"Basketball IQ" Boosting Basketball Tournament "NEXTELLA" Launched – Entering the Sports Business in Collaboration with Tatsuta Electric Wire

GOB Corporation (Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; CEO: Yasuhito Takaoka, hereinafter "GOB"), which invests in worldviews, has partnered with Tatsuta Electric Wire Co., Ltd. (Head office: Higashiosaka City, Osaka; President and Executive Officer: Shohei Morimoto, hereinafter "Tatsuta Electric Wire") to launch "NEXTELLA," a basketball tournament for junior high school students, starting in April 2026. This tournament is a novel basketball event that fosters "Basketball IQ" through unique rule settings and tournament operations. It will kick off in the Kansai area, with the aim of holding a national tournament within fiscal year 2026. Background to the Launch of the New Basketball Tournament "NEXTELLA" Currently, in the field of youth sports development, there is a growing trend to entrust the operation of school club activities, which were previously handled by schools, to local private clubs. The basketball world is no exception, and private-led club teams are rapidly increasing. It is true that this has expanded the choices for children to participate in sports. However, a new challenge has also emerged: in order for private clubs to make their businesses viable, coaching tends to be biased towards "individual skills that are popular with children." Furthermore, since most existing tournaments are "knockout format," teams that are eliminated early have little opportunity to gain practical experience. There is a structural problem where developing teams, which should gain the most practical experience, are not given opportunities for growth. As a result, the judgment and cooperation (Basketball IQ) inherent in playing basketball as a team are not fostered, and as the competitive level increases, it becomes difficult to win games. This, in turn, can diminish the fundamental enjoyment of the sport and lead to a decline in the future population of players. GOB is tackling this project to fundamentally transform this industry structure. By placing "tournaments (practical experience)" at the center of development, it aims to correct the imbalance in practical experience and provide rich growth opportunities for all children by "re-allocating growth opportunities." Uniqueness of "NEXTELLA" NEXTELLA is a basketball tournament for junior high school students belonging to club teams. It not only competes for victory but also fosters children's "Basketball IQ" through unique tournament rules. Viewing the game itself as the greatest opportunity for growth, a cycle is established where data and evaluations obtained from games are fed back into daily practice. This enables players to not only "score points themselves" but also to develop the ability to think, judge, and cooperate independently to "win as a team." Introduction of "Assist Bonus" In a standard 5-on-5 game environment, a "+1 point" bonus is awarded for points scored from a pass (assist) to a teammate. This mechanism naturally encourages players to think "where their teammates want the pass" rather than just breaking through with individual skills. Point System to Visualize IQ Beyond mere wins and losses (points), a point system that uses team statistics as evaluation indicators is introduced. A unique ranking system is adopted that converts factors such as high assist rates, low turnover (mistakes), and "scoring share rate" that does not rely on a few aces, into points and reflects them in the rankings. The tournament will start with the launch in the Hyogo and Osaka areas, expanding the scale of the tournament and developing it mainly in the Kansai region. In the future, the aim is to hold a national tournament where winners of cup competitions from various regions will gather. For more details and background on this project, please refer to this interview article (https://note.com/gob_note_pro/n/na947682c4142). Message on the Project Launch Yasuhito Takaoka (CEO, GOB) Sports expand human potential. And within that, what kind of actions emerge largely depends on what values are prioritized. This structure is common not only in sports but also in education and society. That is why we are trying to implement a mechanism where children think for themselves, make choices, and create value with others, starting from experiences that naturally spread that value. Sports consist of three parties: "playing, watching, and supporting." Therefore, to create fundamental change, the relationships between these three must be redesigned simultaneously. NEXTELLA questions the "way of seeing sports" that players, coaches, and guardians have taken for granted. By changing the perspective, we believe it will unravel biases and lead to a redefinition of how people grow. Ryosuke Karatsu (Director, GOB / Project Planner, NEXTELLA Business) NEXTELLA is not merely a tournament operation business. We consider it a challenge to redesign the growth opportunities themselves in youth basketball. Tournament-centric game structures and individual skills.