X-League

X-League

Formerly	Japan American Football League (1971-1997)
Sport	American football
Founded	1971 (1971)
No. of teams	52 (X1:18, X2:16, X3:19)
Country	Japan
Most recent champion(s)	Panasonic Impulse (7th title)
Most titles	Obic Seagulls (8 titles)
Official website	Official website

The X-League (Xリーグ) is the top-level American football league in Japan. It was founded in 1971 as the Japan American Football League, and changed its name to the X League in 1997. There are three divisions (X1, X2, and X3) among which there is promotion and relegation.^[1] Teams in the three-tier league are split into East, West, and Central divisions. There are two types of teams, one being a company team in which only employees of that particular sponsoring company may participate as a player, and the other classified as a club team for which anyone can try out.

Game rules are based on those of the NCAA college division in America, with the exception of the length of quarters, which are 12 minutes instead of 15 during the first stage of the season.

The Japanese national team, which has won the first and second editions of the American Football World Cup and was runner-up, finishing second to the American team, in the 2007 installment of the tournament, was made up almost entirely of players from this league.

Americans are often recruited to play for X League teams, with a strict rule of four per team. No more than two foreign players per team are allowed on the field of play at a time.

Season format

Teams play six matches in the regular season, the schedule which is determined by each team's standing during the previous season.

The top six teams at the end of the regular season would advance to the Japan X Bowl tournament while the remaining two spots would be filled with winners from a wild-card match.

There is a spring tournament as well called the Pearl Bowl which is used by teams to ready themselves and evaluate new players before the fall season.

Regular Season

The 18 top tier teams are divided into 3 divisions of 6 teams each. The East and Central Divisions are made up of teams from the Kanto (East Japan) region while the West Division teams are from the Kansai (West Japan) region. The teams would also be split into two groups of nine each, with the top nine ranking teams from the previous season (top three in each division) comprising the Super 9. The lower nine make up the Battle 9.

The teams would play three games within their division, and another three against teams outside of their division, all of which are equal in strength. The relative strength would be determined by the previous season's standings.

This would allow teams from the Kanto and Kansai regions to play each other before the post season for the first time.

Post Season

Following the regular season, the top six teams among the Super 9 will advance to the Japan X Bowl Tournament, where they would be seeded according to regular-season results.

The remaining two places would be filled by the winners of two wild-card playoff matches to be played by the 7th and 8th ranked teams of the Super 9 and the top two teams from the Battle 9, respectively.

Japan X Bowl

The two semifinal winners would meet for the league championship in the Japan X Bowl held at the Tokyo Dome. Since 1987, Japan X Bowl has decided the X League championship. Until 2002, it was known as the Tokyo Super Bowl. The winner of this game goes on to the Rice Bowl to face the winner of the Koshien Bowl, the national college championship game.

X2-X1 Promotion/Replacement games

The 6th place team from each division of X1 is paired up against the 1st place team of each division of X2. If the X2 team defeats the X1 team, that team is promoted up to X1 while the X1 team is demoted to X2 for the following season.

2016 X-League team organization

X1

X2

East

• Yokohama Harbors
• Dentsu Club Caterpillars
• Club Blue Thunders
• Warriors
• Hurricanes
• Zero Fighters AFC

Central

• Fuji Xerox Minerva AFC
• Sony Solidstate
• Club Barbarian
• AFC Cranes
• ラWranglers
• Ox Kawasaki AFC

West

• Fuji Xerox J-Stars
• Asahi Pretec Golden Fighters
• Club Hawkeye
• Nishinomiya Bruins
• Kirix Toyota Bull Fighters
• Iso Superstars

X3

East

• Club Triax
• Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Seagulls
• Itochu Wings
• Club Steelers
• Marubeni Cougars

West

A Block

• Kakogawa Ozunas
• Wako Raiders
• Club Islands
• Tri-stars
• Hiroshima UCS Hawks
• Osaka Prefectural Police Shields

B Block

• Aichi Golden Wings
• Club Bears
• Osaka Gas Skunk Scans
• Okayama Standing Bears
• Triple Fire Birds
• Masahide Blazers

Past League Results

X-League Divisional Standings since 1997

East/Central

West

• Until 2008, the top 2 teams in each division qualified for the playoffs to the Japan X bowl known as the Final6. Starting 2009, the top 3 teams in each division qualified for the Super9 in the 2nd stage.

Playing venues

Awards and Honors

All X-League Team

Since 2000, the X-League honors outstanding players by electing them to the All X-League Team. 11 offensive players, 11 defensive players and 3 special team players are voted by the Head Coaches and 5 players on each of the 18 X1 teams to be selected for the team.

X-League Most Valuable Player (MVP) award

The X-League Most Valuable Player award (X-League MVP) is an award given to the Japanese American Football player who is considered most valuable to his team in the X-League. Started in 2012, the award was divided between the best player in each division until 2014 when one overall MVP was awarded.

X-League Rookie of the Year (ROY) award

The X-League Rookie of the Year award (X-League ROY) is an award given to the player who is considered have made a big impact during his first year with his team. Started in 2012, the award was divided between the best player in each division until 2014 when one overall ROY was awarded.

X-League Fairplay award

Since 2012, the X-League Fairplay award is awarded to the team that had accumulated the least amount of penalties during the 1st stage of the Fall season.

Team names

• Silver Star → Asahi Beer Silver Star
• Matsushita Electric Works Impulse → Panasonic Electric Works Impulse
• Kohoku Finies → Sunstar Finies → Kohoku Finies → Finies Football Club → Kobe Finies → SRC Kobe Finies　→ Elecom Kobe Finies
• Recruit Seagulls → Seagulls → Obic Seagulls
• NEC Falcons (dissolved in 1997)
• Renoun Rovers (dissolved in 2003)
• Onward Oaks → Onward Skylarks(Combined with Skylark Skylarks in 2001) → Onward Oaks (dissolved in 2009)→ Sagamihara Rise (Remnants of the Onward Oaks formed a new team called the Sagamihara Rise (same uniforms and colors, although different logo) and played one level down in the X2 league through the 2010 season. They subsequently won the challenge game against the Renesas Hurricanes to move back up to X1 in December 2010, and will play again in the X1 Central Division for the 2011 season, with the Hurricanes moving down to X2)

References

• X League homepage
• Japan's X-League Runs with the Ball
• X League's Road to the Rice Bowl
• American Football in Japan