SCARZ has undoubtedly been Japan's best team since the Japan League 2022, when the players were still competing in the country's second tier. After the team was invited to join Japan's top flight, the red-and-black dynasty officially began.
Since the start of the 2023 season, SCARZ has only lost five out of 30 matches played in the Japan League. If that wasn't enough, all of the team's defeats in Japan's top flight division during that period were in BO1 group stage games.
To go a step further, an even more surprising stat to display SCARZ's regional consistency comes out if we also include the Japan League 2022: the red-and-black roster has won every BO3 and BO5 played in the Japan League since June 2022, a record that currently includes 16 back-to-back BO3 and BO5 wins.
"Compared to other Japanese teams, I believe that our foundation is solid, with communication and teamwork as our core strengths. This is where I see a difference from other teams," Riku "Rec" Katou explained in a written interview with SiegeGG.
"Additionally, Japanese teams often have a relationship where they can’t openly point out each other’s flaws, which I think also contributes to the gap," he added.
Logically, the team's regional consistency for the last two years has made SCARZ become Japan's main force in Rainbow Six Siege. In May 2023, SCARZ became Japan's first team to qualify for a Major quarterfinals. Eventually, they got knocked out of the competition by the future Six Invitational 2024 grand finalists FaZe Clan.
Despite a promising international debut, while maintaining the team's dominion over the Japan League, the roster would constantly fall apart when playing abroad. Since the BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen, the team has lost 15 of 18 international matches played. One of those three victories was against their fellows CAG Osaka in Montreal.
"The reason we haven’t been winning is simply due to noticeable communication mistakes. There’s no other reason; our strategies and individual skills are on point, and we are aware of the meta. So, the main issue is communication," revealed Rec.
While the results haven't been there outside the players' home country, the team has only made one roster change in the last two years as Nina "Nina" Abe was signed to replace Yuusuke "Pyon" Sashiyama, who was benched.
After a fantastic 2023 season in individual terms, the former NORTHEPTION player joined SCARZ to improve the team's overall fragging potential. The 20-year-old had proven himself internationally at the BLAST R6 Major Copenhagen, where he averaged a SiegeGG rating of 1.26 and a KPR of 1.03.
While Nina struggled at the BLAST R6 Major Manchester with an overall SiegeGG rating of 0.76, the Japanese player was the team's highest-rated player in Montreal with a SiegeGG rating of 1.08. Meanwhile, in the Japan League 2024, Nina averaged a SiegeGG rating of 1.36 and a K-D of 251-142 (+109) in 23 maps played.
"In the past, Niana was a selfish, solo player, but through our coaching, he has become an excellent team player and one of the best Japanese players. Thanks to that, we’re able to execute various playstyles," Rec explained.
Although Nina is shining as a SCARZ player due to his individual skills and progression as a team player, the now-benched Pyon is helping the team from outside the server.
"Now, he’s supporting the team from behind the scenes, guiding us and pointing out our flaws, almost like a second coach. His strengths are his captaincy and his ability to grow the team's mentality through coaching," Rec said about his teammate Tyon.
SCARZ's Six Invitational 2025 run will kick off on February 3 as the Japanese roster has been drawn in Group D which they will share with Virtus.pro, Spacestation Gaming, Oxygen Esports, and the BLAST R6 Major Montreal champions w7m esports.
On paper, SCARZ's group has three clear favorites in the Bulls, the Bears, and the Astronauts. At the end of the day, the Japanese's most important match will probably be the one against Oxygen Esports, who qualified for the event after winning the Six Invitational 2025 North America Finals.
"Unlike in the Major, since it’s a BO3 format, we have to come up with almost all of our strategies. This means we need to improve the quantity, quality, and adaptability of our strategies, so we’re focusing heavily on that," Rec said about the team's preparation ahead of the Six Invitational 2025.
Boston will be important not just for SCARZ fans but also for the Japanese community as this will be the first Six Invitational edition with two Japanese teams. On January 5, CAG Osaka qualified for the tournament after winning the Six Invitational 2025 APAC Finals and have been drawn in Group B, also known as the group of death.
"As we represent Japan, I don’t want to bring shame to that role, and I’m truly grateful that we were able to compete this year. This time, I’m determined to win and make it through the group stage," concluded Rec.
If you want to stay up-to-date with all the news about Rainbow Six Siege and the Six Invitational 2025, don't forget to bookmark the site and follow us through our social media pages.