The 2004 J.League Division 1 season was the 12th season of the J1 League. The league fixture began on March 13, 2004 and ended on December 11, 2004. The Suntory Championship 2004 took place on December 5 and December 11, 2004. The first ever J.League Promotion / Relegation Series took place on December 4 and December 12, 2004.

General

Promotion and relegation

* At the end of the

2003 Season 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

Albirex Niigata is a professional football club based in Niigata, Japan. Formed in 1955 as Niigata Eleven SC, it was renamed Albireo Niigata FC in 1995, and Albirex Niigata in 1997. From 2023, Albirex will be playing on the J1 League, coming back to the f ...

and

Sanfrecce Hiroshima Sanfrecce Hiroshima ( ja, サンフレッチェ広島, translit=''Sanfuretche Hiroshima'') is a Japanese professional football club based in Asaminami-ku, Hiroshima. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the co ...

were promoted to J1 * At the end of the

Vegalta Sendai is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in J2 League. The team is located in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture. History Founded in 1988 as ''Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc. Soccer Club'', Vegalta joined the J-League in 1999 after p ...

and

Kyoto Purple Sanga is a Japanese professional football club based in Kyoto. "Sanga" comes from the Sanskrit word ''sangha'', a term meaning "group" or "club" and often used to denote the Buddhist priesthood, associating the club with Kyoto's many Buddhist templ ...

were relegated to J2.

Changes in Competition Formats

* This was the last J.League Division 1 season to be competed in two stages (or two halves). * This was also the last J.League Division 1 season with 16 clubs. Next season division was expanded to 18 clubs.

Changes in clubs

''none''

Clubs

Following sixteen clubs participated in J.League Division 1 during 2004 season. Of these clubs, Albirex Nigata and Sanfrecce Hiroshima were newly promoted from Division 2. * Kashima Antlers * Urawa Red Diamonds * JEF United Ichihara * Kashiwa Reysol * FC Tokyo * Tokyo Verdy 1969 * Yokohama F. Marinos * Albirex Nigata * Shimizu S-Pulse * Jublio Iwata * Nagoya Grampus Eight * Gamba Osaka * Cerezo Osaka * Vissel Kobe * Sanfrecce Hiroshima * Oita Trinita

Format

In the 2004 season, the league was conducted split-season format, 1st Stage and 2nd Stage. In each stage, sixteen clubs played in a single round-robin format, a total of 15 games per club (per stage). A club received 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss. The club were ranked by points, and tie breakers are, in the following order: * Goal differential * Goals scored * Head-to-head results A draw would be conducted, if necessary. The club that finished at the top of the table is declared stage champion and qualifies for the Suntory Championship. The first stage winner, hosts the first leg in the championship series. If a single club wins both stages, the club is declared the season champions and championship series will not be held. Meanwhile, the last-placed (16th-placed) club must play Pro/Rele Series at the end of the season. ;Changes in competition format * No direct relegation this year, due to expansion of Division 1 in the following season * Last-placed (16th placed) club plays Pro/Rele Series at the end of the season

First stage

Table

Results

Second stage

Table

Results

Suntory Championship

Yokohama F. Marinos won the first stage and thus hosted the first game. They won the first leg by 1–0 thanks to Ryuji Kawai's goal. In the second leg, Alessandro Santos scored from the free kick in 76th minute to level the

aggregate score There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly kn ...

. The clubs played in sudden death extra time, however neither club could break the scoreline. Yokohama upset the home club in the

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

winning them and series overall. ----

Overall table

Top scorers

Attendance figures

Awards

Individual

Best Eleven

* The number in brackets denotes the number of times that the footballer has appeared in the Best 11.

References

{{2004 in Asian football (AFC) J1 League seasons 1 Japan Japan