Sumo is lauded as the national sport of Japan and six times every year, around Japan, tournaments (honbasho) are held in various parts of the country.
The Nagoya-basho is held in July at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium, located right next to Nagoya Castle. Each honbasho lasts 15 days. During this period, wrestlers fight in a round-robin style organized by the sumo guilds. It's a chance to see some of the best Japanese sportsmanship the country has to offer!
2024 July Grand Sumo Tournament information
| Venue | Tickets available from | Sumo ranking announced |
| Dolphins Arena, Nagoya | May 25, 2024 | Jul 1, 2024 |
Check the official website for more details about the tickets and schedule.
Learn more
Event Report (from 2019)
Sumo's first tournament of the new Reiwa era saw a number of fascinating stories, but perhaps none more so than the surprise victory by the young wrestler, Asanoyama.
The first rank-and-file wrestler in almost 60 years to win a tournament, Asanoyama will be looking to justify his success with more of the same in the Nagoya tournament in July.
Freshly promoted ozeki, Takakeisho, is on the rebound from his injury-forced withdrawal in Tokyo while the ever-popular Georgian wrestler Tochinoshin will be breathing a sigh of relief after overcoming some controversial judging in his successful bid to reclaim sumo's second-highest ozeki rank.
Along with newly energized wrestlers like Abi and Ryuden who have surged up the rankings, the ever enigmatic behemoth Ichinojo and Hakuho, the greatest sumo wrestler of all time, July's Nagoya tournament is shaping up to be another must-see event in Japan.
Getting there
Dolphins Arena is about a five-minute walk from Nagoyajo Station (Exit 7) on the Meijo Subway Line.
Sleiman Azizi @sleiman.azizi
I'm a Japanese Permanent Resident with over 650 published articles on Japan as well as 5 English language books inspired by traditional Japanese literature.I'm also a Japan Travel expert for Tokyo, so if you've anything to say about Japan's never ending capital - or just Japan in general - don't ...
