Fulfilling Work-Style Reforms for Teachers While Ensuring a Safe, High-Quality Sports Environment for Children Through Dedicated Full-Time On-Site Operations
TOKYO, Aug. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — LEIFRAS Co., Ltd. (Nasdaq: LFS) (the “Company” or “Leifras”), a sports and social business company dedicated to youth sports and community engagement and Japan’s leading operator of children’s sports schools and school club activity support businesses, today announced that it has renewed its contract with the Board of Education of Tobishima Village, Ama District, Aichi Prefecture, for the management and operations of weekend school club activities (the “Contract”). Under the Contract, Leifras will continue to provide comprehensive operational management for weekend sports club activities at Tobishima Gakuen for the school year 2026, marking the third consecutive year of contract retention following its initial appointment in school year 2024 and renewal in school year 2025. The renewal for the school year 2026 underscores the Company’s ability to secure recurring municipal contracts and its competitive position in the municipal club activity outsourcing market during Japan’s national “Reform Execution Period” for school club activities.
Background of the Third Consecutive Year of Contract Retention: A JPY500 Billion Market
Under national policy mandates, Japan has officially entered the “Reform Execution Period,” under which weekend school club activities will be fully transitioned to regional and private operators. With approximately 9,800 junior high schools* and 128,000 club activities nationwide, Leifras estimates the market size to be approximately JPY500 billion**. To address teacher workload challenges while enhancing the quality and specialization of sports instruction, Tobishima Village has proactively established a sustainable operational model leveraging private sector expertise. Having successfully managed operations over the previous two school years while maintaining strict safety standards, Leifras’ operational excellence and proprietary safety framework are recognized by school administrators and parents, culminating in this third consecutive contract award.
*e-Stat Government Statistic Portal Site/Number of Schools in 2025. |
Comprehensive Operations Focused on Safety and Student Development in Tobishima Village
Under the Contract, Leifras will continue to handle comprehensive management and coaching across five weekend sports club disciplines at Tobishima Gakuen: Soccer, Girls’ Basketball, Soft Tennis, Boys’ Table Tennis, and Girls’ Table Tennis.
- Instruction by Full-Time Company Staff to Build Non-Cognitive Skills: All five sports disciplines is coached directly by Leifras’ full-time employees. Grounded in the teaching principle “acknowledge, praise, encourage, and motivate,” instruction are designed to go beyond physical technicalities to cultivate vital non-cognitive skills, including self-esteem and social adaptability.
- Dedicated General Managers for Strict Safety Compliance: On every activity day, a Leifras General Manager is stationed on campus to conduct facility checks, monitor heatstroke risk, and manage emergency responses. This operational model is designed to reduce teachers’ weekend club responsibilities while maintaining a safety-first environment.
Why Leifras is Chosen: Five Advantages
- Industry-leading Contract Track Record: Holds the leading industry position with 381 contracted schools and 2,120 supported clubs, ranking first in Japan by the number of children’s sports schools and the number of supported school club activities as of December 31, 2025 according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
- Robust National Government Network: As a member of the Nippon Sport Policy Commission and an official partner of the Japan Sports Association, Leifras collaborates closely with key organizations representing Japan’s sports industry and private education sector to co-promote national policies.
- Extensive Local Government Network: The Company has partnered directly with 33 prefectures and 13 Tokyo special wards, accumulating substantial operational know-how tailored to region-specific educational needs.
- Japan’s Only Large-Scale Coaching Platform: Operating across 47 prefectures, Leifras currently employs 1,055 full-time staff and 3,544 part-time employees. The Company has also established stable, exclusive recruitment pipelines through comprehensive alliances with educational institutions.
- Safety-First Operational System: Full-time employees manage and oversee club activity instructors, ensuring thorough adherence to proprietary training programs and regular field audits. Since launching the school club support business in 2013, the Company has maintained a record of zero major accidents or severe injuries.
Future Outlook
Leifras plans to continue to deepen its partnerships with local governments across Japan, contributing to the resolution of critical social issues, such as work-style reforms for teachers, while supporting youth development.
About LEIFRAS Co., Ltd.
Headquartered in Tokyo, Leifras is a sports and social business company dedicated to youth sports and community engagement. The Company primarily provides services related to the organization and operations of sports schools and sports events for children. As of December 31, 2025, Leifras was recognized as one of Japan’s largest operators of children’s sports schools in terms of both membership and facilities by Tokyo Shoko Research. The Company’s approach to sports education emphasizes the development of non-cognitive skills, following the teaching principle “acknowledge, praise, encourage, and motivate.” The holistic approach that integrates physical and mental development sets Leifras apart in the industry. Building upon deep experience and know-how in sports education, Leifras also operates a robust social business sector, dispatching sports coaches to meet various community needs with the aim to promote physical health, social inclusion, and community well-being across different demographics.
For more information, please visit the Company’s website: https://ir.leifras.co.jp/.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this announcement are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on the Company’s current expectations and projections about future events that the Company believes may affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, and financial needs. Investors can find many (but not all) of these statements by the use of words such as “approximates,” “believes,” “hopes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “projects,” “intends,” “plans,” “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “may,” or other similar expressions in this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances, or changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. These statements are subject to uncertainties and risks, including, but not limited to, the uncertainties related to market conditions, and other factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of the annual report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results and encourages investors to review other factors that may affect its future results in the annual report and other filings with the SEC. Additional factors are discussed in the Company’s filings with the SEC, which are available for review at www.sec.gov.
For more information, please contact:
LEIFRAS Co., Ltd.
Investor Relations Department
Email: IR@leifras.co.jp
Ascent Investor Relations LLC
Tina Xiao
Phone: +1-646-932-7242
Email: investors@ascent-ir.com
