Yakult Levins Toda

Japan Yakult Levins Toda
ヤクルトレビンズ戸田
Full nameYakult Levins Toda
UnionJapan Rugby Football Union
NicknameYakult Levins
Founded1980
LocationToda, Saitama
CoachTakashi Kono
League(s)Japan Rugby League One, Division Three
Official website
www.yakult.co.jp/sports/rugby/

Yakult Levins Toda – commonly known as Yakult Levins – is a Japanese rugby union team, currently playing in the Japan Rugby League One.[1] The team is the rugby team of the probiotic milk company Yakult as is based in Toda in the Saitama Prefecture.

The team was created in 1980 originally as an amateur club. In 2011, the team took on the Yakult branding and turned professional.[2] After competing in the Top East League for a number of years, in 2023 they applied to join the new Japan Rugby League One competition,[3] signing a partnership agreement with the city of Toda.[4]

On 31 January 2024, it was announced the side would join the Japan Rugby League One competition, ahead of the 2024–25 season, competing in Division Three.[5] taking on the team name Yakult Levins Toda

Notable players

Current squad

The Yakult Levins squad for the 2026–27 season is:[6]

Yakult Levins squad

Props

  • Japan Daichi Kono
  • Japan Iori Nozaki
  • Japan Haruka Egihata
  • Japan Atsushi Furuya
  • Japan Meishi Watanabe
  • Japan Kiyoshi Ishii
  • Japan Koichi Endo
  • Japan Ryo Magoshi

Hookers

  • Japan Shunsuke Tani
  • Japan Ryūki Hayashi
  • Japan Fūma Uekata
  • Japan Kota Nagashima

Locks

  • Japan Masashi Ogawa
  • Japan Masaya Makino
  • Japan Yūto Usuda (cc)
  • Japan Gen Mori
  • Japan Hiroto Oka
  • Japan Kanta Hosokawa

Flankers

  • Japan Takumi Handa
  • Japan Takuma Suto
  • Japan Rikiya Ōishi
  • Japan Kosuke Urabe
  • Japan Kei Ōno
  • New Zealand Patrick McCurran

No8s

  • Japan Daisuke Yokoyama

Loose forwards

Scrum-halves

  • Japan Junpei Tada
  • Japan Ippei Ōshima
  • Japan Mitsuki Ito
  • Japan Eigi Fushimi

Fly-halves

  • Japan Mizuki Niura
  • Japan Sota Saito
  • Japan Naoki Izutani
  • Japan Yamato Tanigawa

Centres

  • Japan Takumi Furukawa
  • New Zealand Antonio Mikaele-Tu'u
  • Japan Atomu Shirai
  • Japan Ren Taninaka
  • Japan Ryūnosuke Aoyagi

Wings

  • Japan Masatoshi Doi (cc)
  • Japan Takuya Takahashi
  • Japan Shun Sawamura
  • Japan Kagechika Ōta
  • Japan Ryū Suzuki
  • Japan Shinnosuke Kabuki
  • Japan Daichi Saito

Fullbacks

  • Japan Kai Ōshiro
  • Japan Kenshin Takada
  • Japan Tsubasa Shinno

Utility backs

  • (c) denotes team captain.
  • Bold denotes internationally capped.

References

  1. ↑ "Yakult Levins Toda". Japan Rugby League One. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  2. ↑ "ヤクルトラグビー部のチーム名、ロゴが決まりました!!". Yakult Levins Toda (in Japanese). 1 August 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  3. ↑ "ジャパンラグビー リーグワン 新規参入チームに関する状況について". Japan Rugby League One (in Japanese). 3 October 2023. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  4. ↑ "戸田市との包括連携協定締結について". Yakult Levins Toda (in Japanese). 28 November 2023. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  5. ↑ "ジャパンラグビーリーグワン 新規参入申請の結果について". Yakult Levins Toda (in Japanese). 31 January 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
  6. ↑ "Yakult Levins: Members" (in Japanese). Yakult Levins. Retrieved 27 December 2024.