| Competition: | J.League Division 1 |
| Season: | 2014 |
| Winners: | Gamba Osaka 2nd J.League title 2nd Japanese title |
| Continentalcup1: | Champions League |
| Continentalcup1 Qualifiers: | Gamba Osaka Urawa Red Diamonds Kashima Antlers |
| Relegated: | Omiya Ardija Cerezo Osaka Tokushima Vortis |
| League Topscorer: | Yoshito Ōkubo (18 goals) |
| Matches: | 306 |
| Total Goals: | 774 |
| Highest Attendance: | 56,758 Reds vs Gamba |
| Lowest Attendance: | 0 Reds vs S-Pulse |
| Average Attendance: | 17,240 |
| Prevseason: | 2013 |
| Nextseason: | 2015 |
The 2014 J.League Division 1 season was the 49th season of top-flight football in Japan, and the 22nd since the establishment of the J.League in 1992. The season began on 1 March and ended on 8 December. Sanfrecce Hiroshima were the defending champions.
Due to Japan's participation in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, there was an extended break to allow for preparation after the 14th-week matches on 17 and 18 May, with the league resuming on 15 July for four clubs who participated in the 2014 AFC Champions League to play rescheduled 12th-week matches, and 19 July for other 14 clubs.[1]
2014 saw the league played via a home and away system over a single season for the last time until at least 2020. From 2015 the league will revert to an Apertura and Clausura system, with a multi-team play-off 'super stage' to decide the champions, similar to the format used when the J.League began.[2]
The league was won by Gamba Osaka, who won their second J.League title following a 0–0 away draw against Tokushima Vortis. They became the second league champions (after Kashiwa Reysol) to win the first division after being promoted as second division champions.
18 teams compete in this year's competition. Both Gamba Osaka and Vissel Kobe return to J1 after a single season outside the top flight; they finished as the J.League Division 2 champions and runners-up, respectively. Tokushima Vortis, who finished fourth in the regular season and won the promotion playoff, will make their top-flight debut, becoming the first club from Shikoku to do so. Those three teams replaced Oita Trinita, Shonan Bellmare and Júbilo Iwata; Júbilo were relegated from J1 for the first time after twenty seasons in the top tier, while Bellmare and Trinita were bumped down after cameo appearances in J1.
| Club Name | Coach | Home Town(s) | Stadium | Capacity | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albirex Niigata |  Masaaki Yanagishita | Niigata & Seirō, Niigata | Big Swan Stadium | 42,300 | |
 Toninho Cerezo | Kashima, Ibaraki | Kashima Soccer Stadium | 40,728 | ||
| Hiroki Shibuya | Omiya, Saitama | NACK5 Stadium | 15,500 | ||
| Cerezo Osaka | Yuji Okuma | Osaka | Nagai Stadium | 47,816 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League fourth-placed) |
| Yasuhiro Higuchi | Yokohama, Kanagawa & Yokosuka, Kanagawa | Nissan Stadium | 72,327 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League runners-up) | |
| Yahiro Kazama | Kawasaki, Kanagawa | Todoroki Athletics Stadium | 26,232 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League Third placed team) | |
| Gamba Osaka | Kenta Hasegawa | Suita, Osaka | Osaka Expo '70 Stadium | 21,000 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 |
| Akira Nishino | Nagoya, Aichi | Mizuho Athletic Stadium | 27,000 | ||
| Mihailo Petrović | Urawa, Saitama | Saitama Stadium | 63,700 | ||
| Nelsinho Baptista | Kashiwa, Chiba | Kashiwa Soccer Stadium | 15,900 | ||
| Katsumi Oenoki | Shizuoka | IAI Stadium Nihondaira | 20,339 | ||
| Sagan Tosu | Megumu Yoshida | Tosu, Saga | Tosu Stadium | 24,490 | |
| Sanfrecce Hiroshima | Hajime Moriyasu | Hiroshima | Hiroshima Big Arch | 50,000 | 2014 AFC Champions League participant (as 2013 J.League winners) |
 Massimo Ficcadenti | Tokyo | Ajinomoto Stadium | 49,970 | ||
| Shinji Kobayashi | All cities/towns in Tokushima | Pocarisweat Stadium | 20,441 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 (through a play-off system) | |
| Vegalta Sendai | Susumu Watanabe | Sendai, Miyagi | Yurtec Stadium | 19,694 | |
| Ventforet Kofu | Hiroshi Jofuku | Kofu, Yamanashi | Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium | 17,000 | |
| Ryo Adachi | Kobe, Hyōgo | Misaki Park Stadium | 30,132 | Promoted from J.League Division 2 in 2013 | |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Incoming manager | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vegalta Sendai |  Graham Arnold | Mutual consent | Susumu Watanabe | |
| Cerezo Osaka |  Ranko Popović | Mutual consent |  Marco Pezzaiuoli | |
| Shimizu S-Pluse | Afshin Ghotbi | Mutual consent | Katsumi Oenoki | |
| Sagan Tosu | Yoon Jung-Hwan | Sacked | Megumu Yoshida | |
| Omiya Ardija | Kiyoshi Okuma | Sacked | Hiroki Shibuya | |
| Cerezo Osaka | Marco Pezzaiuoli | Sacked | Yuji Okuma |
| Award | Recipient | Club | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Yasuhito Endō | Gamba Osaka | |||
| Rookie of the Year | Caio | Kashima Antlers | |||
| Manager of the Year | Kenta Hasegawa | Gamba Osaka | |||
| Top scorer | Yoshito Ōkubo | Kawasaki Frontale | 18 goals. |
| Position | Footballer | Club | Nationality | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Shusaku Nishikawa (3) | Urawa Red Diamonds | ||
| DF | Kosuke Ota (1) | FC Tokyo | ||
| DF | Masato Morishige (2) | FC Tokyo | ||
| DF | Tsukasa Shiotani (1) | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | ||
| MF | Gaku Shibasaki (1) | Kashima Antlers | ||
| MF | Yoshinori Muto (1) | FC Tokyo | ||
| MF | Léo Silva (1) | Albirex Niigata | ||
| MF | Yasuhito Endō (11) | Gamba Osaka | ||
| FW | Yoshito Ōkubo (2) | Kawasaki Frontale | ||
| FW | Takashi Usami (1) | Gamba Osaka | ||
| FW | Patric (1) | Gamba Osaka |
Dejan Jaković
