top 50 sports manga of all time
1. JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Steel Ball Run
Originally presented as an unrelated story, this series was later officially declared a part of the JoJo storyline. The series stars Gyro Zeppeli, who uses a set of steel balls that spin incredibly fast, and Johnny Joestar (Jonathan Joestar), a former hot-shot jockey who was crippled by an ambusher and lost his fame and fortune. They race, along with others, in a mad-dash across America for 50 million dollars, reminiscent of The Cannonball Run.
(Source: Wikipedia)
2. Slam Dunk
Hanamichi Sakuragi's got no game with girls--none at all! It doesn't help that he's known for throwing down at a moment's notice and always coming out on top. A hopeless bruiser, he's been rejected by 50 girls in a row! All that changes when he meets the girl of his dreams, Haruko, and she's actually not afraid of him! When she introduces him to the game of basketball, his life is changed forever...
(Source: Viz Media)
3. Haikyu!!
A chance event triggered Shouyou Hinata's love for volleyball. His club had no members, but somehow persevered and finally made it into its very first and final regular match of middle school, where it was steamrolled by Tobio Kageyama, a superstar player known as "King of the Court." Vowing revenge, Hinata applied to the Karasuno High School volleyball club...only to come face-to-face with his hated rival, Kageyama! A tale of hot-blooded youth and volleyball from the pen of Haruichi Furudate!!
(Source: Shonen Jump)
Notes:
- Winner of the 61st Shogakukan Manga Award in the Shounen Category in 2017.
- Chapter count includes 2 extra chapters.
4. Real
A motorcycle accident, bone cancer, a speeding truck crashing into a boy on a stolen bicycle--tragic life-changing events turn the worlds of three young men upside down. These three very different personalities have only one thing in common--their passion for basketball.
(Source: Viz Media)
Note: Won an Excellence Prize for manga at the 2001 Japan Media Arts Festival.
5. Ashita no Joe: Fighting for Tomorrow
Joe Yabuki is a troubled young man who runs away from an orphanage. Wandering through the Tokyo slums, he meets former boxing trainer Danpei. Joe is later arrested and goes to a temporary jail where he fights Nishi, his future best friend, and leader of a group of hooligans. He and Nishi then go to a juvenile prison miles away from Tokyo. There Joe meets Rikiishi, a former boxing prodigy, and a rivalry develops between them. They face each other in a match in which Rikiishi dominates Joe until the latter hits him with a cross-counter, resulting in both being knocked out. This inspires the other prison inmates to take up boxing. Joe and Rikiishi vow to fight again.
(Source: Wikipedia)
6. Grand Blue Dreaming
After moving out on his own to a seaside town, Iori Kitahara makes a college debut he never anticipated. A new chapter of his life unfolds, full of diving with beautiful girls and shenanigans with a gaggle of lovable bastards! Idiot-expert Kenji Inoue and au naturel authority Kimitake Yoshioka bring you a glorious college tale filled with booze-fueled antics!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
7. Kokou no Hito
On his first day of transferring to a new high school, a loner named Mori Buntarou, is cajoled by a classmate into climbing the school building. Despite knowing that one misstep could send him spiraling to his death, he moves forward, and upon finally reaching the top, Mori experiences a sense of fulfillment. That feeling, which seems to be telling him, "You're alive!" gives birth to an adrenaline for rock-climbing.
8. Hajime no Ippo: Fighting Spirit!
Makunouchi Ippo has been bullied his entire life. Constantly running errands and being beaten up by his classmates, Ippo has always dreamed of changing himself, but never has the passion to act upon it. One day, in the midst of yet another bullying, Ippo is saved by Takamura Mamoru, who happens to be a boxer. Ippo faints from his injuries and is brought to Takamura boxing gym to recover. As he regains consciousness, he is awed and amazed at his new surroundings in the gym, though lacks confidence to attempt anything. Takamura places a photo of Ippo’s classmate on a punching bag and forces him to punch it. It is only then that Ippo feels something stir inside him and eventually asks Takamura to train him in boxing. Thinking that Ippo does not have what it takes, Takamura gives him a task deemed impossible and gives him a one week time limit. With a sudden desire to get stronger, for himself and his hard working mother, Ippo trains relentlessly to accomplish the task within the time limit. Thus Ippo’s journey to the top of the boxing world begins.
