The J. League is again hosting an eSports competition starting from 26th December, 2020 which will award valuable EA SPORTS™ FIFA Global Series Points on the Road to the FIFA eWorld Cup™ 2021.

EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Global Series eJ.LEAGUE will be played at 2 stages; “Club Champions Cup” on J,League mode and “FUT Champions Cup” based on FIFA eWORLD CUP™ regulations, on EA SPORTS FIFA 21, the game produced by Electronic Arts (EA).

The champion of “Club Champions Cup” on J,League mode will be awarded prize money of one million yen. The runner-up will be awarded five hundred thousand yen (newly), and the third-place winner will be awarded one hundred thousand yen (for 2 players, newly)

The champion and the runner-up of “FUT Champions Cup” will be granted with a place for the EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Global Series East Asia region playoffs hosted by EA,.

The J. League seeks to give everyone diverse opportunities to experience sport close up as a part of their everyday life, regardless of age or gender. The EA SPORTS FIFA Global Series allows this 4th time eSports competition since 2018 to have the dual aims of sending players out to the world and spreading awareness of the joys of football.

Although the tournaments take place online basically, the final round on 23rd and 24th January 2021 will be played offline.

*All tournaments might be played online depending on the situation of COVID-19.

Also, “eJ.League All-star match” using J.League all-star players who are selected by fan voting in advance will be held on 23rd January 2021. The all-star teams will be played by ex-J.Leaguers or celebrities who are the big fan of the J.League.

The FIFA 21 Global Series eJ.LEAGUE Overview

■Title
FIFA21 Global Series eJ.LEAGUE

■Host
Japan Professional Football League

■Special Cooperation
To be decided

■Top Partner
To be decided

■Date
《Club Champions Cup》
Preliminary Round: December 26th (Sat) and 27th (Sun), 2020 (without streaming)
Final Round: January 9th (Sat) and 10th (Sun) and 23rd (Sat), 2021

《FUT Champions Cup》
January 24th (Sun), 2021

■Venue
eXeField Akiba (on January 9th, 10th, 23rd and 24th, 2021)

■Broadcast
J.League official YouTube channel, J.League official LINE LIVE, Twitter Live (TBD)

■Videogame
EA SPORTS FIFA21
This football computer game was developed by EA SPORTS and released by Electronic Arts in October, 2020. The players of all 18 J1 teams are listed using their real names.   

■Terminal
PlayStation 4
PlayStation and PS4 are registered trademarks of Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.

■Clubs2020 J1 Clubs
Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo, Vegalta Sendai, Kashima Antlers, Urawa Reds, Kashiwa Reysol, F.C. Tokyo, Kawasaki Frontale, Yokohama F･Marinos, Yokohama FC, Shonan Bellmare, Shimizu S-Pulse, Nagoya Grampus, Gamba Osaka, Cerezo Osaka, Vissel Kobe, Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Sagan Tos, Oita Trinita

■Competition format
《Club Champions Cup》 
Preliminary Round
Each of the 18 J1 clubs will host a knockout tournament and either one or two players from each tournament will qualify for the final.
Each J. League club is entitled to nominate one player separately to advance to the final round. The tournament winner will advance in the case of a club which nominates a player, or the winner and runner-up in the case of a club which does not.
The match will be played as single tournaments using “Online Friendly” (over 90-rated mode). No extra time or penalty shootout will be played when a score is tied at the end of normal time - players hold the rematch and the winner is decided by the golden goal.

Final Round
・Group Stage
The final round will be contested by 36 players (anticipated), two from each J1 club, consisting of players advancing from the preliminary round and players specially nominated by J. League clubs*.
The players will be divided into 6 groups of 6 from which 16 players, namely the top 2 finishers in each group and 4 third-placed finishers with the best results, will advance to the knock-out tournament.
Matches at the group stage will be played as single tournaments
No extra time will be played when a total score over the 2 legs is tied at the end of normal time.

・Knock-out Stage; the first round
Matches in the single knock-out tournament (single elimination) by 16 players.
No extra time or penalty shootout will be played when a score is tied at the end of normal time - players hold the rematch and the winner is decided by the golden goal.

・Knock-out Stage; the quarter final, semi-final, final
Matches will be contested over two legs, home and away.
No extra time or penalty shootout will be played when a total score over the 2 legs is tied at the end of normal time - players hold the rematch and the winner is decided by the golden goal.

*Players nominated by J. League clubs
Eligibility applies to players registered with EA SPORTS FIFA 21 who represented one of the 18 J1 clubs during the 2020 season.
Each club may nominate one player. (Clubs may select not to nominate a player.)

《FUT Champions Cup》
Quarterfinalists of 8 players at Club Champions Cup will play in the tournament to gain a place  for the EA SPORTS FIFA 21 Global Series East Asian Playoffs.
Matches in the knock-out tournament (double elimination) over two legs, home and away on FUT Friendly mode. No extra time or penalty shootout will be played when a total score over the 2 legs is tied at the end of normal time - players hold the rematch and the winner is decided by the golden goal.

■Prizes
《Club Champions Cup》
ChampioneJ.LEAGUE Cup / Prize money of 1 million yen (extra prize; TBD)
Runner-up Prize money of 300,000 yen
Third place Prize money of 100,000 yen × 2 players

《FUT Champions Cup》
Champion Qualification for FIFA21 Global Series East Asian region playoffs (extra prize; TBD)
Runner-up Qualification for FIFA21 Global Series East Asian region playoffs

The FIFA 21 Global Series eJ.LEAGUE How to Participate

■ Application Period
17:00 Monday, December 7 – 12:00 Monday, December 21, 2020

■ Application Method
※A link is available from the special page on the J.LEAGUE.jp website.
※Online applications only.
※Only one application per person.

■Participation
feeNone

■Eligibility
〇Aged 16 and above (as of 31st December, 2020) and able to participate in the final round on 9th (Sat), 10th (Sun), 23rd (Sat) and 24th (Sun) 2021
※Applicants under the age of 20 must provide the signed, written permission of a parent or legal guardian.

〇Japanese residency and sufficient Japanese language ability to communicate with the competition secretariat and other competitors. (Any nationality)

■ Handling of Personal Information
○ Whenever receiving personal information, the J. League always states its
purpose clearly and obtains the client’s consent for this by fair and appropriate means. The J. League only uses such personal information within the scope required for the stated purposes.

○ The J. League only permits the use of personal information received from
clients either at the J. League or by J. League subcontractors and partners for
the following stated purposes:  
・The keeping, use and analysis of information within the scope of J. League activities
・Providing requested materials and information when possible
・Responding to questions, feedback and requests
・Communications
・Other purposes laid down in the terms of J. League services.

■ Inquiries: eJ.League SecretariatMAIL [email protected]
※This outline has been excerpted from FIFA 21eJ.LEAGUE tournament regulations. Please refer to the full regulations for further details.