Japan Rugby League One Rising Launches in September 2025

rugbyasia247 Posted On August 1, 2025

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JRLO has named the new development tournament Japan Rugby League One Rising and confirmed the participating teams, divisions, and schedule as it gets underway in September 2025.

Previously, we reported from our conversation with JRLO chief operating officer Shoji Hajime in May 2025 on the launch of the new development Tournament.

There are already tournament plans for 2026 and beyond, which the JRLO said will be reviewed based on the 2025 results.

What is Japan Rugby League One Rising?

The idea for the tournament is to be aimed at developing players who will play matches from September to October 2025 across three rounds, and the JRLO teams would be divided into East, Central, and West divisions based on their respective team bases.

There will be no rankings or a tournament winner for the 2025 Japan Rugby League One Rising tournament.
The Player of the Match will be selected by the game captains of both clubs in each match, with each captain selecting one player from the opposing team.
There are ten teams in the East Division, 4 in the Central Division, and 6 in the Western Division.

In May, we were told 20 clubs would be involved, each club playing two matches against a different club in the area (one of which will be hosted by each club), and this remains the case.

At the time, Shoji Hajime said the maximum number of players that can be registered per match in this tournament would be 30, of which at least 5 players who have played in 15 or fewer official Japan Rugby League One matches must be registered.

2024-2025 JRLO Round 12 Preview

It has been confirmed that there are no registration or participation quotas based on categories, and that it is necessary to register at least five players as per the criteria laid out.

The organisers said in July 2025, “The main purpose of this tournament is to secure playing opportunities for young players and players with limited opportunities, and to discover new promising players…. We hope that by participating in Japan Rugby League One Rising, teams will discover new talent and bring further growth to each team and the Japanese rugby world.”

Additional information, including kick-off times and information for the fans, was announced in mid-August. Match rules and implementation guidelines will be announced in late August 2025.