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From soccer to ice skating to volleyball, sports anime cover a diverse number of topics. However, they often feature all-male teams where women take on managerial or support roles without getting in on the action. Sports anime with female protagonists may not be the most common, but they deserve recognition for going against the genre’s standard and giving strong women a chance to flex their skills and muscles.

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Like anime about men's sports, sports anime with all-women teams cover many topics, so whether the games in these anime are familiar, underrated, or imaginary, they recognize women’s sports have often been overlooked.

10 Harukana Receive

Girls from Harukana Receive in beach volleyball poses

After Kanata Higa moves to Okinawa over the summer, she comes across two girls playing beach volleyball together. Eager to play, she invites her cousin to be her partner for the game. However, when it turns out that her cousin gave up beach volleyball because of her height, Higa is determined to join a competition and help her find her passion for the sport again.

Harukana Receive doesn’t use unrealistic gameplay styles to make it a compelling watch. Instead, it focuses on how Higa and her cousin’s partnership makes them a team of underdogs despite her cousin’s previous successes.

9 Girls Und Panzer

Five girls from Girls und Panzer sitting on a tank

In Girls und Panzer, teams of five girls play a strategic war game with tanks called sensha-dō. Despite its apparent danger, the specialized tanks usually prevent most injuries, making the game safe enough that it is considered a sport even high schoolers can play.

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The series follows the commander of Panzer IV, Miho Nishizumi, because of her family’s long-standing history with the sport and challenging past experiences with sensha-dō. The sport is considered one that can help with low self-confidence, making Miho’s work in the Panzer IV helpful for those around her.

8 Long Riders!

Ami Kurata from Long Riders! riding her bike

Ami Kurata doesn’t know much about the best bicycles to buy or what affects a bike’s performance, but she wants to experience the world by riding alongside her friends. Together, they become a five-person cycling team called Fortuna and take on a festival race with the goal of having fun along the way.

Long Riders! doesn’t have high-speed chases or dramatic character arcs, but Kurata’s growth as a cyclist makes cycling seem comforting and fun, making it a calm series for sports anime fans looking for a more casual watch.

7 Taisho Baseball Girls

The all-girls team from Taisho Baseball Girls in casual clothes

Taisho Baseball Girls takes place in 1925 after baseball had just been introduced to Japan. Even though Japan experienced many cultural and technological changes during that time, others still expected women to prioritize domestic affairs over education or hobbies. Sports were out of the question almost entirely.

After being confronted with traditional beliefs, two young girls decide to form a successful baseball team and prove women have potential outside housework. Due to the social norms of the time, many obstacles block them from their goal, but they are determined to play the sport against boys and come out victorious.

6 Wanna Be The Strongest In The World

Five wrestlers and one idol from Wanna be the Strongest in the World

Sakura Hagiwara is the center singer in an idol group, or at least she was until she got swept up into the world of women’s professional wrestling as part of a promotional match. Despite numerous embarrassing losses, Hagiwara decides to pursue wrestling full-time since her pride as an entertainer won’t let her quit.

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As she overcomes the pain of fighting some of the most fearsome women in the ring, Hagiwara recognizes the similarities between being an idol and a pro wrestler, using them to step back into her confidence. Wanna Be the Strongest in the World is a slow build to her success that acknowledges the struggles of both careers.

5 Hip Whip Girl: Keijo!!!!!!

A row of contestants from Keijo! Hip Whip Girl

Keijo is a sport where women stand on a platform floating in the water and try to knock the other participants off using only their hips, bottoms, and breasts. The winner of each round receives a large cash prize, encouraging young women of all backgrounds to apply to a specialized training school for the sport.

As the latest school applicants fight it out on the water for a chance to pro, Hip Whip Girl: Keijo!!!!!! uses ample fanservice that contrasts the intensity of the matches, giving it more of a classic sports anime charm than it may seem to have at first to some viewers.

4 Hanebado!

Ayano Hanesaki from Hanebado! holding a badminton racket

Hanebado! is a badminton sports anime that follows Nagisa Aragaki’s rivalry with Ayano Hanesaki. When they first played against each other, Hanesaki seemed cruel, heartless, and unbeatable, convincing Aragaki that she must work harder at badminton. However, after Hanesaki joins Aragaki’s badminton team in high school, the two begin to share the same respect for each other as they have for the game.

While Hanebado! is a sports anime with many intense matches, it also gives its characters time to develop off-field and reaffirm their passion for the sport.

3 Farewell, My Dear Cramer

Four members of the soccer team from Farewell My Dear Cramer

Although the popularity of soccer in Japan is waning in Farewell, My Dear Cramer, Nozomi Onda wants to continue playing on the boy’s team in high school the way she did in middle school to keep her prestigious skills sharp. Still, her mentor convinces her to join the girl’s team to encourage them during games.

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Luckily for Onda, two other girls with loads of potential join the team, and together, they bring out the best that the others have to offer. Their matches don’t receive much recognition outside of their school, but their dedication and confidence are inspiring.

2 Iwa Kakeru! -Sport Climbing Girls-

Two girls standing in front of a climbing wall

Konomi Kasahara is a puzzle-game enthusiast who doesn’t know what club to join in high school until she comes across a climbing wall. Captivated by the idea of solving a climb, she joins the climbing club with no experience but plenty of motivation.

As Kasahara continues to climb and learn the shapes of the climbing wall, she becomes friends and rivals with the others climbing around her. However, what makes Iwa Kakeru! -Sport Climbing Girls- stand out is how it breaks down its characters’ thought processes to show the skill and speed needed to overcome obstacles in sports.

1 Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls' Story image featuring Eve and Aoi

In underground golf gambling circles, Eve is known as the “Rainbow Bullet” for her aggressive playstyle and ability to complete any hole in only three swings. She will accept any wager for the right price since she uses the money she earns to keep herself and her found family off of the streets. Things seem to be going well for Eve until she has her first loss to Aoi Amawashi, a talented young woman born into golf with a pure love for the sport.

Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story takes golf to the next level with its fast-paced matches, and the series is considered one of the best sports anime released in 2022. Eve and Aoi’s admiration for each other and their rivalry are stunning not only because of the contrast in their styles but also their ability to add nuance to an exclusive sport like golf.

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