[EXILE CUP 2025 Report]Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club, which showed off its offensive power, and Fukui Maruoka RUCK A, who won the Girls League, will enter the finals! …EXILE CUP 2025 Tokai Tournament
EXILE CUP 2025 Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club won the Open League of Tokai Tournament (Photo) =Kaz Photography
“EXILE CUP” Fukui Maruoka RUCK A who won the Girls League of Tokai Tournament (Photo)=Kaz Photography
Of the four quarter-final matches, three were penalty shootouts. The “EXILE CUP 2025” Tokai Tournament Open League was won by Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club (Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture) after a battle between talented Hakuna. The Girls League, which was made up of only female players, was also a close match, with Fukui Maruoka RUCK A (Sakai City, Fukui Prefecture) getting tickets to the national tournament.
“EXILE CUP” is a futsal tournament aimed at students from fourth to sixth graders. LDH JAPAN Inc., which has many artists and celebrities, including EXILE, is holding the event under the theme of “Dreams For Children.” Qualifying tournaments will be held at 10 venues nationwide, and the winning teams from each tournament will be able to participate in the final tournament held at Asics Satoyama Stadium in Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture on September 14th, 2025. The Tokai Tournament was held on June 22, 2025 at the Gifu Memorial Center New Japan Gas Ball Game Meadow in Gifu City.
What’s particularly noteworthy about this year’s tournament is the establishment of a new “Girls League” consisting solely of female players, in three venues, in Kanto, Kansai and here in Tokai. The winning team is decided in two categories: the “Open League” that is made up of men and women, and the “Girls League” that is made up of only women. At the opening ceremony, Tachibana Kenchi (EXILE/EXILE THE SECOND), who serves as LDH JAPAN Social Innovation Officer, explained the reason for the establishment of the girls league, saying, “As the words of Dream For Children, the theme of the tournament, we would like to support the dreams of women’s soccer players as LDH JAPAN,” and encouraged them, “The winning team will be able to get tickets to the tournament to be held in Imabari City, so do your best to win.”
The guests rushed to cheer for the “EXILE CUP” Tokai tournament. From the rear row, Tsuruya Misaki, Tachibana Kenchi, Hori Natsuki, and Oda Yuba are from the left. Front row is a member of EXPG STUDIO NAGOYA (Photo)=Kaz Photography
Guest Hori Natsuki (FANTASTICS) also called out to the players, “I have had soccer experience like everyone else. Above all, please enjoy it!”, while Tsuruya Misaki (Girls²) said, “I have soccer experience too. Please show off the results of your daily practice and do your best.” Oda Yuba (Girls²) called on all participating players, saying, “I’m looking forward to the Girls League match. Please take care of your health and do your best.”
Prior to the match, a dance performance was held by the members of EXPG STUDIO NAGOYA. The venue was livened up with a gorgeous dance, and all the players danced the “Cracki! Dance,” developed by the Japan Football Association under the supervision of EXILE TETUYA. After warming up with a smile, the match finally begins.
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
42 teams participated in the open league, excluding the two teams that missed. The qualifying league is divided into 11 blocks of four teams, and 16 teams can advance to the final tournament, including the first place in each block and the five top-performing teams out of the second place. In the Girls League, the winner will be decided by a round-robin match of the eight participating teams.
Yamamuroyama Football Club, which participated from Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture, was the team that won the championship in its first appearance last year. Just like last year, the game was well-balanced on offense and defense, and the high football IQ was used to make good use of the space, and the team was able to progress well to the final tournament, winning all three matches in the qualifying league. Coach Yamamoto Takuya expressed his enthusiasm, saying, “This is a fun project hosted by LDH, so I want to enjoy it with all my might and aim for the national tournament.” Incidentally, the team had also entered the Girls League, so as soon as the Open League match was over, Yamamoto rushed to cheer on the girls team.
It was LAvitaFC (Matsusaka City, Mie Prefecture) that distinguished his accurate ball rotation and his aggressive coaching from goalkeeper Ouchi Soma. Ouchi commented, “I’ve never won a futsal tournament, so I definitely want to win.” According to the coach, goalkeeper Araki Ryui, who plays for Gamba Osaka, once won the EXILE CUP 2019 Tokai tournament as the first generation member of the team. Following on from his respected senior, LAvitaFC casually passed the qualifying league.
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
At Kanayama Football Club, which participated in the local Gero city of Gifu Prefecture, the performance of female players who played with male players was eye-catching. Tsumugi, a fifth-year student who scored the goal, replied cheerfully with a sweat on her forehead, “I was happy to score the goal. I definitely want to win the next match.” Nakajima Kanoa, also a fifth-year student, spoke about her goals for today’s match, saying, “Make sure to pass accurately and use her body well to prevent the opponent from taking the ball.” Unfortunately, Kanayama Football Club was unable to advance to the finals with 1 win and 2 losses, but I look forward to the tournament next year.
The 16 teams will advance to the final tournament after the qualifying league. Once a lottery is used to draw using the ball and the opponent is decided, the children’s gear will also be raised by one level. The quarterfinals were particularly hot, with three of the four matches being penalty shootouts and one game remaining, with a close 2-1 match. Nagashima Chubu Soccer Sports Youth Group (Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture) and Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club (Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture) won the fierce battle and advanced to the finals. Mie prefecture teams were competing for the championship.
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
The Nagashima Chubu Soccer Sports Youth Group said, “Once you’ve come this far, let’s win and laugh and go home,” while the Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club said, “We’ll definitely win,” and they both raised morale and got on the pitch. Although each of them created opportunities from the beginning in the final, both teams were tenaciously defending and prevented shots, making it impossible to score the opening goal that would move the game. Just before the end of the first half, when it seemed like the score would continue, Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club’s No. 10, Rento Oi, ran in and fired a direct, powerful shot, and swung the net with a spectacular swing, and managed to score the lead.
The Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club, which took the lead, strengthened its offensive in the second half. After adding two points in a row on the set pieces and counter, Oi-kun again dribbled the two and scored a mid-range shot and scored the fourth goal. After that, he continued to score two points by utilizing his personal skill and physical strength. Meanwhile, the Nagashima Chubu Soccer Sports Youth Group, which has been largely out of reach, will not give up. He scored one point from an interception and scored an additional goal just before the end, showing his determination, but the match was decided there. Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club won the championship 6-2.
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
It has been three months since he took office, manager Sawada Yasuhiro, who leads the Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club. “I was only able to bring out the best of these kids, so I feel that the strength of my previous manager was great. Since I’m going to a national tournament, I don’t just have to just go through experience, but I want to enjoy it with all my might with the goal of winning. I also hope to be able to have interactions with the teams from all over the country that will lead to the spread of futsal in the future,” he said.
Oi-kun, who scored two goals in the final, said, “I was determined to win, but at the beginning of the match I was really nervous,” and he looked relieved after winning. Maruyama Takuma, who scored the second and third goals, replied with a strong smile, “I was so happy that he scored a direct shot. I was so confident that I would win.”
Meanwhile, the Girls League was also a powerful game with skill and physical strength that is comparable to the Open League. The winner was Fukui Maruoka RUCK A, who participated from Sakai City, Fukui Prefecture. They turned the difficult situation where they needed to win 6 or more points in the final match with a goal rush, and they managed to get the Seino Women’s Reviale (Ogaki City, Gifu Prefecture), who tied with 6 wins and 1 draw, out by a goal difference.
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
Fukui Maruoka RUCK A is a strong team that has achieved good results, taking part in the Osaka tournament of EXILE CUP 2010 as a women’s only team, finishing in the runner-up position, and also finished in the top four in the 2013 Hokushinetsu tournament. Captain Tanaka Amika, who has won the title of the first Girls League champion at the Tokai Tournament, said, “We want to work together to win the final tournament and win,” and as a team together, aiming to become an even bigger star.
After the award ceremony, Tachibana Kenchi responded to a photo shoot with the children, and emphasized the significance of “EXILE CUP,” saying, “In soccer, you cannot win unless you develop strategies and communicate with each other by improving your team’s strength. I think that being able to understand these things intuitively from elementary school is an important factor when you enter society. For those of you who are currently desperately enjoying soccer, I hope that this tournament will serve as a catalyst for future growth through this tournament.”
Hori Natsuki said, “He would talk to Frank outside the pitch, making him look like a child, but when he got on the pitch he played seriously and felt like a professionalism,” and he learned the wonderfulness of working hard with all his might. Tsuruya Misaki, who also watched the games enthusiastically, including in the Girls League, said, “I was very moved by how she saw them running around on the pitch and how she was particular about winning.” Oda Yuba sent passionate cheers, saying, “Love is wonderful. I hope you will trust that your future will change if you continue to work hard, and that you will cherish what you love.”
(Photo)=Kaz Photography
“EXILE CUP” is now celebrating its 13th year with the desire to “create a place where children can make their dreams come true.” The Tokai Tournament had more heated games than usual. We look forward to seeing the winners of the Rapid Suzuka Futsal Club and Fukui Maruoka RUCK A perform well in the finals.
Interview and text = Saito Koichi Photo = Kaz Photography
