The 36th Meijin began league play on 2 December 2010 and concluded in October 2011.
Takao Shinji, Cho U, Yuki Satoshi, Sakai Hideyuki, Mizokami Tomochika, and Cho Chikun retained their places in the league from the 35th Meijin.
These players were joined by the winners of the preliminary tournament: Yamashita Keigo, Hane Naoki, and Rin Kanketsu.
[1] League play commenced on 2 December 2010 after the preliminaries.
Hideyuki Sakai, Cho Chikun, and Rin Kanketsu were eliminated from the league.