(Source: MAL Rewrite)
9. Aoashi
Ashito Aoi, a third year middle school student from Ehime, meets Fukuda Tatsuya, a J Youth League coach. Even though he's still rough around the edges, Ashito has such amazing potential that he gets invited by coach Fukuda to participate in his team's try-outs in Tokyo. The story of a boy who will revolutionize Japanese football begins to unfold.
Notes:
- Nominated for the 2017 Manga Taishou Award.
- Winner of the 65th Shogakukan Manga Award for "Best General Manga" category in 2019.
10. Chihayafuru
Chihaya is a girl in the sixth grade, still not old enough to even know the meaning of the word zeal. But one day, she meets Arata, a transfer student from rural Fukui prefecture. Though docile and quiet, he has an unexpected skill: his ability to play competitive karuta, a traditional Japanese card game.
Chihaya is struck by his obsession with the game, along with his ability to pick out the right card and swipe it away before any of his opponents. However, Arata is transfixed by her as well, all because of her unbelievable natural talent for the game. Don't miss this story of adolescent lives and emotions playing out in the most dramatic of ways!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
Notes:
- It won the 2nd Manga Taisho Award and the 35th annual Kodansha Manga Award for Best Shoujo.
- It was nominated for the 20th Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2016.
11. Wind Breaker
Jay's the perfect student. He's got straight As and he's the student body president. But after being coerced into joining the school's biking team, the Hummingbird Crew, he discovers a whole new world outside of studying. What new adventures will he face outside the comfort of his textbooks?
(Source: WEBTOONS)
12. Ace of the Diamond Act II
Sequel to Diamond no Ace
13. Ping Pong
Makoto “Smile” Tsukimoto and his friend Yutaka “Peco” Hoshino have been playing table tennis since they were kids, but as they enter high school, they find that the game has changed. Seeing potential in them that they themselves don’t fully realize, the coach recruits them for the school team. Bringing out their best will mean challenging the top players from rival schools in the summer tournament, including an ace Chinese exchange student who almost made the Olympic team. With the pressure on, can Smile and Peco take the heat and make it into the finals?
(Source: Viz Media)
14. The Boxer
You’ve got the raw talent. Or you’re the underdog. But do you have the heart? Do you have what it takes? Let’s see what you’re made of. The real fight starts now!
(Source: WEBTOONS)
Note: The chapter count includes 10 extra chapters, an 18-chapter side story and 2 epilogues.
15. Blue Lock
After a disastrous defeat at the 2018 World Cup, Japan's team struggles to regroup. But what's missing? An absolute Ace Striker, who can guide them to the win. The Japan Football Union is hell-bent on creating a striker who hungers for goals and thirsts for victory, and who can be the decisive instrument in turning around a losing match...and to do so, they've gathered 300 of Japan's best and brightest youth players. Who will emerge to lead the team...and will they be able to out-muscle and out-ego everyone who stands in their way?
(Source: Kodansha USA)
Note: Winner of the 45th Kodansha Manga Award in the Shounen Category in 2021.
16. Medalist
Tsukasa, whose dreams were crushed. Inori, left to fend for herself. These two share a dream...and their tenacity may be the only thing that sees them through. Their destination? The ice...on the world's stage!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
Notes:
- Won the Tsugimanga 2022 Award in the Print Manga Category.
- Winner of the 68th Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category.
17. Eyeshield 21
Wimpy Sena Kobayakawa has been running away from bullies all his life. But when the football gear comes on, things change—Sena's speed and uncanny ability to elude big bullies just might give him what it takes to become a great high school football hero! Enjoy all the bone-crushing action and slapstick comedy that this heartwarming coming-of-age story has to offer.
