Top 10 Anime Like Captain Tsubasa [2024 List]

Captain Tsubasa

Captain Tsubasa is the passionate story of an elementary school student whose thoughts and dreams revolve almost entirely around the love of soccer. 11-year-old Tsubasa Oozora started playing soccer at a very young age, and while it was mostly just a recreational sport for his friends, for him, it developed into something of an obsession.
In order to pursue his dream to the best of his elementary school abilities, Tsubasa moves with his mother to Nankatsu city, which is well-known for its excellent elementary school soccer teams. But although he was easily the best in his old town, Nankatsu has a lot more competition, and he will need all of his skill and talent in order to stand out from this new crowd.
He encounters not only rivals, but also new friends like the pretty girl Sanae Nakazawa and the talented goalkeeper, Genzo Wakabayashi, who shares the same passion as Tsubasa, and will prove to be a treasured friend in helping him push towards his dreams. Representing Japan in the FIFA World Cup is Tsubasa’s ultimate dream, but it will take a lot more than talent to reach it.

Captain Tsubasa has finished airing and it has 128 Episodes. It is also Known as: キャプテン翼, Flash Kicker

Genres: Earth , Action , Sports , Soccer , Alternative Present , Present

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10. Ganbare! Kickers

Ganbare! Kickers

The Kickers are first and foremost a football team. Actually, they're only playing for their school, but haven't exactly covered themselves with glory. When the new player, Gregor (Daichi Kakeru) arrives at the school, they just had faced a resounding defeat again. However, thanks to Gregor, things are going to change. Highly motivated, they'll try to get rid of their "always-loser-team" image. Their strongest enemy are the Devils, who Gregor provokes right from the start. However, it's not all about football. When the captain, Mario (Hongou Masaru), is not pursued by his female fans, the Kickers often hang around and do stuff together.

Fight! Kickers has finished airing and it has 23 Episodes. It is also Known as: がんばれ!キッカーズ, Die Kickers

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9. Hajime no Ippo

Hajime no Ippo

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 the Kamogawa 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.

Fighting Spirit has finished airing and it has 75 Episodes. It is also Known as: はじめの一歩 THE FIGHTING!, The First Step, Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting

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8. Inazuma Eleven Go

Inazuma Eleven Go

Tenma Matsukaze is a new student at Raimon Junior High. Due to his love for soccer, he decides to join the school soccer team, which gained its reputation after the amazing performance shown ten years earlier in the Football Frontier International, a tournament that hosts the best youth teams the world has to offer. Unfortunately, the once renowned school doesn't have the soccer spirit it once enjoyed.
This is primarily due to the fact that soccer in Japan is now controlled by a dark entity known as the "Fifth Sector." They alone decide the fate of every match, instructing teams to either win or lose. The actions of the Fifth Sector have beaten down the country’s soccer teams, who no longer have a love for the game.
Tenma and his teammates will look to shift this paradigm and fight back against their evil oppressors. Thankfully, they will not be alone in this battle, as they will get help from a group known as the "Resistance." Cheer on the boys of Inazuma Eleven Go as they fight the good fight!

Inazuma Eleven Go has finished airing and it has 47 Episodes. It is also Known as: イナズマイレブン Go, Inazuma Eleven Go

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7. Diamond no Ace

Diamond no Ace

With a stray pitch that completely missed the batter, Eijun Sawamura loses his final middle school baseball game. Frustrated by this defeat, Eijun and his teammates vow to reach the national tournament once they are in high school. But everything changes when a scout unexpectedly invites him to Tokyo's prestigious Seidou High School after seeing the potential in his unusual pitching style. Encouraged by his teammates, Eijun accepts the offer, ready to improve his skills and play at a much more competitive level of baseball.
However, now surrounded by a large number of skilled players, Eijun struggles to find his place on the team. He declares that he will one day become the team's ace, but that's only if fellow first year Satoru Furuya doesn't take the title first, with his breakneck fastballs that earn him a coveted spot on the starting roster. With the addition of these talented new players to an already powerful lineup, the Seidou baseball team aims to become the best in Japan, facing off against a number of formidable foes that stand in their way.

Ace of Diamond has finished airing and it has 75 Episodes. It is also Known as: ダイヤのA[エース], Daiya no Ace, Ace of the Diamond, Dia no A

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6. Futsal Boys!!!!!

Futsal Boys!!!!!

The franchise's story is set in a world over a decade after futsal has skyrocketed in global popularity. Protagonist Haru Yamato watches the championship of the U-18 world cup and is inspired by a Japanese player named Tokinari Tenōji. He joins the Koyo Academy High School's futsal team with the goal of becoming a player like Tenōji. There, he finds friends, and together they face their rivals.

Futsal Boys!!!!! has finished airing and it has 12 Episodes. It is also Known as: フットサルボーイズ!!!!!, Futsal Boys!!!!!

