Last Thursday, the J. League celebrated its 10th anniversary at a Tokyo hotel, inviting about 500 soccer officials, sponsors and past and present players.

Tenth anniversary?

Yes. Although regular league play didn't begin until May 15, 1993, the governing body of the nation's first professional soccer league was founded on Nov. 1, 1991. The J. League held the Nabisco Cup tournament from Sept. 5 to Nov. 23, 1992, featuring the original 10 league clubs. Verdy Kawasaki, now called Tokyo Verdy 1969, captured the first J. League title after beating Shimizu S-Pulse in the tourney.