The J-Talk Podcast

In part 1 of this week’s JTET, Jon Steele reviews the latest from the East groups of the J2/J3 100 Year Vision League, including a discussion of Tochigi City’s ticket prices and his trip to watch Yokohama FC away in Hachinohe (to 33:00). Then in part 2 James runs through the West groups, with discussion of Miyazaki’s win at Kitakyushu and Toyama’s shootout win over Ehime to continue their encouraging start (to end). Both parts also include picks for Most Bravo Players and games to watch in matchday 6.   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

After JEF Chiba triumphed in the first J1 Chiba derby in 17 years on Saturday, Jonny and Ben were thrilled to welcome new JEF correspondent Allen to the pod to chat about the season so far and events at the Fukuda Denchi Arena on Saturday, among other topics (to 26:02), then in part 2 we round up the rest of the east games from Matchday 5, and check in on how some young players have fared in the early stages of the Chaos Energy J.League Cup (to 46:05). In Part 3 we wrap up all of the results from the ACL Elite and ACL Two from last midweek (to 55:07), then finish up with the four games played in the west group, some youngsters who have taken their opportunity so far, and look ahead to upcoming fixtures.

This week’s JTET begins with a look at the West groups, as James Taylor recounts Shiga’s first J.League victory, elects a Most Bravo Player, and chooses games to watch (to 19:30). Part 2 is Jon Steele’s look at the East, particularly Fujieda’s win over Iwaki, Most Bravo Players, and games to look out for in matchday 5 (to end).   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

Our Yokohama F.Marinos correspondent Stuart Woodward guests on this week's podcast, after his side claimed a first victory of the Chaos Energy J.League Cup at home against Tokyo Verdy on Saturday (to 28:00). Then in Part 2 Jonny and Ben round up the other four east games, highlighted by a first victory for Kashiwa and a stunning comeback by Kashima away at Urawa (to 43:30), then we run through the west slate, with a focus on Kyoto's brilliant late fightback at Hiroshima. Stuart and Dan Orlowitz made a joint guest appearance on The Football Heritage Podcast, and you can access the episode via various means here.

In this week’s JTET, Jon Steele kicks things off with an update on the East groups, with a detailed and gleeful look at Yokohama FC’s victory over Tochigi City, picks a Most Bravo Player and a game to watch (to 19:00). Then, James Taylor talks about the West, particularly group-toppers Kochi United’s win against Kanazawa, picks his MBP and games to watch (to end).   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

After a brief ACL Elite and ACL Two review to begin the episode (to 6:20), Jonny and Ben welcome Tokyo Verdy correspondent Lewis White back to the pod to chat about Verdy's fast start to the Chaos Energy J.League Cup after their win on penalties over Machida in Matchday 3 (to 32:17). Then we round up the other four games from the east (to 50:50), before moving through the west slate and finish the episode with a look ahead to Matchday 4.

Jon Steele and James Taylor return with a review of the big games from the 100 Year Vision League matchday 2. First, James discusses Tokushima’s win over Niigata in the West, picks a Most Bravo Player and a couple of games to watch (to 21:40). Then in part 2, Jon brings us up to date with the East, focusing on Omiya v Sapporo in detail, then elects his MBP and highlights some games to watch for matchday 2 (to end).   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

On this week's episode Jonny and Ben round up J1 Matchday 2 of the Chaos Energy J.League Cup, beginning with the four games from Sunday (to 25:00). They then move on to the five from Saturday (to 51:15), before they finish off the pod with Kobe's win over Nagasaki on Friday night, and a look ahead to upcoming ACL and J1 fixtures.

