Shonen Jump Announces Manga Contest With Shohei Ohtani

Sports anime are becoming a bigger part of the medium in recent years. Series such as Blue Lock, Haikyu, Slam Dunk, and countless others have taken the anime mentality and applied it to a variety of physical activities, but there is always room for more. In an upcoming manga contest sponsored by Shonen Jump, the company isn’t just assembling some of the biggest creators in the genre, but it is also bringing in a celebrity guest who just so happens to be a major baseball player on the LA Dodgers.

Many anime franchises, sports-related or otherwise, got their start thanks to Weekly Shonen Jump. For decades, the publication has been a springboard for series such as Dragon Ball, My Hero Academia, One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, and too many others to count. With some of their biggest series inching toward their grand finales, it should come as no surprise that Shueisha is looking at the next generations of stories that will fill its pages. For the upcoming “Jump Sports Manga Award”, the combined judges from both the manga world and the sports world will be breaking down which new series might just take the crown for the next big thing in sports anime.

Jump Sports Manga Award Details

The upcoming award ceremony won’t just see the LA Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani acting as a judge, but will also include some major players in the anime sports world. Slam Dunk creator Takehiko Inoue, Eyeshield 21 creator Riichiro Inagaki, and Kuroko’s Basketball creator Tadatoshi Fujimaki will be judging new contestants in the sports anime genre. Submissions will be open from May 27th to October 31st, and the results themselves are set to be revealed this December. 

In terms of sports anime hitting North America, a steady stream continues to make its way to streaming services, but a few are also set to hit the silver screen. This week, Haikyu: The Dumpster Battle will hit theaters in the West, as the film will act as the first of two films bringing the franchise to an end. Later this summer, Blue Lock: Episode Nagi will arrive on June 28th, proving that sports anime are only growing in popularity. 

Want to see which sports anime takes home the gold later this year? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook for all the latest updates on the world of sports anime and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime.