NPB announces 2026 Junior Tournament group pairings

The Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) has announced the group pairings for the inaugural NPB Junior Tournament KONAMI CUP 2026. The event is scheduled to take place over four days, from December 26 to December 29, at Jingu Stadium and Giants Town Stadium.

Sixteen teams will compete, divided into four groups of four. The top team from each group will advance to the final tournament on the last day. Notable matchups include Hanshin and Giants, who are both placed in Group D and will face each other on the second day of the tournament at Giants Town Stadium. Other groups feature teams such as SoftBank, Chunichi, Lotte, Hiroshima, DeNA, Rakuten, Yakult, and Seibu, alongside representatives from independent leagues like the Shikoku Island League plus.

Tournament regulations include pitch count restrictions to manage player health, limiting pitchers to a maximum of 70 pitches per day and prohibiting appearances in two games on the same day.