With most fans vaccinated, J. League sees path to pre-pandemic crowds
After 20 months of uncertainty and heavy restrictions, league officials are optimistic that they will be able to raise average attendances in the remaining five weeks of the season.
Nagoya shuts down Cerezo to win club's first Levain Cup
Goals from Naoki Maeda and Sho Inagaki combined with a strong defensive performance carried the day for Massimo Ficcadenti's men at Saitama Stadium.
Cerezo will be looking for its first title since completing a domestic cup double in 2017, while Nagoya reached the Levain Cup final for the first time after nine previous semifinal exits.
Nagoya overpowers FC Tokyo in first leg of Levain Cup semifinal
Nagoya Grampus took a big step toward the Levain Cup final on Wednesday, beating FC Tokyo 3-1 in the first leg of their semifinal after Yoichiro Kakitani, Yasuki Kimoto and Mateus found the net. Urawa Reds and Cerezo Osaka, meanwhile, finished their first-leg clash deadlocked ...
Levain Cup final to allow 20,000 fans in virus screening trial
The league's plan is part of a government study to gauge how smoothly vaccination or infection status can be checked at sports stadiums and other venues aiming to ease entry restrictions.
J. League prepares for larger crowds as emergency ends
The league will use several games next month, potentially including the Oct. 30 Levain Cup final at Saitama Stadium, to trial new policies allowing for more vaccinated fans to attend games.
J. League eyes additional fans with COVID vaccine or test proof
The Levain Cup final on Oct. 30 at Saitama Stadium and other fixtures are being viewed as stages to test the new arrangement.
Tokyo defeats Kashiwa to capture third Levain Cup title
Adailton's second-half decider gave Kenta Hasegawa's men their first major title in nine years in front of over 24,000 fans at Tokyo's National Stadium.
J. League sets early January date for postponed Levain Cup final
The match between Kashiwa Reysol and FC Tokyo, originally scheduled for Nov. 7, was pushed back after Reysol suffered a coronavirus cluster infection early last week.
Levain Cup final postponed after Reysol cluster infection spreads
The decision by the J. League was made after 10 more Kashiwa players and staffers tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday.
Voice of long-running fan podcast gets call-up for Levain Cup final
Ben Maxwell, founder of "The J-Talk Podcast," will be behind the microphone for the English-language broadcast of Saturday's clash between Reysol and Tokyo.
Vegalta threatened by poor finances and fan anger
The Tohoku side announced earlier this week that an expected $6 million in losses this year will plunge the club into insolvency.
