J.League Cup


The J.League Cup is a Japanese football competition organized by J.League. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits of Yamazaki Baking since its inception in 1992. It is also known as the J. League YBC Levain Cup or Levain Cup. It was known as the J.League Yamazaki Nabisco Cup or Nabisco Cup until August 2016.
It is generally regarded as the Japanese equivalent to league cup competitions played in many countries, such as the Football League Cup in England, as complementary to the Emperor's Cup competed between clubs from all divisions of professional football in Japan. Before the J. League Cup was created, the old Japan Soccer League had its own Japan Soccer League Cup since the 1976 season.
The tournament format varies almost each year largely depending on the schedule of international matches such as the Olympic Games and World Cup games.
Since 2007, the winners are qualified for the J.League Cup / Copa Sudamericana Championship held in the following summer.

Format

Early years (1992–1998)

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;1997
;1998

As tournaments for J1 and J2 (1999–2001)

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As tournaments for only J1 (2002–2017)

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;2012-2017

As tournaments for J1 and J2 (2018-)

0 to 2 clubs that were demoted to J2 last year and all J1 clubs can now participate. See 2018 J.League Cup and 2019 J.League Cup for details.

Prizes

Performances by team

Most Valuable Player

New Hero Award

This award is presented to an under-23 player who made the biggest contribution to his team in the competition. The winner is decided based on votes from football journalists.

YearWinnerClub
1996Hiroshi NanamiJúbilo Iwata
1996Toshihide SaitoShimizu S-Pulse
1997Atsuhiro MiuraYokohama Flügels
1998Naohiro TakaharaJúbilo Iwata
1999Yukihiko SatoFC Tokyo
2000Takayuki SuzukiKashima Antlers
2001Hitoshi SogahataKashima Antlers
2002Keisuke TsuboiUrawa Red Diamonds
2003Tatsuya TanakaUrawa Red Diamonds
2004Makoto HasebeUrawa Red Diamonds
2005Yuki AbeJEF United Chiba
2006Hiroyuki TaniguchiKawasaki Frontale
2007Michihiro YasudaGamba Osaka
2008Mu KanazakiOita Trinita
2009Takuji YonemotoFC Tokyo
2010Yojiro TakahagiSanfrecce Hiroshima
2011Genki HaraguchiUrawa Red Diamonds
2012Hideki IshigeShimizu S-Pulse
2013Manabu SaitōYokohama F. Marinos
2014Takashi UsamiGamba Osaka
2015Shuhei AkasakiKashima Antlers
2016Yosuke IdeguchiGamba Osaka
2017Takuma NishimuraVegalta Sendai
2018Keita EndoYokohama F. Marinos
2019Keito NakamuraGamba Osaka