Top League Champions Cup

right|thumb|263px|[[Yoshiaki Fujimori presents the 2016 Lixil Cup trophy to Panasonic captain Shota Horie.]]

The Top League Championship is Japan's highest-level knockout tournament for rugby union clubs. Held annually, the leading teams from the Top League regular season qualify for the playoffs to decide the Cup title. From 2018 onward, the All-Japan Rugby Football Championship has doubled as the Top League Championship Cup. Previously, teams competed for the Lixil Cup, from 2014 to 2016,

| 1 Red ||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" align=left| Suntory Sungoliath

| 55 || 12|| 0 || 1 || 450 || 180 || +270 || 7 || 0

| 49–7||12–8

| 2 White ||align=left| Yamaha Júbilo

| 46 || 9|| 0 || 4 || 440 || 232 || +208 || 8 || 2

| 7–49||—

| 2 Red ||align=left| Toyota Verblitz

| 46 || 10|| 0 || 3 || 394 || 288 || +106 || 4 || 2

| 11–17||—

| style="height:1px" |

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2017

|rowspan=4|21 January to 29 January

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB-->

| 1 ||align=left bgcolor="#d0ffd0" | Suntory Sungoliath

| 71 || 15|| 0 || 0 || 563 || 184 || +379 || 11 || 0

| 52–29||15–10

|rowspan=4|

| 2 ||align=left| Yamaha Júbilo

| 67 || 14|| 0|| 1 || 580 || 208 || +372 || 11 || 0

| 24–36||—

| 3 ||align=left| Panasonic Wild Knights

| 62 || 13|| 0 || 2 || 579 || 268 || +311 || 9 || 1

| 36–24||10–15

| 4 ||align=left| Kobelco Steelers

|48 || 10|| 0 || 5 || 473 || 328 || +145 || 7 || 1

| —||—

128px|thumb|Logo 2014–2016

Lixil Cup and Top League title: 2014 to 2016

From the 2013–14 season, the Top League tournament was contested by sixteen teams. The top four teams from the league competition (or the top eight in 2016) advanced to the play-offs to compete for the Lixil Trophy and Top League Championship.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ Lixil Trophy and Top League Championship play-offs (2014–2016)

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"| Year

!rowspan=2 style="padding:2px;"|

!rowspan=2|

!rowspan=2 style="width:13em;"|Team

!colspan=10|Top League regular season

!colspan=3|Cup play-off results

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"|

!style="width:2em"|

!style="width:3.8em"|

!scope="row" rowspan=8|2016

|rowspan=8|9 January to 24 January

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB || LB || SP -->

|1A||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"|Panasonic Wild Knights

| 31 || 6 || 1 || 0 || 290 || 137 || 153 || 5 || 0 || –

| 48–6 || 42–10 || 27–26

|rowspan=8|

|1B ||style="text-align:left;"| Yamaha Jubilo

| 29|| 6 || 0 || 1 || 226 || 140 || 86 || 5 || 0 || –

| 27–6 || 22–34 || —

|2A ||style="text-align:left;"| Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 26 || 5 || 1 || 1 || 253 || 100 || 153 || 4 || 0 || –

| 29–17 || 34–22 || 26–27

|2B ||style="text-align:left;"| Kobelco Steelers

| 27 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 235 || 137 || 98 || 5 || 2 || –

| 42–10 || 10–42 || —

|3A ||style="text-align:left;"| Kintetsu Liners

| 23 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 189 || 193 || -4 || 3 || 0 || –

| 10–42 || — || —

|3B ||style="text-align:left;"| Toyota Verblitz

| 26 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 203 || 125 || 78 || 5 || 1 || –

| 17–29 || — || —

|4A ||style="text-align:left;"| NTT Com Shining Arcs

| 22 || 4 || 0 || 3 || 190 || 142 || 48 || 4 || 2 || –

| 6–27 || — || —

|4B ||style="text-align:left;"| Canon Eagles

| 25 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 196 || 142 || 54 || 4 || 1 || –

| 6-48 || — || —

| style="height:2px" |

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2015

|rowspan=4|24 January to 1 February

<!-- Team

| Pts || W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB|| SP-->

| 1 ||align=left |Kobelco Steelers

| 29 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 242 || 113 || +129 || 4 || 1 || 4

| — || 12–41 ||—

|rowspan=4|

| 2 ||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" align=left| Panasonic Wild Knights

| 29 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 218 || 131 || +87 || 5 || 0 || 4

| — || 50–15 ||30–12

| 3 ||align=left| Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 28 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 213 || 147 || +66 || 4 || 1 || 3

