X-League
The X-League () is the top-level American football league in Japan. It was founded in 1971 as the Japan American Football League, and changed its name to the X League in 1997. There are three divisions (X1, X2, and X3) among which there is promotion and relegation. Teams in the three-tier league are split into East, West, and Central divisions. There are two types of teams, one being a company team in which only employees of that particular sponsoring company may play, and the other being a club team for which anyone can try out.
Game rules are based on those of the NCAA college division in the United States, with the exception of the length of quarters, which are 12 minutes instead of 15 during the first stage of the season.

The Japanese national team, which has won the first and second editions of the American Football World Cup and was runner-up, finishing second to the American team, in the 2007 installment of the tournament, was made up almost entirely of players from this league.

Americans are often recruited to play for X League teams, with a strict rule of four per team. No more than two foreign players per team are allowed on the field of play at a time.
Q41323
American football
Concept
Q17
Japan
LOC
Q778665
promotion and relegation
UNK
Q1187904
company team
Concept
Q847017
club team
Concept
None
those of the NCAA college division
UNK
Q2534435
Japanese national team
MEDIA
Q463251
American Football World Cup
ORG
Q1518344
X-League
ORG
1971-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1971
DATE
1997-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
1997
DATE
2007-01-01T00:00:00Z^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#dateTime
2007
DATE
+1^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
1
NUMBER
+2^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
2
NUMBER
+3^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
3
NUMBER
+12^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
12
NUMBER
+15^^http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#decimal
15
NUMBER
sport
country
inception