B.League’s Utsunomiya Brex, Ryukyu Golden Kings, Alvark Tokyo Qualify For 2025-26 EASL Season
(Press Release)
For the first time in EASL history, the league will feature three B.LEAGUE teams
Hong Kong SAR — The Utsunomiya Brex, Ryukyu Golden Kings, and Alvark Tokyo will represent Japan’s B.LEAGUE in the 2025–26 East Asia Super League (EASL) season, marking the first time three Japanese teams will compete in a single EASL campaign.
Earlier this month, the winner of the 2025 Emperor’s Cup was introduced as a new qualification pathway for the upcoming season to uplift the quality of play and increase competitiveness. Although Ryukyu Golden Kings won the Emperor’s Cup in March, they earned their EASL spot by qualifying through the original B.LEAGUE Finals route, alongside Utsunomiya. As a result, the Emperor’s Cup berth goes to the runners-up, Alvark Tokyo, who lost 60–49 in the final. The 2025–26 season will mark Alvark Tokyo’s debut in the league.
Utsunomiya will return to EASL competition for the first time since 2023, when the Brex took part in Champions Week. They also competed in the Terrific 12 in 2019, prior to the league’s shift to its current home-and-away format. The team dominated the 2024–25 B.LEAGUE season, finishing with a 48–12 record to secure the No. 1 overall seed in the East Division. In the postseason, Utsunomiya swept the Mikawa Seahorses with an average winning margin of 13 points, then defeated the Chiba Jets, led by EASL 2023–24 season MVP Yuki Togashi, 2–1 to advance to the Finals.
The Ryukyu Golden Kings also secured their spot in the 2025–26 EASL season after defeating the San-En Neophoenix in three games. A dominant force in Japanese basketball over the past five years, Ryukyu is making its fourth straight trip to the B.LEAGUE Finals and will be aiming for its second domestic title in three seasons, having claimed its first in 2023.
Ryukyu made its EASL debut in the 2023–24 season, finishing 3–3 in the group stage. The following year, the team made a major leap, going 5–1 in the regular season and reaching the Final Four in Macau, ultimately finishing fourth. Prior to the league’s transition to a home-and-away format, the Golden Kings were also active participants in earlier EASL tournaments — including the Super 8 in 2017, the Terrific 12 in 2018 (where they won the title) and 2019, as well as EASL Champions Week in 2023.
For more information on each B.LEAGUE team’s qualification path to the 2025–26 EASL season, please visit https://www.easl.basketball/.