The 2024 J.League Cup, known as the 2024 J.League
YBC Levain Cup ( ja, 2024 JリーグYBCルヴァンカップ) for sponsorship reasons, is the 32nd edition of
J.League Cup, a Japanese
association football cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
competition. This season, all 60 J.League clubs will be participating in an updated tournament format, aimed to grow the J2 and J3 Leagues and improve the J.League as a whole.
Format
In a change from previous seasons, all clubs from the season's J1, J2, and
J3 League
or simply J3 is the third division of . It was established in 2013 as the third-tier professional association football league in Japan.
The third-tier nationwide league is a relatively recent development in Japanese football with a first attempt ...
s will participate, thus including the clubs from all
J.League
The , officially is Japan's professional football league including the first division J1 League, second division J2 League and third division J3 League of the Japanese association football league system. J1 League is one of the most successfu ...
divisions for the first time since
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
. 29 teams will be participating in the tournament for the first time in their history.
The tournament is divided into three sections each with a different format: the first round, the play-off round and the prime round.
First round
57 clubs will take part in the first round, split into 10 groups. The three clubs participating in the
2023–24 AFC Champions League knockout stage
The 2023–24 AFC Champions League knockout stage began on 13 February with the round of 16 and will end on 18 May 2024 with the final to decide the champions of the 2023–24 AFC Champions League. A total of 16 teams compete in the knockout stag ...
(
Kawasaki Frontale,
Yokohama F. Marinos and
Ventforet Kofu
is a Japanese football club from Kōfu in Yamanashi Prefecture. The team currently competes in the J2 League and play their home games in JIT Recycle Ink Stadium, located in Kōfu.
The word "Ventforet" is a compound formed from two French roo ...
) will be introduced to the tournament at the prime round. Each group will participate in a single-elimination tournament, leaving 10 clubs to advance to the play-off round. The draw for the first round is based on rankings from the 2023 season.
As a general rule, the lower league club will play their fixture at home. In the case of clubs being in the same league, the club with the lower ranking from the 2023 season will be the home team. In the case of a tie, games will go to extra-time and penalties to determine a winner if necessary.
The first round groups are as follows:
;Notes
Playoff round
The 10 clubs that qualified from the first round will then be drawn into five, two-legged fixtures and will play each other home and away. The remaining five clubs will advance to the prime round.
Prime round
A single-elimination tournament will be held between eight clubs: the five clubs that qualified from the playoff round plus the AFC Champions League clubs — Kawasaki Frontale, Yokohama F. Marinos, and Ventforet Kofu. Each round will be a two-legged home and away fixture, up until the final which will be a one-game tie played at a neutral venue. The draw for the brackets will be held on July 2.
Schedule
The schedule was announced on 19 December 2023. All the matches take place in 2024.
First round
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
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Group 5
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Group 6
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Group 7
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Group 8
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Group 9
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Group 10
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;Notes
Playoff round
Kataller Toyama
is a football club in Japan that was formed from the merger of the ALO's Hokuriku and YKK AP SC. The club currently plays in J3 League.
History
The idea of a merged club had been discussed by the Toyama Prefectural Football Association as e ...
from
J3 League
or simply J3 is the third division of . It was established in 2013 as the third-tier professional association football league in Japan.
The third-tier nationwide league is a relatively recent development in Japanese football with a first attempt ...
were the lowest-ranked team remaining in the competition.
Summary
Matches
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Prime round
The pairings and match-ups for the prime round were announced on 2 July 2024.
Quarter-finals
Summary
Matches
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Semi-finals
Summary
Matches
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Top scorers
References
External links
Official website (in Japanese)
{{2023–24 in Asian football (AFC)
J.League Cup
2024 in Japanese football
J