The WE League (Japanese: WEリーグ, Hepburn: WE Rīgu), officially the Japan Women's Empowerment Professional Football League (日本女子プロサッカーリーグ, Nihon Joshi Puro Sakkā Rīgu; "Japan Women Pro Football League"), also known as the SOMPO WE League (SOMPO WEリーグ, SOMPO WE Rīgu) for sponsorship reasons, is the top flight of women's association football in Japan, starting from the 2021–22 season. It is the first fully-professional women's football league in Japan.
On 3 June 2020, the Japan Football Association (JFA) announced the formation of the WE League to become Japan's new top-flight, professional women's football league. The semi-professional Nadeshiko League would become the second level on the women's football pyramid in Japan once the WE League began play in the autumn of 2021. United States–based business executive and former Japan international footballer Kikuko Okajima was announced as the WE League's inaugural chairwoman.
17 clubs applied to join the WE League. On 15 October 2020, 11 clubs were announced as founding members of the WE League, including seven with J. League affiliations.
In the 2023–24 season, Cerezo Osaka Sakai Ladies entered the WE League, promoted from Nadeshiko League Division 1.
Competition format
The WE League's 2023–24 season features 12 teams playing a double round-robin, home-and-away competition. Unlike the Nadeshiko League, the WE League will play a winter season that conforms with most European leagues. There will be no relegation from the WE League to the Nadeshiko League, but teams may be promoted from the latter in the first several seasons for the WE League to reach a desired number of teams.
Each team in the WE League must have at least 15 players signed to fully professional contracts, which are not subject to a salary cap. In addition to bringing professionalism to Japanese women's football, the WE League also implemented measures to bringing in international players. The JFA subsidizes salaries for players from Southeast Asian member federations, while the league itself subsidizes players from top-ranked FIFA countries. The league actively recruits players from top-ranked federations such as France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States and Spain, and it also provides additional subsidies to encourage internationalization for expenses such as interpreters.
Clubs
2025–26 season
The following 12 clubs competed in the WE League in the 2025–26 season.
Sendai to wear special uniforms for reconstruction support match in Ishinomaki.
As the WE League comprises 11 teams in its inaugural season, there are inevitably matchdays where some teams do not play. The league has designated these days without matches as "WE ACTION DAY" and conducts initiatives to promote its core philosophy. On September 9, 2021—the league's opening season—it announced the launch of activities aimed at realizing the "inclusive society" set forth in its mission.
Furthermore, as part of their efforts to address gender-related issues and contribute to achieving the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), each club conducts a variety of activities, such as soccer clinics for children, participation in para-sports experience events for people with disabilities, and community volunteer work.
In addition, activities tailored to the history of each region are also being conducted. Examples include initiatives in Kobe to ensure that memories of the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake do not fade, and the hosting of matches in Sendai—held in March, the month the disaster occurred—to support recovery efforts following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake.
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