2008 J.League Division 1
The 2008 J.League Division 1 season was the 44th season of the top-flight club football in Japan and the 16th season since the establishment of J.League Division 1. The season began on March 8 and ended on December 6.
A total of eighteen clubs participated in double round-robin format. Starting this season, top three clubs received automatic qualification to the following years' AFC Champions League. The bottom two clubs were relegated to J.League Division 2 by default, while 16th-placed club had to defend their spot in the top-flight in the pro/rele series.
Clubs
The following 18 clubs participated in J.League Division 1 during 2008 season. Of these clubs, Consadole Sapporo, Tokyo Verdy, and Kyoto Purple Sanga are newly promoted clubs.| Club name | Home town | Note |
| Albirex Niigata | Niigata & Seirō, Niigata | |
| Consadole Sapporo | Sapporo, Hokkaido | Promoted from J2 League in 2007 |
| FC Tokyo | Tokyo | |
| Gamba Osaka | Suita, Osaka | 2008 ACL participant |
| JEF United Chiba | Chiba & Ichihara, Chiba | |
| Júbilo Iwata | Iwata, Shizuoka | |
| Kashima Antlers | Southwestern cities/towns of Ibaraki | 2008 ACL participant Defending champions |
| Kashiwa Reysol | Kashiwa, Chiba | |
| Kawasaki Frontale | Kawasaki, Kanagawa | |
| Kyoto Purple Sanga | Southwestern cities/town in Kyoto | Promoted from J2 League in 2007 |
| Nagoya Grampus | Nagoya, Aichi | Renamed from Nagoya Grampus Eight |
| Oita Trinita | All cities/towns in Ōita | |
| Omiya Ardija | Saitama | |
| Shimizu S-Pulse | Shizuoka | |
| Tokyo Verdy | Tokyo | Promoted from J2 League in 2007 Renamed from Tokyo Verdy 1969 |
| Urawa Red Diamonds | Saitama | 2008 ACL Participant |
| Vissel Kobe | Kobe, Hyōgo | |
| Yokohama F. Marinos | Yokohama & Yokosuka |
Format
Eighteen clubs will play in double round-robin format, a total of 34 games each. A club receives 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, and 0 points for a loss. The clubs are ranked by points, and tie breakers are, in the following order:- Goal differential
- Goals scored
- Head-to-head results
- Disciplinary points
;Changes from Previous Year
- Introduction of Disciplinary points for tie breaker
- Top three clubs will qualify to AFC Champions League
- The J.League will not qualify to the abolished A3 Champions Cup.
Table
Player statistics
Top scorers
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | ||||
| 1 |  Top assists
|
