Teams around the J. League have been busy parading their winter recruits this week, but if the recent travails of several promoted sides are anything to go by, this year's J1 new boys will need all the reinforcements they can get.
Ventforet Kofu, Shonan Bellmare and Oita Trinita have all begun preparations for the top-flight campaign ahead after escaping the second division last season, and all will be looking to avoid the example set last year by Consadole Sapporo. The Hokkaido club became the fastest-relegated team in J. League history after slipping through the trapdoor before the end of September, continuing a dismal trend of newly promoted teams bowing out at the first attempt with point totals frequently lower than 20.
Bellmare, Ventforet, Avispa Fukuoka, Tokyo Verdy, Kyoto Sanga and Yokohama FC have all suffered the same fate over the past seven seasons, although this year's newcomers will prefer to dwell on the success stories that have occurred over the same period. Kashiwa Reysol won the 2011 championship hot on the heels of the second-division title, Cerezo Osaka and Sanfrecce Hiroshima both earned places in the Asian Champions League immediately after promotion, and Sagan Tosu ended their debut campaign among the elite last year in a hugely credible fifth place.