One aspect of JCMU that I love immensely is that JCMU isn’t just a study abroad center, but a part of the community in Hikone and Shiga as a whole. With this in mind, everyone here at JCMU wants to extend our congratulations to Reilac Shiga FC on their promotion to the J3 League.

Similarly to the way soccer leagues tend to operate around the world, the best teams in their respective leagues get promoted to a higher division, with the winners going directly to the upper level, and the next best teams getting a chance to play further games to earn a spot in the higher league. While it may not have been an automatic spot in the J3 League, Reilac Shiga’s second place win in the Japan Football League (JFL), earned them two games against Azul Claro Numazu. Whichever team scored more goals across the two matches would be crowned as the winner, and would play in the J3 League next season.

The first game was held on Dec. 7 at Heiwado HATO Stadium in Hikone, and the game ended as a 3-2 victory for Reilac Shiga. The second game was held a week later at Ashitaka Stadium in Numazu, Shizuoka. The game ended as a 1 to 1 draw, and that meant Reilac Shiga had won 4 to 3 overall and earned promotion to the J3 League for the first time ever. 

As Reilac Shiga embarks on an exciting new chapter, the staff at JCMU extend our congratulations to Reilac Shiga for such an incredible season, as well as well wishes for the upcoming season.