The Coca-Cola Red Sparks ( ja, コカ・コーラレッドスパークス) was a Japanese company-owned rugby union team based in
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since anc ...
city, Kyūshū.
The team was initially founded as Kitakyushu Coca-Cola and then changed its name to Coca-Cola West Japan.
The team won promotion to the expanded
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
of 14 teams at the end of the 2005–06 season, and was renamed Coca-Cola West Red Sparks. The club motto is "Have Guts Have Glory" and their slogan for 2006 season: "Always Attack & Aggressive". In the fourth Top League (2006–07) the team came 10th, with four wins, nine losses and 21 points. It therefore did not need to take part in any play-offs. Sanix, the local rivals, came ninth.
The team was promoted from the Kyūshū league to the
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
in 2013, and was renamed the Coca-Cola Red Sparks for the 2013–14 season. Following six seasons in the top flight, they were relegated back to the Top Kyūshū League after the 2018–19 season.
On 30 April 2021, it was announced that the Red Sparks would disband as a rugby club at the conclusion of the 2021 Top Challenge League Season. It had previously agreed to join the new 25-team domestic competition in Japan before withdrawal.
Final squad
The Coca-Cola Red Sparks squad for the 2021 season was:
Mark Ranby
Richard Mark Ranby (born 1 June 1977) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. A midfield back, Ranby represented Manawatu, the Central Vikings and Waikato at a provincial level, and the Hurricanes and the Chiefs in Super Rugby. He played ...