This Chart Explains How Profitable ‘Dragon Ball Super’ Really Is

When it comes to anime, you have to be profitable to stay alive. Fans are always eager to talk about the industry’s mechanics, and there is a lot that goes into the promotion of a franchise. These days, guys like One Piece are the ones racking up billions of dollars, but Dragon Ball is not far behind.

In fact, the franchise has never been healthier thanks to Dragon Ball Super.

If you want to know what kind of funds the title brings in, then you just have to do some math. Toei Company and Bandai Namco keep fans up-to-date with their annual earnings, and one fan did the work to chart Dragon Ball Super’s effect on those companies in recent years. As you can see below, the title’s influence has been rather noticeable.

The first chart pulls Toei’s worldwide revenue totals from its IR Library and lays them out by year. In 2008, the Dragon Ball IP grossed 2,682,000,000 yen for Toei. The revenue dipped between 2011 and 2014, but 2015 put it on the upswing when Dragon Ball Super debuted. A year into the anime’s debut, Toei earned 5,091,000,000 in revenue from the IP. And, in 2017, the company earned a whopping 9,288,000,000.

Bandai Namco has also gotten a ton of money off the IP since Dragon Ball Super was released. The company, which oversees Dragon Ball video games and merchandise, earned 6.4 billion yen in 2014. That number jumped to 19.4 the following year once Dragon Ball Super debuted. In 2016, that number almost doubled to 34.9, and last year earned big the company big with a 61.1.

Not only is Dragon Ball Super helping Toei and Bandai Namco in revenue, but the anime is also duking it out with major ratings. The anime has gone toe-to-toe with One Piece at times to match their average ratings, and overseas fans regularly crash sites like Crunchyroll when Dragon Ball Super simulcasts its latest episodes.

With so much money on the line, fans are still confused as to why Dragon Ball Super is ending. The show has a loyal following, a profitable merchandise outlet, and plenty of stories left to explore. Dragon Ball Super may be ending in March, but if Toei knows what is good for it, then it will find a way to continue the anime moving forward. So, fans are keeping their fingers crossed that a new series will follow up Dragon Ball Supersooner rather than later.

Are you surprised by how profitable Dragon Ball Super is? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!