| . | Team | Pts | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | G.Dif |
|---|
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1 | Urawa Reds | 65 | 31 | 20 | 5 | 6 | 61 | 26 | 35 |
| 2 | Gamba Osaka | 62 | 31 | 19 | 5 | 7 | 74 | 42 | 32 |
| 3 | Kawasaki Frontale | 61 | 31 | 18 | 7 | 6 | 75 | 48 | 27 |
| 4 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 54 | 31 | 16 | 6 | 9 | 53 | 37 | 16 |
| 5 | Jubilo Iwata | 52 | 31 | 15 | 7 | 9 | 64 | 47 | 17 |
| 6 | Kashima Antlers | 52 | 31 | 16 | 4 | 11 | 52 | 49 | 3 |
| 7 | Oita Trinita | 44 | 31 | 12 | 8 | 11 | 45 | 42 | 3 |
| 8 | Albirex Niigata | 42 | 31 | 12 | 6 | 13 | 43 | 56 | -13 |
| 9 | JEF United | 41 | 31 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 54 | 53 | 1 |
| 10 | Nagoya Grampus | 41 | 31 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 47 | 48 | -1 |
| 11 | Ventforet Kofu | 41 | 31 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 39 | 57 | -18 |
| 12 | Yokohama Marinos | 39 | 31 | 11 | 6 | 14 | 45 | 41 | 4 |
| 13 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 39 | 31 | 11 | 6 | 14 | 47 | 52 | -5 |
| 14 | FC Tokyo | 39 | 31 | 12 | 3 | 16 | 54 | 63 | -9 |
| 15 | Omiya Ardija | 35 | 31 | 10 | 5 | 16 | 37 | 53 | -16 |
| 16 | Cerezo Osaka | 26 | 31 | 6 | 8 | 17 | 42 | 64 | -22 |
| 17 | Avispa Fukuoka | 25 | 31 | 5 | 10 | 16 | 30 | 52 | -22 |
| 18 | Kyoto Purple Sanga | 22 | 31 | 4 | 10 | 17 | 35 | 67 | -32 |
Promotion/Relegation Series | | 6 Dec | Vissel Kobe | 0 - 0 | Avispa Fukuoka |
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|
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| 9 Dec | Avispa Fukuoka | 1 - 1 | Vissel Kobe |
|---|
| Takanori Nunobe (84') |
| Yusuke Kondo (60') |
Scoring Leaders |
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals (PKs) | Shots |
|---|
| 1 | Washington | Urawa Reds | 26 (4) | 106 |
| 1 | Magno Alves | Gamba Osaka | 26 (0) | 162 |
| 3 | Juninho | Kawasaki Frontale | 20 (3) | 108 | 4 | Lucas Severino | FC Tokyo | 18 (4) | 94 |
| 4 | Kazuki Ganaha | Kawasaki Frontale | 18 (1) | 52 |
| 4 | Hayato Sato | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 18 (0) | 78 |
| 7 | Cho Jae-Jin | Shimizu S-Pulse | 16 (2) | 95 |
| 7 | Ryuji Bando | Gamba Osaka | 16 (0) | 54 |
| 7 | Ueslei | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 16 (1) | 98 |
| 10 | Ryoichi Maeda | Jubilo Iwata | 15 (1) | 58 |
| 11 | Bare | Ventforet Kofu | 14 (2) | 114 |
| 11 | Paulinho | Jubilo Iwata | 14 (1) | 97 |
| 13 | Hiroyuki Taniguchi | Kawasaki Frontale | 13 (0) | 46 |
| 14 | Seiichiro Maki | JEF United | 12 (0) | 55 |
| 14 | Daiki Takamatsu | Oita Trinita | 12 (2) | 73 |
J.League Awards, 2005
|
| MVP | Marcus Tulio Tanaka | 25 | Urawa Reds |
| Rookie of the Year | Jungo Fujimoto | 22 | Shimizu S-Pulse |
| Golden Boot | Washington | 31 | Urawa Reds |
| Golden Boot | Magno Alves | 30 | Gamba Osaka |
| Coach of the Year | Guido Buchwald | 45 | Urawa Reds |
Best Eleven |
| GK | Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi | 31 | Jubilo Iwata |
| DF | Marcus Tulio Tanaka | 25 | Urawa Reds |
| Akira Kaji | 26 | Gamba Osaka |
| Satoru Yamaguchi | 28 | Gamba Osaka |
| MF | Keita Suzuki | 25 | Urawa Reds |
| Yuki Abe | 25 | JEF United |
| Yasuhiro Endo | 26 | Gamba Osaka |
| Hiroyuki Taniguchi | 21 | Kawasaki Frontale |
| Kengo Nakamura | 26 | Kawasaki Frontale |
| FW | Washington | 31 | Urawa Reds |
| Magno Alves | 30 | Gamba Osaka |
RELEGATED:
 Avispa Fukuoka
 Cerezo Osaka
 Kyoto Purple Sanga
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Another reason why the 2006 season was a bit less than "euphoric" was that the J.League's so-called "Hundred Year Plan" -- an ambitious program of organisational development whose clear, though unstated goal is to replace baseball as Japan's national sport -- experienced a minor setback when no teams were able to meet the requirements for J.League entry at the end of the year. In both 2004 and 2005, new teams joined the J.League. This created a great deal of intrest in new regional markets, and stimulated other towns and cities to try to develop J.League teams of their own. Unfortunately, the only team that managed to meet all of the organizational requirements (finances, stadium size, facilities, sponsors, etc) before the end of the year was Rosso Kumamoto, and Rosso's fourth-place finish in the JFL precluded any chance of promotion in 2006. Nevertheless, there are still abundant indications signs of football's development throughout Japan, with new independent clubs in places such as Tochigi, Fukushima and Gifu joining the chase for a J.League position.
