Sports Fandom Is One of Japan's Oldest Oshi-Katsu: What the J.League's 1 Million Pokémon Giveaway Teaches
Come to think of it, watching sports may be one of the longest-running forms of oshi-katsu in Japan.
Wearing your favorite’s jersey, raising a towel in their colors, traveling to away matches, packing the stadium and singing the chants (calls): what supporters have done for decades is the prototype of what we now call oshi-katsu.
Taking the big 2026 case of “Pokémon x J.League” as our way in, this article digs into the system for being loved that the J.League, Japan’s professional football league, has built over more than 30 years.
Background to this article: Since our April 2025 note article “The Surprising Tricks That Turn Sports Fans Into Your Oshi” (in Japanese), the Lab has kept following the oshi-katsu-ization of the J.League: an analysis of the J.League 100-Year Vision (in Japanese), field research on FC Imabari and Nagasaki (in Japanese), and our reporting on Pokémon x J.League in Podcast Episode 59 (released August 3, 2026, on Spotify and YouTube, in Japanese). This article brings that body of work up to date with the latest 2026 data.
Case Study: Pokémon x 60 J.League Clubs Hand Out a Million “Encounters”
The story that took over 2026 was the collaboration between Pokémon and all 60 J.League clubs. Each club was given a partner Pokémon, and collab goods were handed out on the scale of 1 million pieces.
Three things stand out in the design, and each is a lesson that other leagues and brands can borrow.
- 01Hand outClub x Pokémon goods, free
- 02AttachIt becomes "our" Pokémon
- 03ActCheering, attending, buying merch
A million pieces is a long-term bet on fans who will keep coming for ten years.
1. They Gave Before They Sold
- First, hand out the “club x Pokémon” encounter in huge numbers, for free
- The people who receive it grow attached to “our club’s Pokémon”
- Only after that attachment forms do the actions follow: cheering, attending and buying merch
The structure is the same as fukyo, spreading the word about your oshi: don’t make people love you; hand out the chance to. A million pieces is not the optimal answer if you look only at short-term efficiency. They handed them out anyway because it is a long-term design that goes after not one visitor today but one fan who will keep coming for ten years.
2. It’s “Not Random,” but You Can Still Collect
What fans dislike most about the way merch is sold today is random sales, where you can’t choose what you get. In the 2026 consumer survey on random goods (in Japanese), with 35,866 responses in total, 89.9% said they “dislike” or “strongly dislike” it.
- 60
- J.League clubs, each with a partner Pokémon
- 1M
- Collab goods handed out
- 89.9%
- Dislike or strongly dislike random sales
The cleverness of Pokémon x J.League is that the pairing is fixed for each club. You can’t pick it yourself, yet there is none of the unpleasantness of randomness, and the collectibility of “I want the other clubs’ Pokémon too” remains. In an era of strong headwinds for random goods, it is a model answer.
3. Each Side Handed the Other an “Entrance to the Rabbit Hole”
For the clubs, Pokémon is an entrance to new fans, children and families; for Pokémon, the clubs are a point of contact with local communities. Neither rides on the other: each swaps entrances to the other’s fandom. For a fuller analysis, see the Lab’s note explainer (in Japanese) and Podcast Episode 59.
The 100-Year Vision Was a Blueprint for “an Oshi for Life”
The 100-Year Vision that the J.League announced in 1996 is strikingly modern when translated into oshi-katsu terms (the Lab’s analysis, in Japanese).
- The hometown system: Your hometown gives you the answer to “who do I support?” The place you were born solves the first hurdle of meeting an oshi
- The story of promotion and relegation: From J1 to J3, the story doesn’t end whether you win or lose. Even the pain of relegation becomes “a reason to support them next season too”
- Passing it down through generations: Parents take their children to the stadium, and the children inherit their hako-oshi, support for the whole club. “Family” does the work of recruiting new fans
Idol oshi-katsu follows a cycle of encounter, fever and graduation. The J.League designed oshi-katsu without graduation from the start, and that is the biggest asset it has built up over 30 years.
