe, Towada, Gonohe, Sannohe, Takko, Hashikami, Nanbu, Shingo, Oirase, Misawa, Shichinohe, Rokunohe, Tohoku, Noheji, Yokohama, Rokkasho

### Personnel and kits

| Club | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Main shirt sponsor |
| Azul Claro Numazu | Masashi Nakayama | Takuya Sugai | Penalty | Usui |
| Ehime FC | Kiyotaka Ishimaru | Kenta Tokushige | Jogarbola | Ningineer Network |
| Fukushima United | Mitsumasa Yoda | Shun Obu | Hummel | Toho Bank |
| Gainare Tottori | Kohei Masumoto (IN) | Koki Ishii | Soccer Junky | San-in Godo Bank |
| FC Gifu | Yusaku Ueno | Yoshihiro Shoji | Razzoli | Hot Staff |
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | Kazuaki Tasaka | Ryosuke Tada | Penalty | Toto |
| FC Imabari | Naoto Kudo | Keishi Kusumi | Asics | Unicharm |
| Iwate Grulla Morioka | Tetsuji Nakamikawa | Atsutaka Nakamura | Kelme | Nova |
| Kagoshima United | Yasuaki Oshima | Kenta Hirose | Angua | Satsuma Shimabijin |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Atsushi Yoneyama | | Angua | Rexxam |
| Kataller Toyama | Michiharu Otagiri | Kosei Wakimoto | Goldwin | YKK AP |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Masahiro Shimoda | Akira Ando | Adidas | Epson |
| Nagano Parceiro | Riki Takagi | Takuya Akiyama | Penalty | Hokto |
| Nara Club | Julián Marín Bazalo | Yuki Kotani | Squadra | Daiwa House |
| FC Osaka | Ryo Shigaki | Shusuke Sakamoto | bonera | OM-X |
| FC Ryukyu | Kim Jong-song | Ryunosuke Noda | sfida | GMO Coin |
| SC Sagamihara | Kazuyuki Toda | Akihiko Takeshige | Gol. | Gion |
| Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Mitsuo Kato | Kenji Dai | Yonex | Enatsu Shoji Holdings |
| Vanraure Hachinohe | Nobuhiro Ishizaki | Naoyuki Yamada | Hummel | Atmix |
| YSCC Yokohama | Kazuki Kuranuki | Kento Dodate | Bonera | Sanshin |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing | Manner | Exit date | Exit date | Position in table | Incoming | Incoming date | Incoming date | Ref. |
| Team | Outgoing | Manner | Announced on | Departed on | Position in table | Incoming | Announced on | Arrived on | Ref. |
| FC Ryukyu | Kazuki Kuranuki | Sacked | 16 May | 16 May | 17th | Tetsuhiro Kina | 16 May | 16 May | |
| Gainare Tottori | Kim Jong-song | Sacked | 19 June | 19 June | 18th | Kohei Masumoto (interim) | 20 June | 20 June | |
| Fukushima United | Toshihiro Hattori | Sacked | 12 July | 12 July | 18th | Mitsumasa Yoda | 18 July | 18 July | |
| FC Imabari | Riki Takagi | Sacked | 15 August | 15 August | 6th | Naoto Kudo | 16 August | 16 August | |
| Kagoshima United | Naoto Otake | Sacked | 22 August | 22 August | 5th | Yasuaki Oshima | 23 August | 23 August | |
| Nagano Parceiro | Yuki Richard Stalph | Sacked | 27 August | 27 August | 15th | Riki Takagi | 30 August | 30 August | |
| YSCC Yokohama | Kei Hoshikawa | Sacked | 28 August | 28 August | 18th | Kazuki Kuranuki | 30 August | 30 August | |
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | Kazuaki Tasaka | Resigned | 5 September | 5 September | 20th | Shinji Kobayashi | 5 September | 5 September | |
| FC Ryukyu | Tetsuhiro Kina | Sacked | 15 September | 15 September | 18th | Kim Jong-song | 15 September | 15 September | |
| Iwate Grulla Morioka | Yoshika Matsubara | Sacked | 19 September | 19 September | 14th | Tetsuji Nakamikawa | 20 September | 20 September | |
| Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Hiroshi Matsuda | Sacked | 26 September | 26 September | 17th | Mitsuo Kato | 27 September | 27 September | |