The J2/J3 100 Year Vision League kicked off at the weekend, so Jon Steele and James Taylor got together to discuss the big talking points from the opening round of fixtures. In part 1, Jon reviews the East groups, with a particular focus on Yokohama FC v Yamagata, then picks his East MBP and games to watch for matchday 2 (to 24:25). Then in part 2, James talks about Imabari v Kanazawa and Kagoshima v Miyazaki, discusses the postponements, picks a West MBP and games to watch (to end).   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

The Chaos Energy J.League Cup got underway over the weekend, and in Part 1 of this episode Jonny and Ben were very pleased to welcome new Hiroshima correspondent Robert Turner to the pod to chat about Sanfrecce's opening night win over Nagasaki, and his thoughts on their prospects this season (to 23:55). Then in Part 2 your co-hosts round up the other four games from the west group (to 37:30), before moving on to Kawasaki's 5-3 triumph over Kashiwa on Sunday and the rest of the games from the east, before rounding off the pod with a look ahead to upcoming ACL and J1 fixtures.

Jon Steele and James Taylor return with a preview of the J.League’s half-season tournament for J2 and J3 teams. First, James runs through the tournament setup and prize money (to 04:45). Then Jon talks about Yokohama FC and Tochigi City from the East-A group (to 15:30) and Sapporo and Matsumoto in East-B (to 25:20). After that, James looks at Imabari and FC Osaka from West-A (to 33:50) and West-B teams Tosu and Yamaguchi (to 46:05). The boys finish with a discussion of the different ways clubs might approach the HYVL (to end).   Big thanks to Mike Innes for sharing his detailed notes on the J3 teams.   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. We hope you’ll enjoy the HYVL with us. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

We wrap up our top flight previews with the final five teams from the east group, beginning in the capital with FC Tokyo (to 18:15), Tokyo Verdy (to 30:40) and Machida (to 44:40), before Kawasaki correspondent Neil Debnam joins us to chat about Frontale's interesting moves in the transfer market, and their prospects for The Chaos Energy J.League Cup (to 1:19:10). Then Jonny and Ben preview Yokohama F.Marinos (to 1:33:35), take care of some housekeeping, and preview J1 Matchday 1. Check out Neil's Frontale Rabbit blog, and Jonny's Top 50 Japanese University Players (link is to Part 2, here's Part 1), take your swing at J.League Fantasy (and enter our mini-league with code sjWwSZ9k), and try your luck at JPred for ultimate bragging rights!

We wrap up the west on this week's episode, and after celebrating Japan's triumph in the Under 23 Asian Cup, Jonny and Ben welcome Kyoto correspondent Jamie Meikle back to the pod to chat about Sanga's tremendous 2025 season, and to look ahead to their 2026 by discussing their dealings in the transfer market, key players and ones to watch, and our final thoughts on their prospects for the Chaos Energy J.League Cup (to 32:45). Later Jonny and Ben follow the same pattern in chatting about Cerezo Osaka (to 48:50), Gamba Osaka (to 1:09:05), Nagoya (to 1:25:55) and Shimizu (to end), with those final three teams all under the stewardship of new managers.

We head west for this week's previews, and we were thrilled to be joined by Daniel Kuroda, one half of the Vivi Cast podcast, to chat about Nagasaki's 2025 campaign, and their long-awaited return to J1 in the Chaos Energy J.League Cup (to 42:30). In Part 2 Jonny and Ben begin with a depth chart explainer and praise for the collaboration between Yokohama FC and J.League Journeys, then run the rule over Fukuoka (to 1:01:45), Hiroshima (to 1:15:00), Okayama (to 1:27:45) and Kobe (to end). As a special bonus, we've smashed down the Patreon paywall this week so that all listeners can access Jonny's depth charts for the five teams featured on this episode by clicking on this link.

We kick off our Chaos Energy J.League Cup previews with five teams from the East group, and after Jonny and Ben run the rule over J1 Champions Kashima (to 14:13), Jon Steele guests to chat about the sensational promotions achieved by J2 Champions Mito and Playoff winners Chiba, and how both teams might fare in the top flight (Mito to 45:20, Chiba to 1:08:10). In Part 3 Jonny and Ben finish off the episode by checking in on Kashiwa (to 1:23:20) and Urawa (to end).

