It's hard to not be sucked into the fantastical world of sports anime. Many shows in the genre are so addicting with their nail-biting competitiveness, heart-tugging friendships, and important life lessons. 2021 graced viewers with the Skate: The Infinity anime, a skateboarding anime that has already amassed a huge fanbase.
For new watchers of sports anime and those who've been enjoying them for a while now, here are some incredible shows like Sk8: The Infinity that fans of Langa and Reki need to watch ASAP. Get ready for plenty of action, lovable characters, exciting plotlines, and tons of exclamation marks with each of these recommendations. Anyone looking for anime like Sk8: The Infinity needs to mark these shows off their list!
Updated March 30, 2022 by Jourdan Silva: Athletics/Sports continues to be a highly popular genre that anime fans never fail to rave over. Anime watchers can find sports anime about any activity under the sun, from swimming to volleyball to track, surfing, and baseball.
There are so many incredible series available that are 100% worth the watch, along with amazing characters, stunning visuals, and wonderful soundtracks. Whether anime fans want to view a skateboarding anime or a badminton anime, they can surely find it...just be sure to check out the list below for the best ones!
14 Re-Main
This stunningly beautiful show, animated by Mappa, aired from July to October 2021, making it a fairly new anime added to the popular Sports genre. It focuses on the sport of water polo, something not as common as basketball or baseball.
Minato is a skilled water polo player who got knocked into a coma in an accident. Once he's awake, he realizes he lost his memories of the past few years, including the game of water polo. He must now figure out how talented he actually is and regain his abilities as he navigates his tricky return to the world. Like the lovely visuals, the characters and stories are bright, happy, and colorful.
13 number24
Rugby fans, get excited! This 2020 anime features the rough and tough sport in a fun, new way. When former rugby star Natsuza suffers a career-ending injury, he realizes he will have to continue enjoying the sport as a coach, rather than a player. He begins managing a rickety, unpolished team that needs a bit of shaping up to become champions.
Natsuza relies on his old friend Ibuki to join the team and lift them up, but there's a whole series of questions and mystery behind why Ibuki stopped playing in the first place. The relationships in this show are intriguing and exciting to watch grow and develop over the 12 great episodes.
12 Tamayomi
Not as many sports anime feature female players, making this awesome baseball anime even more worthy of a binge! It is only 12 episodes long and aired back in 2020. Yomi Takeda and her friends attempt to restore their high school's baseball team after it was shut down years prior.
They gather enough players and set off on a journey of running a hopeful baseball team together. The story is fun and interesting, following a classic high school anime plotline of bringing an amateur team to success. The characters are relatable, the visuals are bright and new, and the sports are competitive and enthusiastic!
11 Gymnastics Samurai
This gymnastics anime is merely 11 episodes long and originally aired in the fall of 2020. Jotaro Aragaki, referred to as "The Samurai," is a former Olympic champ who could never quite score the gold medal. At 29 years old, and struggling with an injury, Jotaro thinks of retiring.
After a chance encounter with a young and intriguing former ballet dancer named Leo, Jotaro reconsiders the end of his career and heads back into the world of gymnastics, eager to fight for the gold and reclaim his former glory. It's high stakes, super competitive, motivating, and super fun to watch. Getting a glimpse at the world of men's gymnastics, even in animated form, is very entertaining and worth the short binge!
10 Farewell, My Dear Cramer
This new anime began airing in April 2021 and truly lived up to its hype. The story follows Sumire Suō, a 15-year-old girl with a huge passion for soccer. She plays fast and hard but seems to always fall short of victory. The fired-up schoolgirl loses a match when a player on the rival team, Midori Soshizaki, blocks her.
In a twist of fate, the two soccer players end up attending the same high school – which doesn't have a very reputable sports team. Deciding to work together, the two set out on a coming-of-age adventure to be the best soccer players they can be. It's a beautiful show that highlights young girls pursuing sports careers, differing from many sports anime that focus on men's sports.