The Clubs That Can Be Loved on “Days Without a Match” Are Stronger
- 01FamilyParents pass the club to children
- 02Promotion and relegationThe story never ends
- 03The hometown systemWhere you live decides who you support
Together they form oshi-katsu without graduation.
What symbolizes the shift in J.League viewing in 2026 is the stadium becoming a pilgrimage site (our research on FC Imabari and Nagasaki, in Japanese).
- Nagasaki Stadium City (opened 2024): A stadium integrated with a hotel, an arena and commercial facilities. Even on days with no match, people gather at “the oshi’s home base.” It is one of the largest privately led projects in Japan
- FC Imabari’s Asics Satoyama Stadium: Designed to deliberately add “reasons to visit besides the result,” building the club into the local community’s daily life
In oshi-katsu terms, this is the permanent version of a seichi, a fan pilgrimage site. Unlike a genba, a live event that disperses when the concert ends, a stadium is there 365 days a year. How do you get people to love you on days when there isn’t a match? The leading J.League clubs are starting to answer that question with the venue itself.
Supporter Culture Is the “Senpai” of Oshi-Katsu
Translate watching sports into oshi-katsu language and you’ll be surprised by how much the two share.
| Watching sports | How oshi-katsu says it |
|---|---|
| Jerseys and towel scarves | Oshi color goods and sansen outfits |
| Chants and cheer songs | Calls |
| Away trips | Ensei |
| Carrying a player’s squad number | Wearing your oshi’s name |
| Home stadium | Seichi, “home” |
| Fan clubs and season tickets | Fan club membership and zentsu (attending every show) |
In a 2026 Video Research survey, more than 40% said they have an oshi (data roundup with sources). Many sports fans are starting to realize that they are doing oshi-katsu. These days, “oshi player” and hako-oshi, backing a whole club, show up in sports newspaper headlines.
The Sports World’s Three Strengths in the Oshi-Katsu Market
- The story is updated every week: Results, transfers, growth. Sports is content whose supply structurally never runs dry
- It’s tied to the region: The hometown system builds seichi junrei and the local economy in from the start
- You can support it across generations: The culture of three generations of a family supporting the same club is an asset few other genres have
There are challenges too. In recruiting younger and female fans, there is a lot to learn from the oshi-katsu design of the entertainment world (oshi-color products, trading cards, social media campaigns, player birthday events in the spirit of seitansai), and in fact the “oshi-katsu shift” is accelerating, including at the B.League and in pro baseball.
Notes From The Oshi Lab: The Essence of a Collab Is “Designing the Encounter”
What Pokémon x J.League showed is that the essence of a sports x IP collab is not “sharing a ride on merch” but “designing the encounter.” And the J.League already has what comes after the encounter: the “oshi for life” mechanism grown by the 100-Year Vision, and stadiums that are becoming pilgrimage sites. The power to hand out encounters, and a vessel that lets people keep loving. The Lab believes that when both are in place, a sports club can stand alongside entertainment IP in the oshi-katsu market.
For inquiries about oshi-katsu measures for sports organizations and clubs, contact KAZAORI Inc. (in Japanese). The Oshi Score Check (free diagnostic) also supports a version for sports teams.
Related Articles
The B.League and Oshi-Katsu / Pro Baseball and Oshi-Katsu / What Is Oshi-Katsu Marketing? / The Oshi-Katsu Market Size (2026 Edition)
FAQ
Does following a sports team count as oshi-katsu?
Yes. Backing a particular player or club, wearing the jersey or towel and going to the stadium is oshi-katsu itself. The phrase "oshi player" has become common in recent years.
What was the Pokémon x J.League collab?
A 2026 campaign that made headlines, pairing Pokémon with all 60 J.League clubs. Each club was assigned a partner Pokémon, and collab goods were handed out on the scale of 1 million pieces. It drew attention as a design that creates "encounters with an oshi" in huge numbers.
What is the J.League's 100-Year Vision?
A long-term philosophy the J.League announced in 1996: "a happier country through sport." Built on the hometown system and local roots, it is a framework that lets people keep supporting their local club across generations. In oshi-katsu terms, it is a plan to create "an oshi for life."