## Foreign players

From the 2021 season onwards, there is no limitations on signing foreign players, but clubs could only register up to five of them for a single matchday squad. Players from J.League partner nations (Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Qatar) were exempted from these restrictions.
* Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the summer transfer window.
* Player's name in italics indicates the player has Japanese nationality in addition to their FIFA nationality, holds the nationality of a J.League partner nation, or is exempt from being treated as a foreign player due to having been born in Japan and being enrolled in, or having graduated from an approved type of school in the country.
| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Player 5 | Player 6 | Left mid-season |
| Azul Claro Numazu | Igor Gabriel | Mikhael Akatsuka | Raul Sudati | Shunkun Tani | | | |
| Ehime FC | Ben Duncan | | | | | | |
| Fukushima United | | | | | | | |
| Gainare Tottori | Mun In-ju | | | | | | |
| FC Gifu | Ono Cholhwan | | | | | | |
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | Koh Seung-jin | Mikel Agu | Eduardo de Queiroz Melo | Ikechukwu Eboko | | | |
| FC Imabari | Marcus Índio | Jon Ander Serantes | Park Soo-bin | Ralf Seuntjens | Filip Piszczek | | Dudu |
| Iwate Grulla Morioka | Cristiano | Douglas Oliveira | Au Yeung Yiu Chung | Jang Hyun-soo | Kenneth Otabor | Ri Yong-jik | |
| Kagoshima United | Weslley | | | | | | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | | | | | | | |
| Kataller Toyama | Arthur Silva | Gabriel Nascimento | Matheus Leiria | | | | |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Lucas Rian | Paulinho | Víctor Ibáñez | | | | |
| Nagano Parceiro | Ryu Nugraha | Kim Min-ho | | | | | |
| Nara Club | Arnau Riera | | | | | | |
| FC Osaka | Woo Sang-ho | | | | | | Efrain Rintaro João Victor Maykon Douglas Jean Marie Dongou |
| FC Ryukyu | Kelvin | Cho Eun-su | Jeon Ji-wan | Danny Carvajal | Sadam Sulley | | |
| SC Sagamihara | | | | | | | |
| Tegevajaro Miyazaki | | | | | | | |
| Vanraure Hachinohe | Oriola Sunday | | | | | | |
| YSCC Yokohama | Carlos Arroyo | Loris Tinelli | Promise Ugochukwu | | | | |

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Ehime FC (C, P) | 38 | 21 | 10 | 7 | 59 | 48 | +11 | 73 | Promotion to the J2 League |
| 2 | Kagoshima United (P) | 38 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 58 | 41 | +17 | 62 | Promotion to the J2 League |
| 3 | Kataller Toyama | 38 | 19 | 5 | 14 | 59 | 48 | +11 | 62 | |
| 4 | FC Imabari | 38 | 16 | 11 | 11 | 54 | 42 | +12 | 59 | |
| 5 | Nara Club | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 45 | 32 | +13 | 57 | |
| 6 | Gainare Tottori | 38 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 57 | 52 | +5 | 56 | |
| 7 | Vanraure Hachinohe | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 49 | 47 | +2 | 56 | |
| 8 | FC Gifu | 38 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 44 | 35 | +9 | 54 | |
| 9 | Matsumoto Yamaga | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 51 | 47 | +4 | 54 | |
| 10 | Iwate Grulla Morioka | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 48 | 49 | −1 | 54 | |
| 11 | FC Osaka | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 41 | 38 | +3 | 53 | |
| 12 | YSCC Yokohama | 38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 48 | 50 | −2 | 52 | |
| 13 | Azul Claro Numazu | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | 48 | 48 | 0 | 51 | |
| 14 | Nagano Parceiro | 38 | 13 | 11 | 14 | 52 | 60 | −8 | 50 | |
| 15 | Fukushima United | 38 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 37 | 42 | −5 | 47 | |
| 16 | Kamatamare Sanuki | 38 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 29 | 45 | −16 | 44 | |
| 17 | FC Ryukyu | 38 | 12 | 7 | 19 | 43 | 61 | −18 | 43 | |
| 18 | SC Sagamihara | 38 | 9 | 14 | 15 | 44 | 48 | −4 | 41 | |
| 19 | Tegevajaro Miyazaki | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | 31 | 52 | −21 | 39 | |
| 20 | Giravanz Kitakyushu | 38 | 7 | 10 | 21 | 33 | 45 | −12 | 31 | |
* ↑ Only teams that hold a J2 license are eligible for promotion.
* ↑ The team does not hold either a J1 or J2 license, and so is ineligible for promotion to the J2 League.

