"Remove the 'Punishment Trauma' of the World Cup in Japan" → It also changed the rules of the J-League tournament [Lee Jong Sung's Sports Culture & Industry]

*This content was translated by AI.

The J-League, a Japanese professional soccer team that has switched to the Chuchun system since this year, will play the 2026-2027 season from August. The J-League has been playing a special tournament since February 6 under the name of the "100th Anniversary Vision League" before entering the new season.

The competition, which will involve 20 teams in the first division (J1), will be divided into the eastern division (10 teams) and the western division (10 teams), and the winning team will be decided on June 7. Although it is a special event format, the winning team will be eligible to play in the AFC (Asian Football Federation) Champions League Elite. However, the lower team will not be relegated to the second division (J2).

The most important feature of the 100th anniversary Vision League is that there is no draw. If the game cannot be decided for 90 minutes in the first half and the second half, the penalty shootout is being carried out immediately without extra time.

Therefore, the way points are awarded is also special. The team that won the regular 90-minute match has three points and the team that lost has zero points. However, the team that won the penalty shootout receives two points, and the losing team also receives one point.

The reason why the J League created a "no-win" tournament that has never been used in the regular season is basically to increase interest by maintaining tension until the end of the game.

However, there is another target for this decision of the J-League. This is to support the Japanese national team, which is dreaming of advancing to the quarterfinals internally at the FIFA 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup in June.

Japan has reached the round of 16 three times in the last four World Cups. However, he has repeatedly failed to advance to the quarterfinals. Interestingly, Japan lost twice in the shootout in three World Cups in the round of 16.

In the round of 16 of the 2010 South Africa World Cup, Japan lost to Paraguay 3–5. In the round of 16 at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Japan also lost to Croatia 1-3 in the penalty shootout. At the time, Japan's trusted first and second kickers Takumi Minamino (31, AS Monaco) and Kaoru Mitoma (29, Brighton & Hove Albion) both shed tears as they failed to score penalties.

Saburo Kawabuchi (90), who served as the first J-League chairman, said in an interview with the British daily 'Guardian' on the 19th, "Japan is not good at penalties. In the last (Qatar) World Cup, all mistakes were made in the penalty shootout from the beginning," he said, giving a boost to the J-League, which eliminated the draw and introduced a penalty shootout into the tournament.

It is difficult to predict how much the J-League's rule change will help the Japanese national team overcome the trauma of the penalty shootout.

However, the response from fans is generally positive. The prevailing opinion is that it is better to decide the victory or defeat through a penalty shootout than to end in a draw.

Of the 30 games in the 100th anniversary Vision League until the 25th, as many as 12 were close to the penalty shootout. In other words, 40% of the total games ended in a penalty shootout.

The biggest highlight of the penalty shootout was the "Osaka Derby" between Gamba Osaka and Cerezo Osaka, which was held on February 7 with 42,000 spectators gathered.

In the match, the two teams were 0-0 in the first 90 minutes and Gamba Osaka won a thrilling 5-4 victory in a sweaty penalty shootout.

The system of penalty shootouts instead of draws will be applied until the 100th anniversary of the Vision League. This is why analysts say that this system, which is unprecedented in the history of world professional football, is the consideration of the J-League for the Japanese national team to advance to the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.