Japan's J. League is setting its sights on competing with England's Premier League, and it believes that a calendar switch could be the key to achieving this goal.
Yoshikazu Nonomura, the chairman of J. League, has expressed his belief that aligning the league’s calendar with Europe could help Japanese clubs command bigger transfer fees. This move comes as part of an effort to make up ground on the world's top leagues and tap into the billions in revenue generated by global football transfers.
Japanese teams have consistently sold players to European clubs, including Brighton's Kaoru Mitoma; however, these transactions represent only a fraction of global transfer market activity.
Yoshikazu Nonomura, the chairman of J. League, said:
"If we do well on the business side, it wouldn't be a surprise if 20 years from now there was a different situation to what we have now, where the five biggest leagues are all in Europe,"
"We're always laying the groundwork for Japan to be part of a global market, and it could be alongside, say, England, Spain, Germany and the US."
Calendar switch
The first step towards realizing this vision involves ditching their traditional February-to-December season to align with Europe’s schedule. An interim competition will run until June before kicking off a full league campaign after the World Cup.
This strategic move aims at allowing J.League clubs to capitalize on European summer spending sprees and demand "the proper amount" for their players as per Nonomura.
Yoshikazu Nonomura added:
"To make us conscious of competing and growing in the global market, it's very important to operate under the same conditions, aligning transfer windows, maximising transfer fees from Europe and going all out to beat them whenever we meet on the pitch,"
Attracting talent home & abroad
More Japanese players are choosing early careers in Europe over playing domestically in Japan’s J.League. Nonomura aims to change this trend by convincing players that they can develop their skills in Japan.
Switching the calendar to avoid Japan's punishingly hot summers is one strategy he believes will help retain local talent. Moreover, Nonomura is hopeful that increased revenue from higher transfer fees can attract overseas stars to the J. League, which has lacked big names since Spanish World Cup winner Andres Iniesta left in 2023.
Aligning with Europe’s football calendar represents a significant strategic shift for Japan’s J.League as it seeks to compete on a global stage and tap into the lucrative world of international football transfers.