In the J.League's top division, meanwhile, the second year of play under a single stage format to the season brought the first signs of concern about how this may affect the finances of mid-table clubs (for example, average attendance per match declined for the second year in a row, pulled down by the weak contributions of clubs in the bottom half of the table). As we have noted in the past, if the J.League wants to maintain a high level of parity in the league, they may find it necessary to review the system of revenue sharing, or find some other means of encouraging the smaller and weaker clubs.
This was clearly "The Year of the Reds", as Urawa started off 2006 by winning the Emperor's Cup on New Year's Day 2006 and closed it out by defending this title on New Year's Day 2007. In between, the fanatically-supported club set an attendance record, and claimed its first league title on the final week of the season. The only piece of silverware that escaped Urawa -- the Nabisco (League) Cup -- was won by JEF United, who defended the title that they won last season, as well.
There were a number of very positive surprises from teams that have struggled in recent years. Kawasaki Frontale probably made the most impressive run of any "dark horse", finishing in second place behind the Reds -- the first time ever that they have finished above mid-table. A towering defensive line and two very impressive defensive midfielders characterised a Frontale team that was very "uncharacteristic" of the J.League. Yet even though their defence played an important role, it was the team's high-scoring offence that carried them to second place, with three Frontale players finishing among the scoring leaders.
Ventforet Kofu -- a tiny J2 club from the smallest town to host a J.League franchise, funded mainly by donations from local mom-and-pop stores -- also put on a fairly impressive performance, thanks to a stunning record of home victories. Over the course of the season, Ventforet won home matches against Frontale, Gamba and Antlers, and posted draws against the Reds and Jubilo. A late slump -- after they had already ensured themselves of a place in the J1 next season -- caused them to finish in 14th place, but for a tiny home town team with the smallest budget in the J1, this was still quite impressive.
On the other side of Mt. Fuji, Shimizu S-Pulse also had a fine year, extending the rebound that they started last season under coach Kenta Hasegawa. S-Pulse finished in fourth place, after remaining on the heels of the top contenders all season long. With one of the youngest starting lineups in the league, S-Pulse appear to have even greater success to look forward to, in coming years.
At the opposite end of the table, two of the three teams that were promoted in 2006 met an immediate demise. Kyoto Purple Sanga continued their imitation of a yo-yo, going up and back down for the third time in their short team history. Avispa Fukuoka struggled to find the net all season long, and though their defence almost helped them fight their way out of the relegation zone, their lack of offence killed them in the promotion/relegation playoff, where they drew 0-0 to Vissel Kobe away, and drew 1-1 at home (thus losing on away goals).
The biggest collapse, however, came in south Osaka, where Cerezo went from near-champions in 2005 to league doormat in 2006. Their relegation now means that both of Japan's biggest cities have lost their "derby matches". In Tokyo, Verdy remain in the J2 while FC Tokyo maintained a J1 spot. In Osaka, Cerezo will take part in division 2 next season, while Gamba fight it out at the top end of the J1. On the other hand, Yokohama will host derby matches in 2007 for the first time this century, as Yokohama FC -- built from the ashes of the Yokohama Flugels team that collapsed in 1999 -- will join the J1 for the first time.
PROMOTED:
 Yokohama FC
 Kashiwa Reysol
 Vissel Kobe
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