North Korean team invited
　The Japanese Football Association has decided to invite a Youth Team from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) next January. Six months ago, it was reported that the Association was opposed to having relations with the D.P.R. of Korea, because the latter was not a member of the Asian Football Confederation, Now the Association has come to acknowledge the fact that the D. P. R. of Korea is a member of F.I.F.A, and there are no longer any objections to holding matches between Japan and that country.

　Ex-professional accepted
　The registration of an ex-professional　player, Sergio Echigo from Brazil was finally accepted by the Japanese Football Association after ten weeks' deliberation. The　decision was made just one day before the　opening of the second half of the league　season.　
　 Echigo, who had been a professional　player for the Corinthians of Sao Paulo,　Brazil, until five years ago, is now playing　for the Japanese first division club "Towa-Fudosan" of Utsunomiya-city.　

　New System of the Emperor's Cup
　Slowly but surely, the long awaited reformation of Japanese football has showed　signs of progress during the latter half of1972.
　Changing the tournament system of the　Emperor's Cup Competition was the first　step. Formerly, entry had been limited to a total of eight teams―the top four of the Japanese league and the best four of the National Inter-University Championship, This .system had been criticized for years by many minor and regional clubs, since it gave them no chance to participate in the competition. They claimed that, for them, registration with the Japanese F. A. was meaningless if it did not also give them the right to join in the competition, which is sponsored by the Association.
　Now, from 1972, the Emperor's Cup competition is open to all senior teams registered with the Japanese F.A. Under the new system, twenty-four teams can enter the ‘competition proper', which is under the direct sponsorship of the National Association.
　In the Minor Preliminary Competitions, matches take place in the forty-eight prefectures to select teams to compete with the ten Second Division teams of the Japanese League and with other exempt teams in the nine Regional Preliminary Competitions sponsored by the nine Regional Associations. The First Round 'Proper' takes place with sixteen entrants from which eight will qualify to compete in the Second Round 'Proper' with the eight First Division clubs.
　In this way, every senior team, including college or university teams in all parts of Japan, can compete in the cup competition. About one thousand teams are taking part this season and two thousand teams are expected to be involved next year.
　All stages are decided by the one-round knock out system (not two legs) smilar to the F.A. Challenge Cup system in England. The minor preliminary rounds should end by the third Sunday in August and the Regional Preliminary Competition should end by the third Sunday in November. Matches in the competition proper will be held every Sunday in December and the final will be staged on New Year's Day as in previous years. If a replay of the final is necessary, it will be held on January 3rd.
　Now the Japanese league and Cup competitions are nationwide and although there are many administrative problems still to be solved, the blue-print of reformation has already been drafted.

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