WE League
Empress's Cup | |
| League cup(s) | WE League Cup |
|---|---|
| International cup(s) | AFC Club Championship |
| Current champions | Urawa Red Diamonds (1st title) (2022–23) |
| Most championships | INAC Kobe Leonessa Urawa Red Diamonds (1 title) |
| TV partners | DAZN YouTube Tokyo MX |
| Website | Official website (in English) |
| Current: 2023–24 WE League season | |
The WE League (WEリーグ), officially the Japan Women's Empowerment Professional Football League (Japanese: 日本女子プロサッカーリーグ, Hepburn: Nihon Joshi Puro Sakkā Rīgu, "Japan Women Pro Soccer League"),[1] also known as the Yogibo WE League (Japanese: Yogibo WEリーグ) for sponsorship reasons, is the top flight of women's association football in Japan, starting from the 2021–22 season. It is the first fully-professional women's soccer league in Japan.
History
On 3 June 2020, the Japan Football Association (JFA) announced the formation of the WE League to become Japan's new top-flight, professional women's football league.[2] The semi-professional Nadeshiko League would become the second level on the women's football pyramid in Japan once the WE League began play in the autumn of 2021. United States-based business executive and former Japan international footballer Kikuko Okajima was announced as the WE League's inaugural chairwoman.[3]
17 clubs applied to join the WE League.
In the 2023–24 season, Cerezo Osaka Ladies from the Nadeshiko League will enter the WE League as an expansion team.[citation needed]
Competition format
The WE League's 2023–24 season features 12 teams playing a double round-robin, home-and-away competition. Unlike the Nadeshiko League, the WE League will play a winter season that conforms with most European leagues.[6] Similar to the American National Women's Soccer League, there will be no relegation from the WE League to the Nadeshiko League, but teams may be promoted from the latter in the first several seasons for the WE League to reach a desired number of teams.[6]
Each team in the WE League must have at least 15 players signed to fully professional contracts, which are not subject to a salary cap.[7] In addition to bringing professionalism to Japanese women's football, the WE League also implemented measures to bringing in international players. The JFA subsidizes salaries for players from Southeast Asian member federations, while the league itself subsidizes players from top-ranked FIFA countries.[8] The league actively recruits players from top-ranked federations such as France, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States, and it also provides additional subsidies to encourage internationalization for expenses such as interpreters.[9]
Clubs
2023–24 season
The following 12 clubs will be competing in the WE League in the 2023–24 season.[5]
| Club | Position in the 2022–23 season |
First season in top division |
First season in WE League |
First season of current spell in top division |
Top division titles |
Most recent top division title |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AC Nagano Parceiro | 7th | 2003 | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 0 | — |
| Albirex Niigata | 10th | 2007 | 2021–22 | 2007 | 0 | — |
| AS Elfen Saitama | 11th | 2002 | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 0 | — |
| Cerezo Osaka Ladies | — | 2018 | 2023–24 | 2023–24 | 0 | — |
| INAC Kobe Leonessa | 2nd | 2006 | 2021–22 | 2006 | 4 | 2021–22 |
| JEF United Chiba | 8th | 2000 | 2021–22 | 2009 | 0 | — |
Mynavi Sendai |
4th | 2013 | 2021–22 | 2013 | 0 | — |
| Nojima Stella Kanagawa | 9th | 2017 | 2021–22 | 2017 | 0 | — |
| Omiya Ardija Ventus | 6th | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 0 | — |
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima Regina | 5th | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | 2021–22 | — | — |
| Tokyo Verdy Beleza | 3rd | 1989 | 2021–22 | 1989 | 17 | 2019 |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | 1st | 1999 | 2021–22 | 1999 | 5 | 2022–23 |
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