In Japan, a championship was held for the first time to decide the club team champion. Iwasaki Club became the first champion after beating Chollima rugby football club. Since Keio University started playing rugby, Japanese rugby has developed based on schools, including universities and high schools. This development process is fundamentally different from rugby in other nations that developed based on club teams serving as the organizational foundation.
In Japan, club teams are still like sandlot baseball teams where those individuals without having any ground or club house get together to play rugby for some time. Actually, this is the reality. However, club teams play an important role of providing a backbone to rugby.
After 2003, some club teams reach the Japan Rugby Championship and even became the champion. Tamariva Club entered the Japan Rugby Championship for six consecutive years until 2008, performing quite well in matches worth watching with Waseda and Kanto Gakuin.