(Source: Viz Media)
18. One Outs
The story begins when Hiromichi Kojima, the star batter of the fictional Lycaons in Japan's Pacific League, heads to the southern Japanese island of Okinawa to train and bring himself out of a slump. There, he meet Tōa Tokuchi, a 134-kmph (83 miles per hour) pitcher and the undisputed king of a gambling form of baseball called "One Out." At Kojima's urging, Tokuchi signs up with the Lycaons under an unusual contract: he gets 5,000,000 yen (about US$46,000) for every out he pitches, but loses 50,000,000 yen (US$460,000) for every point he gives up.
(Source: AnimeNewsNetwork)
Note: The main story was completed in 168 chapters with 19 volumes on 2006-10-19. An additional side story Giwaku no All Star Sen Hen (疑惑のオールスター戦編) was serialized from 2008-2009 and published as volume 20 of the series.
19. Cross Game
Cross Game is a moving drama that is heartfelt and true, yet in the brilliant hands of manga artist Mitsuru Adachi, delightfully flows with a light and amusing touch. The series centers around a boy named Ko, the family of four sisters who live down the street and the game of baseball. This poignant coming-of-age story will change your perception of what shonen manga can be.
(Source: Viz Media)
20. Kengan Ashura
Since the Edo periods of Japan, gladiator arenas exist in certain areas. In these arenas, wealthy business owners and merchants hire gladiators to fight in unarmed combat where winner takes all. Tokita Ohma, nicknamed "Ashura", joins these arenas and devastates his opponents. His spectacular ability to crush his enemies catches the attention of the big business owners, including the Nogi Group chairman, Nogi Hideki.
Includes 24 extras/side stories.
21. Welcome to the Ballroom
Fujita has drifted through middle school aimlessly, unable to find friends or anything that can hold his attention. Then, one day, he's attacked by a gang and saved by a mysterious man. But this isn't a karate master; it's a ballroom dance instructor! Reluctantly, Fujita takes a few beginner's classes, only to find his inspiration... an entrancing, teenage dance prodigy named Shizuku. It's Fujita's first step into the high-octane world of competitive dance!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
Note: Nominated for the 6th and 8th Manga Taisho Award.
22. Pirouette into My Heart
Known as “the little swan” of his ballet studio, Shen has big dreams of leaving the humble farming town he grew up in and shooting to stardom. Though soft-spoken and timid, he meets his match in the stoic, wealthy, and equally as intense Jinyi, who pursues boxing next door. An unlikely pair, they cheer each other on and raise each other up through thick and thin. Determined to achieve their separate ambitions in the midst of their personal troubles, will their deep connection be strong enough to endure the journey and take flight?
(Source: Tapas)
Note: Season One has 74 chapters, plus prologue and two extras. Season Two has 69 chapters, plus prologue, extra, and three epilogue chapters, followed by a 10-chapter side story.
23. Hanma Baki
Baki trains for the the final showdown between him and his father.
24. Ace of the Diamond
Eijun Sawamura had his heart set on the middle-school national baseball championships. But his team is eliminated thanks to a wild pitch thrown by Eijun himself. He’s planning to go to high school with his teammates and try again next year when he’s scouted by the famous Seido High School baseball team. When he goes for a campus visit, he finds himself on the receiving end of a baptism by fire! His experience forming a battery with up-and-coming catcher Miyuki rekindles his passion for baseball!!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
25. Rookies
Koichi Kawato is the new Japanese teacher at the ill-famed Futakotamagawa high school, whose baseball club is composed of thugs and bullies who have been suspended for a year from all school competitions, for causing a brawl during an official match. The newly appointed teacher finds that the club members left are only interested in women, smoking and doing nothing until, under Kawato's guidance, they discover a new dream called the Koshien. However, the road to the Koshien is far from easy as many obstacles await them.
