Champion service with Haikyu!

In Japanese, Haikyu means "volleyball", so it's no great surprise that the manga named Haikyu!! is about this ball sport. Created in 2012 by Haruichi Furudate, it's a fairly popular shonen manga, with the originality of focusing on a sport that is rarely played in Japan. The story follows the development of Shoyo Hinata and his friend and rival Tobio Kageyama, as they try to become professional players and great champions.

Volleyball, a little-known sport in Japan

In the Land of the Rising Sun, the most popular sports are baseball, sumo and football (soccer). Even in the top 10, volleyball has no place, with the Japanese preferring golf, boxing, tennis and car racing.

This lack of popularity is the starting point for the Haikyu! manga, which will be published in Weekly Shonen Jump from 2012 to 2020.

A (small) hero

Shoyo Hinata is one of the few Japanese players with a passion for volleyball, but his short stature seems to stand in his way. Nevertheless, he was inspired by the Karasuno secondary school team, whose star player is also small. Hinata signed up for his school's team... but he was the only one to do so!

He has to use diplomacy to convince his friends and classmates to form a semblance of a team, allowing him to play a few matches. In their first competitive match, the team is crushed by their opponents, led by Tobio Kageyama, nicknamed the "king of the field". Kageyama has all the makings of a villain, incredibly talented but also very brutal and ambitious. A logical rivalry develops between these two boys.

Renaissance

Hinata pursues her dream and manages to get accepted into Karasuno Secondary School. But he is hugely disappointed to discover that volleyball has lost its short-lived popularity and that his team has become mediocre, following the departure of its star player.

Worse still, Hinata discovers that her rival Kageyama has followed exactly the same path. Now the two rival players have to learn to work together, and that's where the whole story begins. Hinata, despite her size, is a top-class athlete, while Kageyama has an innate talent for volleyball. If they can get on well together, their qualities can complement each other to stunning effect.

Their rivalry gives rise to a constructive and competitive friendship, with each pushing the other to excel.

A hit manga

In 2021, TV Asahi organised a major survey of the most popular manga in Japan. Out of a list of 100, Haikyu!! came eighth, a great achievement for a story about a sport that is so unpopular. Today, over 60 million copies of the manga in Tankobon format are in circulation.

The story's appeal extends far beyond the sport of volleyball. The friendship/rivalry between its two protagonists applies to all team sports, but also to the world of work. The story shows that rivalry alone is destructive, but when combined with a deep and sincere friendship, it's a win-win situation.

Professionals see this manga as a perfect demonstration of the importance of entourage and team mentality.

Haikyu!! in anime

Naturally, the manga was brought to television in the form of an anime. In addition to the quality of the story, volleyball fans and professionals alike will appreciate the high degree of realism. If we turn a blind eye to a few of the heroic exaggerations typical of the genre, every aspect is worked out with great precision: playing techniques, strategies, muscle movements and even breathing.

The series, produced by Production I.G., spans four seasons and was broadcast from 2014 to 2020. It will be followed by two concluding animated films. The first of these films was released at the end of May 2024.

Only one video game was created based directly on the series, "Haikyu! Cross Team Match", available on Nintendo 3DS. However, the character of Shoyo Hinata appears in "J-Stars Victory VS", a major crossover fighting game featuring Jump characters, available on Playstation.

While you're waiting for the next instalment of the animated films, check out the world of Haikyu!! in our geek shop. Thanks to our goodies from the franchise, figurines and other accessories, you can stay in the atmosphere of Japan's most famous volleyball competition.