Just one team joined the J.League in 1997 -- Vissel Kobe. There were already clear signs that the league was trying to grow too fast, and concerns rose about the risk that a "fair-weather team" would hurriedly slap together a group of players, earn admission to the league, and then collapse spectacularly, bringing shame upon the entire organization. The J.League started to set more exacting criteria for the teams wanting to join, and taking steps to mandate the financial health of member teams. These measures would lead to a complete restructuring after the 1998 season.

. . . but that is getting a bit ahead of the story. The main changes implemented in 1997 were a reversion to the First Stage - Second Stage format with a championship playoff at the end of the year. From 1997 through 2005, when the two-stage format was finally abandoned, each stage would consist of just a single round robin (16 matches in 1997). Teams that played at home during the first stage would play the same opponent away during the second stage. The Nabisco (league) Cup was adopted as a permanent feature of the campaign, with matches played on many Wednesday nights when there were no regular league fixtures. A majority of the league matches were played on Saturday.

Another rule change was implemented to try to address continued complaints about the scoring system. Teams that won a match in regulation time received a full three points, teams that won in overtime, by scoring a so-called "golden goal" received two points, and those that won on PKs would get just one point. This 3-2-1 scoring system became fairly popular, and provided a strong incentive for teams to play positive, offence-oriented football. This 3-2-1 point system would become the standard scoring system for J-League play over the next seven years.

In the first half of the season, 1996 champions Kashima Antlers came storming out of the gate to take a dominant lead. Although the exciting Yokohama Flugels would chase them towards the end of the season, the Antlers stamped their dominance on the league in the first stage. However, the team was entering a period of transition between generations, as veterans and rookies started to clash somewhat. In the second half of the year Jubilo Iwata emerged as a top contender, and they would become the Antlers' greatest rivals for the next five or six years.

As a taste of things to come, the two teams played one of the most exciting championship series ever, with the first match decided 3 - 2 on an extra time goal by little-used substitute Nobuhisa Shimizu. In the second leg, the two teams played each other to a scoreless draw over the full 90 minutes of regulation time and most of two 20-minute overtime periods, but as the clock wound down, Jubilo's ace striker Masashi Nakayama scored a "golden goal" that sent Jubilo to victory in a thrilling win for the newcomers and a heartbreaking defeat for the Antlers. The intense rivalry between these two teams would define the J.League for the rest of the decade.

Championship Series

Scoring Leaders

J.League Awards