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What is the main sport in Japan?

Author

Rachel Ellis

Published Jan 23, 2026

Baseball - the national sport in Japan

Today, even primary schools have their own baseball teams and competition for places in high school teams are fierce. Baseball has therefore become the undisputed favorite in team sports.

What is the famous sports in Japan?

Soccer and baseball are arguably the most popular sports in Japan, and one of the most widely watched.

What is Japan's official national sport?

Technically speaking, Sumo is the national sport of Japan, but with sold-out stadiums around the country, baseball is very popular. Japan's twelve professional baseball teams garner a devoted following from people of all ages.

What sport is Japan best at in the Olympics?

Judo is the only Olympic sport with roots in Japan, and the country's athletes won nine gold medals, two silver and one bronze.

Is volleyball a big sport in Japan?

Volleyball is a quite popular sport in Japan since the early 20th century. Nowadays it's wideplay played by high school and university students.

39 related questions found

What is the oldest sport in Japan?

Sumo isn't an official national sport of Japan, but it's the country's oldest sport - over 1,500 years old! - and is considered by many to be the national sport.

What is the most watched sport in Japan?

1. Baseball (Yakyū) Known as Yakyū, baseball is hugely popular in Japan. Even though it came from the US, baseball is often jokingly referred to as Japan's national sport, as it's by far the most popular sport in Japan.

Is NBA popular in Japan?

In 2021, Japan's professional basketball had a fandom of 5.67 million people. Basketball is one of the most popular professional team sports in Japan, after baseball and football. The official league for professional basketball in Japan is called the B-League.

Which sport is also popular in Japan and Cuba?

Baseball is by far the most popular; other popular sports and pastimes include boxing (Cuba is a dominant force in Olympic boxing, consistently achieving high medal tallies in international competitions), volleyball, wrestling, basketball, sailing, and trekking.

Is hockey popular in Japan?

Ice hockey is a minor sport that is gaining popularity in Japan. Baseball and football (soccer) have dominated Japanese sports for decades, but ice hockey has been less popular in Japan since its founding in the 1920s.

Is boxing popular in Japan?

Japan is in the top five of countries where boxing is popular. In 1921, the first official boxing gym was established in the country. In 1952, Yoshio Shirai became the first Japanese world champion.

How popular is soccer in Japan?

Soccer is one of the most popular sports in Japan. People of all ages and both genders play soccer and futsal. The Japanese national soccer teams are currently among the highest ranked Asian teams in the world.

Does Japan have school sports?

In most schools, clubs can be divided into two types: sports clubs (baseball, soccer, judo, kendo, track, tennis, swimming, softball, volleyball, rugby) and culture clubs (English, broadcasting, calligraphy, science, mathematics, yearbook).

What is the Japan famous for?

Japan is known worldwide for its traditional arts, including tea ceremonies, calligraphy and flower arranging. The country has a legacy of distinctive gardens, sculpture and poetry. Japan is home to more than a dozen UNESCO World Heritage sites and is the birthplace of sushi, one of its most famous culinary exports.

Are Japanese good at basketball?

Japan has one of the most successful basketball teams in Asia. It has won the Asian Basketball Championships twice and is the second leading nation in qualifications to the event. The team qualified for the Olympic Games 7 times and for the FIBA World Cup six times.

What is the most popular sport in the world 2021?

Top 10 Most Popular Sports in the World in 2021

  • 1 1. Football/Soccer.
  • 2 2. Cricket.
  • 3 3. Baseketball.
  • 4 4. Hockey (Field + Ice)
  • 5 5. Tennis.
  • 6 6. Volleyball.
  • 7 7. Table Tennis.
  • 8 8. Baseball.

Do Japanese play American football?

American football is a sport played in Japan. Introduced in the 1930s, the sport has grown into one of the most popular in the country. Each team is only allowed to have three Americans per team.

Who is the most famous athlete in Japan?

According to a survey conducted in September 2021, baseball player Shohei Ohtani ranked first in a survey on the most popular athletes in Japan, with around 28 percent of respondents voting for him. Shohei Ohtani also placed first in the previous year.

What is the most popular sport in the Tokyo Olympics?

As the postponed 2020 Olympics Games in Tokyo draw closer, international data from YouGov shows just how popular each sport is around the world. Among global consumers in the more than two dozen markets in which YouGov conducts research via the Global Fan Profiles tool, swimming is most followed by fans of the games.