Hokushinetsu Football League

Hokushin'etsu Football League (北信越フットボールリーグ) is a soocer league based in five prefectures in the Hokushinetsu region, which comprises Hokuriku and Shin'etsu in Japan. They are (Nagano, Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, and Fukui). It is a league of club teams registered in Class 1. Its name is abbreviated HFL.

Overview
The Hokushi'netsu Football League, one of nine Japanese regional leagues, it began in 1975 and if the JFL is considered as the fourth tier in the league structure of Japanese football, then the Hokushin'etsu's first division is the fifth tier, and the second division is the sixth tier. In 2004, the name was changed to the current Hokushin'etsu Football League. With the addition of the top clubs from each prefecture's first division, the system became a two-division system.

The teams compete for promotion to the Japan Football League and try to avoid relegation to the Prefectural Leagues. The current champions of Division 1 and Division 2 are Fukui United and Sakai Phoenix, respectively

As of the end of 2023 season, the team with the most championships in the league’s history is YKK AP SC, with eleven titles. The league has seen a variety of champions over the years, including Nissei Plastic Industrial, Fukui Teachers, Yamaga, Niigata Eleven, Teihens, Hokuriku Electric Power, Albirex Niigata, LO’s Hokuriku, Nagano Elza, Kanazawa S.C., Matsumoto Yamaga, Nagano Parceiro, Japan Soccer College, Saurcos Fukui, and Artista Tomi.