2016 J2 League
The 2016 Meiji Yasuda J2 League season is the 45th season of second-tier club football in Japan and the 18th season since the establishment of J2 League.
Clubs
have stayed in the second division for just a year, winning promotion as the champions. Júbilo Iwata have spent only 2 seasons in J2 after their first relegation from the J1 League in 2013 after 20 seasons. Third-placed Avispa Fukuoka won the promotion playoffs and will return to the first division after playing in the J2 for four years. Matsumoto Yamaga were relegated from the J1 immediately after their inaugural promotion. Shimizu S-Pulse also suffered their first relegation to the J2 after 23 seasons in the J1, while Montedio Yamagata returned after one season.On the other end of the table, Renofa Yamaguchi have been promoted from the 2015 J3 League as the champions of the second season of the J3 League, replacing Tochigi SC and becoming the first club based in Yamaguchi Prefecture to play in the second tier since Eidai SC back in 1973. J3 runners-up Machida Zelvia were also promoted by beating Oita Trinita in the promotion-relegation playoffs.
The participating clubs are listed in the following table:
| Club Name | Home Town | Note |
| Cerezo Osaka | Osaka & Sakai, Osaka | 2015 Play-off finalist |
| Consadole Sapporo | All cities/towns in Hokkaidō | |
| Ehime FC | All cities/towns in Ehime | 2015 Play-off contestant |
| Fagiano Okayama | All cities/towns in Okayama | |
| All cities/towns in Gifu | ||
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | Kitakyushu, Fukuoka | Not eligible for J1 promotion in 2015 |
| Mito, Ibaraki | Not eligible for J1 promotion in 2015 | |
| JEF United Chiba | Chiba & Ichihara, Chiba | |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | Takamatsu, Kagawa | Not eligible for J1 promotion in 2015 |
| All cities/towns in Yamagata | Relegated from J1 League in 2015 | |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | All cities/towns in Yamaguchi | Promoted from J3 League in 2015 |
| Roasso Kumamoto | Kumamoto, Kumamoto | |
| Southwestern cities/towns in Kyoto | ||
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | All cities/towns in Gunma | Not eligible for J1 promotion in 2015 |
| Shizuoka, Shizuoka | Relegated from J1 League in 2015 | |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | All cities/towns in Nagasaki | 2015 J2 League Play-off contestant |
| All cities/towns in Tokyo | ||
| All cities/towns in Tokushima | ||
| Matsumoto Yamaga | Central cities/towns in Nagano | Relegated from J1 League in 2015 |
| Yokohama FC | Yokohama, Kanagawa | |
| Machida Zelvia | Machida, Tokyo | Promoted from J3 League in 2015 |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | Kanazawa, Ishikawa |
Managerial changes
Foreign players
League table
Play-offs
J1 Promotion Playoffs
Semifinals
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Final
----J3 Relegation Playoffs
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Positions by round
| Team \ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 |
| Team \ Round | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Consadole Sapporo | 17 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Shimizu S-Pulse | 13 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Matsumoto Yamaga | 17 | 9 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Cerezo Osaka | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Kyoto Sanga | 9 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Fagiano Okayama | 9 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Machida Zelvia | 17 | 16 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Yokohama FC | 17 | 21 | 22 | 17 | 17 | 13 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 12 | 8 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Tokushima Vortis | 15 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Ehime FC | 13 | 15 | 14 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| JEF United Chiba | 2 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 |
| Renofa Yamaguchi | 9 | 7 | 11 | 16 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Mito HollyHock | 9 | 16 | 19 | 19 | 21 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 13 | 15 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 |
| Montedio Yamagata | 17 | 16 | 18 | 19 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 15 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 14 |
| V-Varen Nagasaki | 2 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 15 |
| Roasso Kumamoto | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 15 | 16 |
| Thespakusatsu Gunma | 1 | 1 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 11 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 15 | 17 | 17 |
| Tokyo Verdy | 4 | 11 | 15 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 18 |
| Kamatamare Sanuki | 4 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 19 |
| FC Gifu | 22 | 22 | 17 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 20 | 20 |
| Zweigen Kanazawa | 15 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 21 |
| Giravanz Kitakyushu | 4 | 12 | 16 | 15 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 21 | 22 | 21 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 22 |
Last updated: 20 November 2016
Source:
Note 1: Two games for Matchday 8 scheduled on 17 April 2016 were affected by the series of earthquakes in Kumamoto prefecture.
- Matchday 8 game between Kyoto Sanga FC and Roasso Kumamoto was rescheduled on 29 June 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 21 ranking.
- Matchday 8 game between V. Varen Nagasaki and Mito HollyHock was rescheduled on 7 September 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 31 ranking.
Note 3: Fixtures of Roasso Kumamoto for Matchdays 9, 10, 11 and 12 were postponed by the J. League due to series of earthquakes in Kumamoto prefecture.
- Matchday 9 game between Roasso Kumamoto and Yokohama FC was rescheduled on 7 September 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 31 ranking.
- Matchday 10 game between Montedio Yamagata and Roasso Kumamoto was rescheduled on 6 July 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 22 ranking.
- Matchday 11 game between Roasso Kumamoto and Ehime FC was rescheduled on 31 August 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 31 ranking.
- Matchday 12 game between Consadole Sapporo and Roasso Kumamoto was rescheduled on 25 August 2016. Result of this match were included on Matchday 31 ranking.
| Leader and qualification to 2017 J1 League | |
| Qualification to 2017 J1 League | |
| Qualification to promotion play-offs | |
| Qualification to relegation play-offs | |
| Relegation to 2017 J3 League |
Results
Top scorers
Updated to games played on 20 November 2016Source: