Alvark Tokyo, Nagasaki Velca, and Ryukyu Golden Kings Qualify for EASL 2026-27 Season

The East Asia Super League (EASL) is pleased to announce that Alvark Tokyo, Nagasaki Velca, and the Ryukyu Golden Kings have secured their spots for the EASL 2026-27 season. Nagasaki Velca and the Ryukyu Golden Kings qualified by reaching the "Resona Group B.LEAGUE FINALS 2025-26." Alvark Tokyo qualified by winning the 101st Emperor's Cup All-Japan Basketball Championship held in January 2026.

In all three past seasons since the introduction of the home-and-away system, the two B.LEAGUE finalist clubs have earned spots in the following EASL season. Furthermore, starting from the 2025-26 season, a new system has been introduced where the Emperor's Cup winning club (or the runner-up if the winner also reaches the B.LEAGUE FINALS) is also granted a spot. Notably, a B.LEAGUE club has won the championship in all three past EASL seasons.

Nagasaki Velca has qualified for the EASL 2026-27 season, marking their debut in Asia's premier club league.

Nagasaki achieved their first-ever West District championship in the "Resona Group B.LEAGUE 2025-26 SEASON." During the regular season, they led the league in average points per game (91.2), assists (23.2), steals (9.5), and 3-point percentage (37.3%).

In the "Resona Group B.LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP 2025-26," they defeated Alvark Tokyo in the quarterfinals and the Chiba Jets in the semifinals to reach their first-ever "Resona Group B.LEAGUE FINALS 2025-26." Since the club's founding in 2020, they have shown a historic run, winning the B3 League in their first year of entry, finishing as runner-up in the B2 League the following season, and achieving promotion to the B1 League in the shortest possible time since their establishment.

The Ryukyu Golden Kings have qualified for the EASL for the fourth consecutive year by reaching the B.LEAGUE FINALS for the fifth consecutive year. Ryukyu is the only club to have participated in all four EASL seasons and is also the winningest club in EASL history with a total of 14 wins.

In the EASL 2025-26 season, they defeated Alvark Tokyo in the third-place game, finishing the season in third place, their best result in club history. In the B.LEAGUE, they posted a record of 42 wins and 18 losses, defeating the SeaHorses Mikawa and the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins to advance to the finals.

Alvark Tokyo secured their spot in the EASL for the second consecutive year by defeating the SeaHorses Mikawa on January 12, 2026, to win the 101st Emperor's Cup All-Japan Basketball Championship.

A similar qualification rule was applied in the 2025-26 season, where the 100th Emperor's Cup winner, the Ryukyu Golden Kings, also met the qualification criteria for the "Resona Group B.LEAGUE FINALS 2024-25," so the Emperor's Cup spot was passed down to the runner-up, Alvark Tokyo.

In their EASL debut last season, Alvark Tokyo finished the group stage with a 5-1 record, securing the top seed in the "EASL FINALS MACAU 2026," the largest in league history. Although they lost to the Ryukyu Golden Kings in the third-place game and finished fourth, they showed a remarkable run for their first EASL appearance.

In addition to the three clubs above, other clubs that have qualified for the EASL 2026-27 season are the Zag Broncos from The League (Mongolia), Busan KCC Egis and Goyang Sono Skygunners from the KBL (South Korea), and the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots from the P.LEAGUE+ (Chinese Taipei). Participating clubs from other national and regional leagues will be determined in the future.

The "Resona Group B.LEAGUE FINALS 2025-26" will feature Nagasaki Velca against the Ryukyu Golden Kings in a best-of-three series, starting on Saturday, May 23.

◾️About the East Asia Super League (EASL) The East Asia Super League (EASL) is an international professional basketball league where top clubs from the East Asian region compete. EASL's vision is to become "one of the world's top professional basketball leagues" and to "contribute to the development of basketball throughout the East Asian region." The league operates under a 10-year partnership agreement with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and is sanctioned by FIBA Asia. It also involves clubs from various national and regional leagues.