9 Yuri!!! On Ice
After an embarrassing end to his previous season, Yuri Katsuki has all but given up on his dream to win any more ice skating championships. However, hen a video of Yuri skating a routine from the international star Victor Nikiforov goes viral, the gold-medalist heads to Tokyo to become Yuri's coach
The story that follows includes the most adorable relationships, powerful performances, and fantastically developed characters. Plus, viewers will never skip the theme song. It's the one anime from this list that has truly everything: action-packed sports, romance, angst, characters outside their adolescent years, and the best soundtrack ever.
8 Run With The Wind
Kakeru, a former elite high school runner, is saved by University student Haiji after being chased down for stealing. Haiji then convinces Kakeru to move into an old dorm and help him in his plan to enter a very famous relay marathon.
Kakeru agrees but soon realizes that only he and Haiji are good at the sport, while the rest of the dorm residents are total amateurs. The animation is bright and fun, the storyline is full of excitement, and the varying personalities of each character are absolutely worth the watch.
7 Hanebado!
Time to enjoy an anime featuring a sport that not many people are familiar with: Badminton! After a big defeat at a prominent badminton tournament, the main character Nagisa Aragaki loses her confidence and passion for her sport. Her growing hatred for badminton threatens to destroy the team until a new head coach is brought onto the team.
The Olympic-level coach brings along the same girl who took down Nagisa in the scarring match that ruined the sport for her. The two must join together as teammates and friends to transform their broken team into an elite one.
6 Haikyuu!!
Ask any big sports anime fan for their recommendations, and they'll likely mention Haikyuu!! The show has multiple seasons ready for new viewers to binge.
The story follows Shōyō Hinata, a young volleyball player who overcomes his small stature with his impressive jumping skills. He ends up joining Karasuno High School's volleyball team alongside no other than his sworn rival, Kageyama. Wild competitions, lovable characters, and budding friendships are in store.
5 Wave!!
Near the coast of Ooarai, Masaki Hinaoka becomes close to the dazzling transfer student Shou Akitsuki. Shou introduces Masaki to surfing and his life is forever changed. Through surfing, Masaki grows physically and emotionally, makes amazing new friends, and changes as he comes of age.
The style is beautiful, and the story isn't as action-packed and competitive as other sports anime, which makes it a nice change of pace. It's a good, relaxing show to watch in between more high-intensity ones.
4 Prince Of Stride: Alternative
This sports anime features a fictional extreme sport called "Stride," which is very similar to Parkour. Groups of five plus a relationer head out on intense relay races across the city to compete.
Nana Sakurai is a first-year who eagerly attends Hōnan Academy high school in hopes of joining the famous Stride club. However, she finds out it has been inactive for years after a big accident. Nana and her two classmates embark on a journey to recruit new Stride members and bring the club back to its former glory.
3 Free! - Iwatobi Swim Club
Free! Iwatobi Swim Club is another popular sports anime with a massive fanbase. The show continues to release seasons and movies, so it boasts never-ending cheesy dialogue and fun-loving excitement for its fans.
Haruka Nanase is a very gifted swimmer, who only swims Freestyle. Wanting to use the school pool and compete in local competitions, he and his friends revitalize their high school's swim team, barely getting enough members to make it an official club. The four swimmers grow close to one another, inspiring each other to be the best they can be. Former rivals, new friends, and plenty of fun adventures await Haru and the gang.
2 Kuroko's Basketball
Get ready for a heart-racing, action-packed basketball anime. Tetsuya Kuroko takes the high school sports world by storm when he debuts as a top player of his generation.
After teaming up with another incredibly talented player, Taiga Kagami, the two aim to bring their high school to the top as the best in all of Japan. But this will require taking down the teams of Kuroko's former teammates, who are all brilliant players of their own.
1 Ace of Diamonds
Baseball in Japan is not what fans may have expected, but it's exactly what they need. Ace of Diamonds is just the place for sports anime lovers to start.
Eijun Sawamura is a baseball pitcher with unique techniques that make him naturally skilled. After being scouted by the highly prestigious Seidou High, Sawamura heads down the path of joining their team and aiming to be the best baseball team out there. The first step? Making it to nationals in the summer tournament.