## Stadiums

Primary venues to be used in the 2023 J3 League season:
| Azul Claro Numazu | Ehime FC | Fukushima United | Gainare Tottori | FC Gifu | Giravanz Kitakyushu | FC Imabari |
| Ashitaka Park Stadium | Ningineer Stadium | Toho Stadium | Axis Bird Stadium | Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium | Mikuni World Stadium Kitakyushu | ASICS Satoyama Stadium |
| Capacity: 10,000 | Capacity: 21,401 | Capacity: 21,000 | Capacity: 16,310 | Capacity: 11,999 | Capacity: 15,300 | Capacity: 5,316 |
| Iwate Grulla Morioka | Kagoshima United | Kamatamare Sanuki | Kataller Toyama | Matsumoto Yamaga | Nagano Parceiro | Nara Club |
| Iwagin Stadium | Shiranami Stadium | Pikara Stadium | Toyama Stadium | Sunpro Alwin | Nagano U Stadium | Rohto Field Nara |
| Capacity: 4,946 | Capacity: 12,606 | Capacity: 22,338 | Capacity: 18,588 | Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 15,515 | Capacity: 30,600 |
| FC Osaka | FC Ryukyu | SC Sagamihara | Tegevajaro Miyazaki | Vanraure Hachinohe | YSCC Yokohama | All J3 stadiums |
| Hanazono Rugby Stadium | Tapic Kenso Hiyagon Stadium | Sagamihara Gion Stadium | Unilever Stadium Shintomi | Prifoods Stadium | Nippatsu Mitsuzawa Stadium | All J3 stadiums |
| Capacity: 27,346 | Capacity: 12,270 | Capacity: 15,300 | Capacity: 5,354 | Capacity: 5,124 | Capacity: 15,440 | All J3 stadiums |

## Season statistics
### Goal contributions
#### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Ren Komatsu | Matsumoto Yamaga | 19 |
| 2 | Hayato Asakawa | Nara Club | 16 |
| 3 | Noah Kenshin Browne | Azul Claro Numazu | 12 |
| 3 | Riki Matsuda | Ehime FC | 12 |
| 5 | Sho Fukuda | YSCC Yokohama | 11 |
| 5 | Ryunosuke Noda | FC Ryukyu | 11 |
| 5 | Masashi Wada | Iwate Grulla Morioka | 11 |

#### Top assists

| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | Yusuke Kikui | Matsumoto Yamaga | 9 |
| 1 | Marcus Índio | FC Imabari | 9 |
| 1 | Shunsuke Motegi | Ehime FC | 9 |
| 4 | Kaili Shimbo | Iwate Grulla Morioka | 8 |
| 5 | Noah Kenshin Browne | Azul Claro Numazu | 7 |
| 5 | Nao Eguchi | Kamatamare Sanuki | 7 |
| 5 | Kotaro Tokunaga | Azul Claro Numazu | 7 |

#### Clean sheets

| Rank | Player | Club | C.S. |
| 1 | Tatsunari Nagai | FC Osaka | 16 |
| 2 | Kenta Tanno | Iwate Grulla Morioka | 12 |
| 3 | Jun Kodama | YSCC Yokohama | 9 |
| 3 | Shinji Okada | Nara Club | 9 |
| 3 | Yusuke Taniguchi | Vanraure Hachinohe | 9 |

### Discipline
#### Player

* Most yellow cards: 11
** Takahiro Nakazato (YSCC Yokohama)
* Most red cards: 2
** Ayumu Matsumoto (FC Gifu)
** Marcus Índio (FC Imabari)

#### Club

* Most yellow cards: 65 (FC Ryukyu)
* Most red cards: 4 (FC Gifu)

## Awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Monthly MVP | Monthly MVP | Goal of the Month | Goal of the Month | References |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club | Player | Club | References |
| February/March | Yoshika Matsubara | Iwate Grulla Morioka | Tsuyoshi Miyaichi | Iwate Grulla Morioka | Kelvin | FC Ryukyu | |
| April | Julián Marín Bazalo | Nara Club | Hayato Asakawa | Nara Club | Ren Komatsu | Matsumoto Yamaga | |
| May | Naoto Otake | Kagoshima United | Sho Fukuda | YSCC Yokohama | Rio Yoshitake | SC Sagamihara | |
| June | Yusako Ueno | FC Gifu | Yoji Sasaki | Kataller Toyama | Haruto Shirai | FC Ryukyu | |
| July | Kiyotaka Ishimaru | Ehime FC | Shumpei Fukahori | Ehime FC | Takahiro Kitsui | FC Osaka | |
| August | Mitsumasa Yoda | Fukushima United | Charles Nduka | FC Gifu | Shunsuke Tanimoto | Ehime FC | |
| September | Yasuaki Oshima | Kagoshima United | Takahiro Kitsui | FC Osaka | Nobuyuki Shiina | Kataller Toyama | |
| October | Kazuki Kuranuki | YSCC Yokohama | Rei Yonezawa | Kagoshima United | Yuma Funabashi | AC Nagano Parceiro | |
| November/December | Nobuhiro Ishizaki | Vanraure Hachinohe | Matheus Leiria | Kataller Toyama | Tatsuma Sakai | Nara Club | |