Full article (translated): Leisu Sports reported on April 24 that the Japanese Professional Football League (J League) announced that it has officially joined the global environmental initiative organization – Sport Positive League (SPL). The J League (J1 to J3) will officially participate in the special events during the transition period of the 2026 season, becoming the fifth professional league to be ranked, after the Premier League, the English Championship, the Bundesliga, and the French Ligue 1, and the first member in Asia.
Since its establishment in 2018, the SPL has helped clubs clearly understand their environmental progress and future development direction by quantifying the climate actions of football clubs. The league will conduct quantitative assessments of each club based on environmental protection initiatives in 12 key areas such as energy, waste, and transportation, calculate comprehensive scores and publicly rank them. This move provides the sports industry with a transparent and fair environmental action assessment standard and promotes the realization of environmental protection goals worldwide.
The J League has also launched the “J League Sustainable Development Business Activity Subsidy System” to encourage clubs to take more environmental protection actions. The first funding period is from April 1, 2025 to March 15, 2026, with a total funding amount of 240 million yen. The application limit for a single club is 4 million yen.
Link to full article in local language (Chinese): https://www.163.com/dy/article/JTUIJ6GE0529DS7F.html