26. Touch
The story centers around three characters - Uesugi Kazuya, his twin older brother Tatsuya, and Asakura Minami. Kazuya is the darling of his town as he's talented, hardworking, and the ace pitcher for his middle school baseball team. Tatsuya is a hopeless slacker who's been living the life of giving up the spotlight to Kazuya, despite the fact that he may be more gifted than him. Minami is the beautiful childhood girlfriend and for all intents, sister from next door who treats both of them as equals. Society largely assumes Kazuya and Minami will become the perfect couple, including Tatsuya. Yet as time progresses, Tatsuya grows to realize that he's willing to sacrifice anything for the sake of his brother, except at the expense of giving up Minami to Kazuya. And thus the story is told of Tatsuya trying to prove himself over his established younger brother, how it affects the relationship between the three, and both brothers' attempts to make Minami's lifelong dreams come true.
27. The Summit of the Gods
In a small Nepalese shop, Makoto Fukamachi, photographer for a Japanese expedition to conquer Mt. Everest, stumbles across a camera which may well be that of George Mallory, the celebrated mountain climber who was the first to attempt conquering Everest.
Mallory disappeared along with Andrew Irvine during the course of their ascent in 1924, without leaving any indication of whether they reached the summit or not.
So, what if it was only on their return trip that they had their fatal accident?
28. Initial D
Only the fearless survive in the white-hot world of street racing, as teams take on dangerous roads in the shadow of Mt. Akina. Behind the wheel of the mysterious "Ghost of Akina" is Takumi, on his way to becoming the greatest racer ever.
(Source: Tokyopop)
Note: the chapter count includes 6 extra chapters published in volumes 2, 3, 30, 33, 39 and 48.
29. H2
Hiro has two loves: baseball and porn. But due to an elbow injury he gives up baseball choosing a school with no baseball team. His childhood friend Hikari attends a different school with baseball ace Hideo and the two wish Hiro had not given up baseball. Hiro joins the soccer team but meets Haruka, a very clumsy girl, who is manager of the unofficial baseball club. When the soccer team challenges the baseball club to a game, with hopes of humiliating them, the baseball club nearly loses until Hiro, disgusted by the soccer team`s arrogance, switches to the baseball club.
30. Uma Musume: Cinderella Gray
Uma Musume Cinderella Gray is a spin-off title of the Uma Musume project by Cygames. It follows Oguri Cap through her time at Kasamatsu Training Center Academy and on her journey of becoming a legendary horse girl.
31. BE BLUES!: Ao ni Nare
Ryuu Ichijou, a boy who dreams of joining Japan's national soccer team. Ryuu is called a genius soccer player, and his aspirations seem within his reach, but when he is in elementary school he gets hit by a car while protecting his friend, and must face two years of grueling rehabilitation. Story focuses on Ryuu as he joins high school soccer club and works through the remnants of his injuries to achieve his goal.
32. Hikaru no Go
After stumbling across a haunted Go board, irresponsible Hikaru Shindo discovers that the spirit of a master player has taken up residence in his consciousness. In his pursuit of the "Divine Move," Fujiwara-no-Sai awakens in Hikaru an untapped interest and genius for the game, and soon the schoolboy is chasing his own dream--defeating the famed Go prodigy Akira Toya!
(Source: Viz Media)
Note: There are 197 chapters total in the original release.
33. Blue Box
Taiki Inomata is on the boys' badminton team at sports powerhouse Eimei Junior and Senior High. He's in love with basketball player Chinatsu Kano, the older girl he trains alongside every morning in the gym. One Spring day, their relationship takes a sharp turn ... And thus begins this brand-new series of love, sports and youth!
(Source: MANGA Plus)
34. Baby Steps
Eiichiro Maruo is a straight-A student who decides to take up tennis as a side hobby upon entering high school. At the tennis school he runs into Natsu—a bit airheaded, but nobody can beat her in passion for the sport. Soon Eiichiro gets addicted to tennis...and when he applies his academic skills to improving his game, the results will change his life forever!
