Jin cuju league system

Jin cuju league system

Country	Da Huang
Sport	Association football
Promotion and relegation	Yes
National system
Federation	Cuju Association of Jinae
Confederation	OAFF
Top division	Men J League 1 Women Women's League 1
Second division	Men J League 2 Women Women's League 2
Cup competition	Men Jin Royal Cup Jin Champions Cup Jin League Cup Women CAJ Women's Cup

The Jin cuju league system (JCLS), or the Jin association football league system, refers to the hierarchically interconnected league system for the Cuju Association of Jinae (CAJ). The JCLS is organised in a pyramidical shape similar to the football league system in many other countries worldwide, with eight tiers bound by the principle of promotion and relegation. The top three tiers play professionally and contain one division each. Below the top three, teams play at semi-professional and amateur levels with parallel divisions, each covering regional or metropolitan areas.

The highest level of men's association football in Da Huang is the J League 1. Formerly known as the Morning Glow Autumn League (Jin: 朝霞秋联; pinyin: Zhāo Xiá Qiū Lián), the league was founded in 1919 by the Republic of Jin as a means of consolidation and monitoring of the local unofficial leagues and clubs throughout Da Huang that was occasionally used as royalists gatherings disguised as cuju clubs. Following the fall of the republic, the league became defunct and was only refounded under the emperor's auspices in 1993, owing to the years of relative stability following the 1991 Constitutional reforms. The J League 2 was founded in 2001 due to the renewed and growing popularity of the sport, and J League 3 was founded in 2013 to accommodate the increasing number of transitional professional clubs. They served as the men's second division and third division, respectively.

Below the professional leagues are the semi-professional CAJ Silk Road Champions League, which serves as the fourth tier of the Jin association football league system. It is followed by the mixed semi-professional and amateur regional level CAJ Silk Road Regional Leagues, which serve as the fifth to seventh tier. The eighth tier of the JCLS is the city-level association leagues comprising only amateur, youth, and university teams.

Women's football in Da Huang is relatively new, owning to decades-old conservative values entrenched in the population. The government has, however, actively sought to encourage women's participation in the sport and, in February 2017, made it mandatory for top-flight clubs to have a women's team compete in the CAJ Women's League. The current format for women's association football in Da Huang has three tiers bound by promotion and relegation, with the Women's League 1 serving as the top flight.

Structure

The top three levels of the association football league system are operated by the J League, which consists of the J League 1 (JL1), J League 2 (JL2), and J League 3 (JL3). All clubs in the J League are required to be entirely professional, and clubs in the top two flights must have a women's team that competes in the Women's League.

The fourth level, the CAJ Silk Road Champions League (SRCL), is the semi-professional league and the largest division of the JCLS, involving up to 64 teams from across the country. It consists of a mix of amateur, professional, and company clubs, serving as the football finals of each season.

Tier on Pyramid	Division
	Professional Leagues
1	Jin Jia Liansai (JL1) 18 clubs ↓ 2 relegation spots + 1 relegation play-off spot
2	Jin Yi Liansai (JL2) 18 clubs ↑ 2 promotion spots + 1 promotion play-off spot ↓ 2 relegation spots + 1 relegation play-off spot
3	Jin Bing Liansai (JL3) 20 clubs ↑ 2 promotion spots + 1 promotion play-off spot ↓ 4 relegation spots
	Semi-Professional Leagues
4	Jinxia Guanjun Liansai (JCL) 64 clubs ↑ 0–2 promotions ↓ 0–2 relegations
5	Jinxia Diqu Liansai (JDL) 135 clubs
	Jinbei Diqu Liansai 8 clubs	Dongbei Diqu Liansai 30 clubs (10 in D1, 20 in D2 divided to two groups)	Xibei Diqu Liansai 20 clubs (10 in D1, 10 in D2)	Zhongnan Diqu Liansai 16 clubs (8 in D1, 8 in D2)	Dongnan Diqu Liansai 17 clubs (8 in D1, 9 in D2)	Xinan Diqu Liansai 16 clubs (8 in D1, 8 in D2)
	Non-Professional Leagues
6+	Jinxia Yeyu Junzi Liansai (JYJL) (Amateur) Unlimited clubs Region 1 Northern Upper Region 2 Northern Lower Region 3 Northeastern Upper Region 4 Northeastern Lower Region 5 Northwestern Upper Region 6 Northwestern Lower Region 7 South Central Upper Region 8 South Central Lower Region 9 Southeastern Upper Region 10 Southeastern Lower Region 11 Southwestern Upper Region 12 Southwestern Lower