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5. Slam Dunk

Slam Dunk

Hanamichi Sakuragi, infamous for this temper, massive height, and fire-red hair, enrolls in Shohoku High, hoping to finally get a girlfriend and break his record of being rejected 50 consecutive times in middle school. His notoriety precedes him, however, leading to him being avoided by most students. Soon, after certain events, Hanamichi is left with two unwavering thoughts: "I hate basketball," and "I desperately need a girlfriend."
One day, a girl named Haruko Akagi approaches him without any knowledge of his troublemaking and asks him if he likes basketball. Hanamichi immediately falls head over heels in love with her, blurting out a fervent affirmative. She then leads him to the gymnasium, where she asks him if he can do a slam dunk. In an attempt to impress Haruko, he makes the leap, but overshoots, instead slamming his head straight into the blackboard. When Haruko informs the basketball team's captain of Hanamichi's near-inhuman physical capabilities, he slowly finds himself drawn into the camaraderie and competition of the sport he had previously held resentment for.

Slam Dunk has finished airing and it has 101 Episodes. It is also Known as: スラムダンク, Slam Dunk

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4. Major S1

Major S1

Honda Shigeharu is a Major League batter on the rise. His son Gorou is a Little League pitcher who one day hopes to follow in his father's footsteps. Hoshino Momoko is Gorou's school teacher, and the first woman Shigeharu has been interested in since the death of Gorou's mother. The destines of these three individuals will become intertwined as father and son experience both heartbreak and triumph on the baseball diamond. But when an unspeakable tragedy visits the family, it will take everything they have to pick up the pieces and reclaim their dreams.

Major S1 has finished airing and it has 26 Episodes. It is also Known as: メジャー (第1シリーズ), Major S1

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3. Moero! Top Striker

Moero! Top Striker

Hikaru Kicker is a 13-year-old boy who loves football. He has grown up playing with a football at all times ever since his father's friend gave him one when he was still only a baby.
Hikaru goes to Italy to learn the sport. He first joins a strong team at Genova, but soon quits this team to join an extremely weak team named "Columbus" with his female friend Anna.
Experiencing many hardships and difficulties, their team gradually becomes stronger and stronger, and finally they defeat Margerita, one of the strongest soccer teams in Genova.
Soon Hikaru hears that Genova will stage its first soccer tournament. Throughout the tournament, Hikaru and his teammates confront many rivals and develop increasing maturity.
Can Hikaru score a goal and which team will win the championship?

Top Striker has finished airing and it has 49 Episodes. It is also Known as: 燃えろ! トップストライカー, L'École des champions

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2. Akakichi no Eleven

Akakichi no Eleven

At Shinsei high school, soccer is almost a combat sport and new team coach Teppei Matsuki is a fully paid up sadist who will push his team as hard as necessary to win. Headstrong school bad boy Shingo Tamai and his friend Ohira are determined not to be bullied into joining Matsuki's team; instead they set up a squad of their own, and at first play just for fun and struggle to keep up with Matsuki's team.
As their skills progress, they play other teams and get stronger and craftier, until they face the crack Asakase high school squad and its star player Misugi Yan in the schools' final. In a tangle of subplots involving old rivalries and injuries, and a mixed-race player seeking his identity and his lost mother (who turns out to be in jail), Shingo develops his skills as a center forward and looks forward to playing a visiting Brazilian squad. He is seriously injured in a game, but his talent, which even the legendary Brazilian Pele recognizes, is equaled by his determination. With the help of a friend of his old rival Matsuki, he recovers to help the team to victory.
Definitely melodrama rather than a sports series proper, this is the first in the line of Japanese soccer soaps that stretches to Captain Tsubasa and beyond. Based on a manga by Ikki Kajiwara and Kosei Sonoda.

Akakichi no Eleven has finished airing and it has 52 Episodes. It is also Known as: 赤き血のイレブン, The Dark Red Eleven, The Red-Blooded Eleven

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1. Inazuma Eleven

Inazuma Eleven

While other schools in Japan compete for the title of being the best soccer team in the country, Raimon Middle School's soccer club, Inazuma Eleven, struggles to rise from the verge of being disbanded. The grandson of Inazuma Eleven's first generation goalkeeper and captain of the team, Mamoru Endou, takes the challenge of kicking the long neglected club back into shape. To do this, he'll need a little help and more than a little luck.
Mamoru Endou finds hope in the hands of Shuuya Gouenji, a brilliant young player who has given up on soccer. Mamoru is determined to get Shuuya and other new recruits to join his team, no matter what the cost. Is his passion and determination enough to treat the ailing club? Or is there no more hope for the team?

Inazuma Eleven has finished airing and it has 127 Episodes. It is also Known as: イナズマイレブン, Inazuma Eleven

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