(Source: K-Manga)
35. BLUE LOCK -EPISODE NAGI-
Seishiro Nagi, a second-year high schooler, thought everything was a pain and lived his life in an apathetic fog. That is, until he met Reo Mikage and they entered the mysterious striker training center, Blue Lock...
A new spin-off from Blue Lock's author, Muneyuki Kaneshiro, telling the story from Nagi's point of view!
(Source: K-Manga)
36. Baki: The Search of our Strongest Hero
BAKI: THE SEARCH OF OUR STRONGEST HERO is the official name of the 4th saga in which Baki will find strongest enemies in his path, and the way to challenge his dad once again, and this time… To lose is to die.
Hanma Baki (named “Wild Fang” by his father) is a boy born under an unlucky star. Since the day of his birth, Baki has been rigorously training at all kinds of martial arts, strengthening himself at his father’s command. For he must obey his father’s rule that at his “coming of age” Baki surpass his own father, Hanma Yuujiro, “the most powerful creature walking on earth.” Baki’s life has been nothing but trouble. This has given Baki a wild nature and convinced him that “to be the most powerful” is his way of life. Tenacious and fearless under all adverse conditions, Baki continues his training looking for new masters and new challenges to strengthen his personality and become “the strongest man on earth.” That road is a lonely one and Baki experienced the cruelty of his sick dad in a move that would change his life forever.
37. Swimming Lessons for a Mermaid
Choa is a mermaid who can't swim! Discouraged, she trades the ocean for a pair of human legs. But when the star of the high school swim team finds out her secret, he offers her the chance to prove her family wrong: free swimming lessons for a mermaid!
(Source: WEBTOONS)
38. Kuroko's Basketball
When incoming first-year student Taiga Kagami joins the Seirin High basketball team, he meets Tetsuya Kuroko, a mysterious boy who’s plain beyond words. But Kagami’s in for the shock of his life when he learns that the practically invisible Kuroko was once a member of “the Miracle Generation”— the undefeated legendary team—and he wants Kagami’s help taking down each of his old teammates!
(Source: Viz Media)
Note: Chapter count includes Chapter 62.5 "Tip Off."
39. Giant Killing
A truly great coach makes the game of soccer interesting! Tatsumi Takeshi is 35 and has spent the last few years coaching in England before being brought back to Japan to coach his old team. His favorite pastime? Causing giant upsets—aka Giant Killing!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
40. Rikudou
Riku experienced a lot of pain and tragedy in his early life. After his father's death, a former-boxer Yakuza man taught him how to do a basic punch, and that punch saved his life when he had to defend himself from his mom's drug dealer. He ended up taking the drug dealer's life, marking him as a killer. Criminals continued to come after him, leading to more tragedy for the people who attempted to care for him. All of this drove him to ask that same former boxer to teach him to become stronger, which led him to a rundown gym, his door to the world of pro boxing!
41. Grappler Baki
The story revolves around Baki Hanma and his quest to proclaim himself as the strongest grappler in the world, thus taking the title from his father. Baki also fights to gain the trust of his overly psychotic mother.
(Source: Wikipedia)
42. Cheeky Brat
Basketball club manager Yuki has a secret—she’s in love with the team captain! But when Naruse discovers her secret, she’s in trouble! Just how long is he going to keep teasing her about it? Stupid pretty playboy…
(Source: Yen Press)
Note: Chapter includes one epilogue.
43. Tetsugaku Letra
In middle school, Ichinose Kimitaka taught his friends how to play basketball. Despite his experience with the sport, his friends quickly outmatched him in skill. After an incident brought on by his frustration and jealousy, he was crushed to overhear those same 'friends' discussing how they wished he'd just kill himself.
On his way to toss out his special basketball shoes, he met a girl who was just as frustrated, throwing her own dancing shoes away. She was so tall, and her hands and feet are so large, that she had been rejected from her chosen hobby of Spanish dancing. He urged her to give basketball a try, and the two exchanged their shoes instead of throwing them away.
As he enters high school, Kimitaka learns that meeting him changed that girl's life for the better, and she is now a happy, social basketball player. Will Kimitaka be able to find the courage to make new friends and pursue his own talents?
44. Yowamushi Pedal
For the love of all things otaku--anime, video games, figures, you name it! Power-pedaling Sakamichi Onoda has long been conquering the steepest slopes and regularly making the ninety-kilometer round-trip to Akihabara on a mommy bike!! But when his bike commute to his new high school lands him in a confrontation with the serious first-year road racer Imaizumi, Onoda has a major showdown on his hands! Can this meek geek really out-pedal the future ace of the school road-racing team?!
(Source: Yen Press)
45. Wandance
Kaboku Kotani is starting high school, and he plans to do what he’s always done: go along with his friends, keep quiet, and not draw too much attention to himself. After all, it’s hard enough to get by with a stutter like his— why make things worse by standing out from the crowd? But then he sees another first-year, Hikari Wanda, dancing like no one is watching—or like she doesn’t care who sees her. It makes Kaboku wonder: Could he reach that same freedom? To find his way to Wanda, he does something he never thought he could: He joins the dance club. After all, every routine begins with a single step, right? Join Kaboku and Wanda as they freestyle their way to life and love!
(Source: Kodansha USA)
Note: Nominated for the Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category.
46. Capeta
Taira Capeta was a 4th grader boy. He had lost his mother when he had been very little. Although he pretended to be tough in front of his father, actually he felt lonely. One day, his father brought junk parts home from his workplace and made a racing cart. Soon, they went to a circuit to drive the cart. However, Capeta found that its frame was bent and it could hardly run straight. But, with his technique he managed the cart. Furthermore, he followed soon after the fast cart and he could nearly leave it behind. The driver in the cart was Minamoto Naomoi, the champion of the East Japan Junior Cart. Looking at their chase, Naomi’s mother, Minamoto Nanako, advised Capeta to take part in the official race.
(Source: AnimeNfo)
47. Rough
Yamato Keisuke, a promising freestyle swimmer, and Ninomiya Ami, a talented diver, are the offspring of two rival families owners of confectionery shops. Two generations ago, Grandfather Ninomiya came up with an idea for an owl-shaped cake, but Grandfather Yamato quickly raised to the challenge and thought of a similar cake--but in Yamato's the owl had ears. Because they're priced the same, Yamato's extra ears were crucial, and that made the business of the Ninomiya confectionery suffered. Grandfather Ninomiya then fell ill worrying about his shop. Before his death, his last words were "I was killed by the Yamatos", and since that moment the two families have been sworn rivals.
48. SK∞
Reki, a high school sophomore and skater, is addicted to “S,” a highly secret and dangerous downhill skateboarding race that takes place in an abandoned mine. The skaters are especially wild about the “beefs,” or heated battles that erupt in the races.
Reki takes Langa, a transfer student returning to Japan after studying abroad, to the mine where the races are held. Langa, who has no skateboarding experience, finds himself pulled into the world of “S”...
(Source: Aniplex of America)
49. Baki Dou
Baki is bored. After the conclusion of the epic battle between father and son, he continues to fight in the underground arena and train nonstop, but he always has to suppress his yawn caused by the overbearing boredom. No amount of stimulus or danger can bring excitement to him at this point.
Now, with the inclusion of the Prime Minister of Japan in the loop, a massive cloning project is attempting to clone Miyamoto Musashi, one of the fathers of martial arts in Japan. Another fight of historical proportions awaits Baki!
(Source: MangaHelpers)
Includes chapter 197.5
50. Kengan Omega
Sequel to Kengan Asura. Takes place 2 years after the tournament.