| — || 15–50 ||—

| 4 ||align=left| Yamaha Júbilo

| 27 || 5 || 0 || 2 || 165 || 134 || +31 || 4 || 1 || 2

| — || 41–12 ||12–30

| style="height:2px" |

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2014

|rowspan=4|1 February to 9 February

<!-- Team

| Pts || W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB|| SP-->

| 1 ||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"| Panasonic Wild Knights

| 36 || 7 || 0 || 0 || 224 || 105 || 119 || 4 || 0 || 4

| — ||55–15||45–22

|rowspan=4|

| 2 ||align=left| Suntory Sungoliath

| 32 || 6 || 0 || 1 || 261 || 169 || 92 || 4 || 0 || 4

| — ||27–19||22–45

| 3 ||align=left| Kobelco Steelers

| 24 || 4 || 0 || 3 || 223 || 194 || 29 || 5 || 1 || 2

| — || 19–27||—

| 4 ||align=left| Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 23 || 4 || 0 || 3 || 181 || 151 || 30 || 2 || 3 || 2

| — ||15–55||—

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center; line-height:100%; font-size:100%; width:75%;"

! colspan="4" style="border:0px" |Competition rules

| colspan="4" | Points breakdown: * 4 points for a win * 2 points for a draw * 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less * 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match * 4, 3, 2, or 1 starting points in the group stage for 1st through 4th respectively in the pool stage (seasons 2014–15 and 2015–16 only)

Classification: Teams standings are calculated as follows: * Log points * Difference between points for and against * Total number of points for * Number of matches won * Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams

Play-offs and Top League title: 2010 to 2013

Microsoft Cup and Top League title: 2007 to 2009

For the 2006–07 season the tournament was expanded to fourteen teams and the Top League and Microsoft Cup competitions were combined. Only the top four teams on the regular season table progressed to title play-offs and the winner of the knockout competition was awarded both the Microsoft Cup and the Top League title.

Video referee (TMO) decisions were introduced for the 2009 Cup series. The naming rights partnership with Microsoft for the knockout competition ended after the 2009 Cup final.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ Top League Championship play-off tournament (2007–2013)

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"| Year

!rowspan=2 style="padding:2px;"|

!rowspan=2|

!rowspan=2 style="width:13em;"|Team

!colspan=9|Top League regular season

!colspan=2|Play-off results

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"|

!style="width:2em"|

!style="width:3.8em"|

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2009

|rowspan=4|17 February to 24 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB-->

|1||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"| Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 59 ||12||0||1||563||211||+352||11||0

|26–7||17–6

|rowspan=4|

|2||style="text-align:left;"| Sanyo Wild Knights

| 58 ||12||0||1||584||197||+387||10||0

|32–22||6–17

|3||style="text-align:left;"| Suntory Sungoliath

| 51 ||10||0||3||482||298||+184||10||1

|22–32||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"| Kobelco Steelers

| 43 ||9||0||4||358||300||+58||5||2

|6–27||—

| colspan="4" style="height: 2px;" |

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2008

|rowspan=4|17 February to 24 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB-->

|1||style="text-align:left;"| Sanyo Wild Knights

| 63 ||13||0||0||593||170||+423||11||0

|25–21||10–14

|rowspan=4|

|2||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"| Suntory Sungoliath

| 53 ||10||1||2||453||229||+224||10||1

|33–10||14–10

|3||style="text-align:left;"| Toyota Verblitz

| 50 ||9||1||3||452||269||+183||9||3

|10–33||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"| Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 47 ||10||1||2||398||263||+135||5||2

|21–25||—

| colspan="4" style="height: 2px;" |

!scope="row" rowspan=4|2007

|rowspan=4|28 January to 4 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB|| LB-->

|1||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"|Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 60 || 12|| 0 || 1 || 502 || 234 || 268 || 11 || 1

|38–35||14–13

|rowspan=4|

|2||style="text-align:left;"|Suntory Sungoliath

| 56 || 11|| 0 || 2 || 545 || 161 || 384 || 10 || 2

|40–39||13–14

|3||style="text-align:left;"|Yamaha Jubilo

| 48 || 10|| 1 || 2 || 379 || 306 || 73 || 5 || 1

|39–40||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"|Toyota Verblitz

| 47 || 9 || 0 || 4 || 448 || 267 || 181 || 8 || 3

|35–38||—

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center; line-height:100%; font-size:100%; width:60%;"

! colspan="4" style="border:0px" |Competition rules

Top League, separate Microsoft Cup: 2004 to 2006

For the first three seasons the competition format was a single round-robin tournament contested by twelve teams, with the team finishing top of the table winning the Top League title. The Microsoft Cup was a separate knockout competition for the top eight teams in the league.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ Microsoft Cup play-off tournament (2004–2006)

