J League restarts U21 policy: J2 and J3 teams can get bonuses if they meet the playing time requirements

February 08 News The J League officially announced that the U21 policy, which was suspended due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, will be
Restart for the 2023 season.

The details of the policy are as follows:

1. Japan League Cup U21 Players’ Playing Obligation Rules

In all matches (including the final) of the Japan League Cup, both sides must have a U21 player to start the game.
U21 players include the second type of registered players (note: players under the age of 18 who are registered in the youth team but can represent the first team) and specially designated players (note: this system refers to the situation that does not affect the student players’ academic retention.
, allowing particularly promising student players to register with J-League clubs and represent the team).

However, there are 2 situations where this rule is not required:

①When the U21 player is called up by a Japanese national player (only for the Japanese senior national team and national teams above U19), there is no need to play.
However, if the player returns to Japan 2 days before the start of the game, he must play.

②When the U21 player encounters force majeure factors such as injury after entering the playing list, he does not need to play.

2. J2, J3 club U21 player appearance bonus system

When the total playing time of the U21 players of the J2 and J3 clubs reaches 3780 minutes and 3420 minutes respectively, they can get a bonus of 3 million yen.
However, only league matches (excluding relegation and relegation qualifying matches) are included in the calculations, and Category 2 registered players and specially designated players are included.
Among them, if the goalkeeper is a U21 player, the playing time will be counted as twice.