The JTET team (with special guests) are back to conclude their J2 retrospective for 2025. In the first segment, James and Jon discuss the fortunes of Kofu (Start to 06:35), Fujieda (06:35 to 11:00), and then Oita (11:00 to 19:25). Then we hand over to pod debutant Tom for his take on Sapporo's 2025 campaign (19:25 to 24:55). After that, we welcome Fin back to the show for his thoughts on Sendai (24:55 to 37:45). James and Jon reconvene to run through a quartet of teams from the (very) wrong end of the J2 table: Toyama (37:45 to 43:55), Yamaguchi (43:55 to 49:00), Ehime (49:00 to 53:30), and Kumamoto (53:30 to 01:03:00). To make sure that we round things off on a positive note, we end with Allen's look back on an unforgettable season for JEF Chiba (01:03:00 to Finish). Thanks to all of our contributors, and to all of you for listening - we'll be taking a short podcasting break until the first week of February (when we'll post a 100 Year Vision League preview episode)! *Support The J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/jtalkpod *Join in with the discussion on our JLeague Chat Discord server: https://discord.gg/6Tr3MBAy

Happy New Year to you all, and welcome back to another season of The J-Talk Podcast. We're beginning the year with a bang, as we celebrate our 600th episode, and after a brief catch-up (and explanation of the pod for new listeners), Jonny and Ben welcome in Dan Orlowitz, to chat about the highs of 2025, as detailed in the J.League Season Review, (all in Japanese, use browser translation) and to look ahead to the Chaos Energy J.League Cup.

Happy New Year, everyone! In a vainglorious attempt to get 2026 off to a flying start, we do our best to review the J2 season across a pair of bumper episodes (Part 2 is on the way). In the early stages of this pod, James and Jon wax lyrical about a quartet of J2 clubs: champions Mito (Start to 04:30), runners-up Nagasaki (04:30 to 08:30), as well defeated Play-Off sides Tokushima (08:30 to 11:00) and Iwata (11:00 to 15:45). Then there's a chance for James to take a breather as Jon chats in-depth to special guest contributor Steve Fryer about another team vanquished in the Play-Offs, Omiya (15:45 to 59:40). James is back on deck to talk to Jon about a further trio of teams after that: Tosu (59:40 to 01:03:55), Yamagata (01:03:55 to 01:08:00), and finally Imabari (01:08:00 to 01:12:55). The pod ends with dynamite drop-ins from two of our regular club-specific contributors: Martin Spivey tells us all about Akita's 2025 campaign (01:12:55 to 01:21:40), before Leslie Mabon does similar for Iwaki (01:21:40 to Finish). We hope everyone enjoys the bumper pod - thank you to all of our contributors! *Support The J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/jtalkpod *Join in with the discussion on our JLeague Chat Discord server: https://discord.gg/6Tr3MBAy

Jon Steele and James Taylor sign off for 2025 by compiling a best eleven for J2, along with MVP and Manager of the Year (to 30:10). Then in part 2, Jon quizzes James on his J3 team (to end).   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. Keep an eye and an ear out for J2 season reviews over the next few weeks. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social

The curtain came down on another season in J2, J3 and the JFL last weekend, and Jon Steele and James Taylor have analysis of the three big games: JEF United v Tokushima (to 20:00), FC Osaka v Miyazaki (to 35:40), and Numazu v Shiga (to 56:45). They also pick a Most Bravo Player from each of the matches (to 1:02:35) and round off the episode with news about the J2/J3 100 Year Vision League and J.League Awards.   Thank you for your support of the J-Talk Podcast and J-Talk: Extra Time. Keep an eye and an ear out for J2 and J3 season reviews over the next few weeks. *Join the J-Talk Podcast Patreon here: https://patreon.com/jtalkpod *Find our JLeague Chat Discord server here: https://discord.gg/UwN2ambAwg *Follow JTET on Bluesky here: @jtalket.bsky.social