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"| Year

!rowspan=2 style="padding:2px;"|

!rowspan=2|

!rowspan=2|Team

!colspan=9|Top League regular season

!colspan=3|Play-off results

!rowspan=2 style="padding:1px;"|

!style="width:2em"|

!style="width:3.8em"|

!scope="row" rowspan=8|2006

|rowspan=8|22 January to 5 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB || LB-->

|1||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"|Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 46 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 406 || 193 || 213 || 10 || 0

|38–7||23–10||33–18

|rowspan=8|

|2||style="text-align:left;"|Sanyo Wild Knights

| 42 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 416 || 276 || 140 || 6 || 0

|24–40||—||—

|3||style="text-align:left;"|NEC Green Rockets

| 41 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 270 || 136 || 134 || 4 || 1

|17–12||10–23||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"|Toyota Verblitz

| 37 || 7 || 0 || 4 || 431 || 263 || 168 || 6 || 3

|12–17||—||—

|5||style="text-align:left;"|Kobelco Steelers

| 33 || 7 || 0 || 4 || 284 || 225 || 59 || 4 || 1

|7–38||—||—

|6||style="text-align:left;"|Suntory Sungoliath

| 32 || 6 || 0 || 5 || 308 || 241 || 67 || 6 || 2

|35–17||44–25||18–33

|7||style="text-align:left;"|Yamaha Jubilo

| 28 || 5 || 0 || 6 || 328 || 211 || 117 || 4 || 4

|17–35||—||—

|8||style="text-align:left;"|Kubota Spears

| 23 || 4 || 1 || 6 || 324 || 297 || 27 || 5 || 0

|40–24||25–44||—

| style="height:1px" |

!scope="row" rowspan=8|2005

|rowspan=8|8 February to 28 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB || LB-->

|1||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"|

| 50 || 10|| 0 || 1 || 463 || 166 || 297 || 9 || 1

|33–13||41–0||20–6

|rowspan=8|

|2||style="text-align:left;"|Yamaha Jubilo

| 45 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 380 || 218 || 162 || 8 || 1

|38–33||||6–20

|3||style="text-align:left;"|NEC Green Rockets

| 44 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 407 || 253 || 154 || 7 || 1

|16–51||—||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"|Toyota Verblitz

| 43 || 8 || 0 || 3 || 427 || 224 || 203 || 9 || 2

|42–21||33–33||—

|5||style="text-align:left;"|Kobelco Steelers

| 34 || 6 || 0 || 5 || 326 || 356 || -30 || 8 || 2

|51–16||0–41||—

|6||style="text-align:left;"|Kubota Spears

| 27 || 5 || 0 || 6 || 277 || 334 || -57 || 6 || 1

|33–38||—||—

|7||style="text-align:left;"|Sanyo Wild Knights

| 24 || 4 || 0 || 7 || 346 || 296 || 50 || 4 || 4

|21–41||—||—

|8||style="text-align:left;"|Suntory Sungoliath

| 24 || 4 || 0 || 7 || 307 || 282 || 25 || 4 || 4

|13–33||—||—

| style="height:1px" |

!scope="row" rowspan=8|2004

|rowspan=8|8 February to 22 February

<!-- Team

| Pts|| W || D || L || PF || PA || PD || TB || LB-->

|1||style="text-align:left;"|Kobelco Steelers

| 47 || 9 || 0 || 2 || 439 || 286 || 153 || 11 || 0

|35–27||10–34||—

|rowspan=8|

|2||style="text-align:left;"|Toshiba Brave Lupus

| 44 || 8 || 1 || 2 || 503 || 283 || 220 || 9 || 1

|39–10||36–34||19–24

|3||style="text-align:left;"|Yamaha Jubilo

| 42 || 8 || 2 || 1 || 334 || 223 || 111 || 6 || 0

|10–39||—||—

|4||style="text-align:left;"|Suntory Sungoliath

| 42 || 8 || 0 || 3 || 408 || 265 || 143 || 9 || 1

|5–32||—||—

|5||style="text-align:left;"|

| 32 || 6 || 0 || 5 || 349 || 285 || 64 || 7 || 1

|27–35||—||—

|6||bgcolor="#d0ffd0" style="text-align:left;"|NEC Green Rockets

| 30 || 5 || 2 || 4 || 411 || 274 || 137 || 6 || 0

|32–5||34–10||24–19

|7||style="text-align:left;"|Sanyo Wild Knights

| 24 || 4 || 1 || 6 || 319 || 331 || -12 || 6 || 0

|39–32||34–36||—

|8||style="text-align:left;"|Kubota Spears

| 22 || 4 || 0 || 9 || 262 || 362 || -100 || 4 || 2

|32–39||—||—

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="text-align:center; line-height:100%; font-size:100%; width:60%;"

! colspan="4" style="border:0px" |Competition rules

Notes:

Toshiba Brave Lupus won the Top League and Microsoft Cup double.

</references>

External links

JRFU Official Site (in English)
Top League Official Site (in Japanese)