Sumo in Kyoto and Osaka This Winter (2026–27): December Jungyo, Sumo Shows and Haru Basho 2027 Tickets

Kansai has three ways to see sumo this winter. From December 7 to 12, 2026, the Grand Sumo winter tour (jungyo) stops in six Kansai towns. English-language sumo shows run in Osaka and Kyoto all winter. Tickets for the Haru Basho (March 14–28, 2027, EDION Arena Osaka) go on sale on Saturday, February 6, 2027. The Osaka tournament sold out every day in 2026, sells no same-day tickets once sold out, and costs more in 2027.

Quick answer: Kansai gets live professional sumo from December 7–12, 2026 (jungyo exhibitions in Miki, Nishinomiya, Katano, Yao, Sanda and Uji) and March 14–28, 2027 (Haru Basho, EDION Arena Osaka; tickets on sale February 6, 2027). In between, book an English sumo show in Namba, Nishinari or central Kyoto. Expect Haru Basho seats to sell out quickly.

Checked October 20–28, 2026. Prices in yen unless noted. We check dates against the Japan Sumo Association (JSA) and the official ticket sites, and we’ll update this page when the February 6 sale details are published.

Between December 13 and March 13, a show is the only sumo you can count on in Kansai. The cheapest one that puts you in the ring is Sumo Studio Osaka in Nishinari, and its Osaka: Sumo Experience with Live Show & Audience Challenge listing (from $32 on sale, 4.9/5 from 2,051 reviews) shows the dates still open below.

Key facts at a glance

For your trip, that means December and March are the two windows for real professional sumo in Kansai, and a show covers every night in between.

Sumo to book in Osaka and Kyoto this winter

Outside the tour and the tournament, Kansai’s sumo runs every week: sumo shows in Namba and Nishinari, chanko dinner shows in central Kyoto near Shinkyogoku and the Kyoto Imperial Palace, a front-row show near Kansai Airport, and guided seats at EDION Arena once the March tournament opens. If you are still choosing between a show and a tournament seat, our tour vs ticket cost guide runs the numbers.

Kansai winter sumo calendar, December 2026 – March 2027

The December 2026 jungyo: which Kansai stop to pick

A jungyo is a one-day exhibition. It isn’t a ranked tournament, and that’s the appeal: the rikishi (wrestlers) are relaxed and close enough to touch. Your ticket covers open morning practice, hair-tying demonstrations, shokkiri (comic sumo that acts out banned moves), sumo jinku (folk songs), drum displays, the yokozuna ring-entry and real bouts between top-division wrestlers. Many stops also run handshake and photo sessions. Promoters list “all makuuchi wrestlers from the November basho (excluding injured)” as taking part. Our December jungyo guide lists every stop on the tour, including the ones near Tokyo.

Typical program (Nishinomiya and Sanda official listings):

• 09:00 doors open; open practice
• 11:30 lower-division bouts; hair-tying, shokkiri, jinku, drums
• 13:00 makuuchi and yokozuna ring-entry; top-division bouts
• 14:30 bow-twirling ceremony (yumitori-shiki); finish

Times are approximate. BuySumoTickets lists Katano’s top-division block at about 13:30 and the finish at about 15:00.

Our pick: Katano (Wed Dec 9). Tickets are on general sale on the official Katano site and Ticket Pia. The venue is on the JR Gakkentoshi Line side of Osaka; the nearest station is JR Kawachi-Iwafune, but check the venue map. If you want an English-speaking guide, the Watch Sumo Up Close in Japan | Jungyo Regional Tour Tickets listing (from $317) includes a second-floor chair seat and a guide who handles admission. The venue and date depend on the option you select, so check that a Kansai stop appears for your date. It’s a new listing with no reviews of its own yet, and it isn’t suitable for children under 10.

Runner-up: Yao (Thu Dec 10). The first sale sold out, including wheelchair seats, on July 24, and a second sale opened at 10:00 on September 30. Overseas visitors face one hurdle here: the Yao office says it posts tickets from late October to early November. You need a Japanese address (many hotels accept post if you ask first), or a package that includes the ticket.

Probably too late: Nishinomiya (Dec 8), Sanda (Dec 11) and Uji (Dec 12) all show “予定枚数終了” (allocation finished) for seat tickets on Lawson Ticket. Miki (Dec 7) has sold out only its wheelchair and box-office allocations, not every seat, according to the local Harima news site on October 18. Watch the official resale and the ticket offices; don’t count on scalpers.

Kansai jungyo stops: getting there

Journey times are our planning estimates, not timetabled; check Google Maps or Jorudan the day before. Jungyo floor seats are shoes-off and the gyms can be cold in December, so bring a cushion and layers.

Sumo shows in Osaka and Kyoto

These are entertainment shows with retired professionals, not official tournaments. Hirakuza says so plainly: it is “not an official Grand Sumo tournament, but an interactive sumo entertainment show.” They’re still the only guaranteed way to see sumo in Kansai between December 13 and March 13.

GetYourGuide prices change daily with sales; the yen prices above come from operator or distributor pages, and the GetYourGuide figures were read on October 28, 2026.

In Osaka, go to Hirakuza if you want a polished night out in Namba, and Sumo Studio Osaka if you want to get into the ring for less money. In Kyoto, Kyoto Sumo Club is the dinner-and-show pick; Sumoan is the quieter, more educational one. Hirakuza’s opening hours have been listed as 11:00–23:00, closed Tuesdays and Dec 31–Jan 1, so check before you plan a Tuesday. Our Osaka sumo guide covers the city’s chanko restaurants and year-round options in more depth.

Haru Basho 2027: dates, tickets and prices

Dates: Sunday March 14 to Sunday March 28, 2027, EDION Arena Osaka. The ticket sale is Saturday February 6, 2027, and the banzuke comes out Monday March 1, 2027. You buy before you know the rankings, so pick the day, not the wrestler.

Which day? Six days carry weekend or holiday prices: Mar 14 (Day 1), Mar 20–22 (Days 7–9, including Vernal Equinox Day on Sun Mar 21 and the substitute holiday on Mon Mar 22), and Mar 27–28 (Day 14 and the final day, senshuraku). The nine weekdays are cheaper and less fought over. Our pick for most visitors is a Wednesday to Friday in week two (Days 11–13, Mar 24–26): the title race is taking shape, prices are at the weekday rate, and fewer people compete for seats.

How to buy on Feb 6, 2027: step by step

1. Before Feb 6: create a Ticket Oosumo account, either English or Japanese. The Japanese site gives you the fan club and lottery presales; the English site opens only on general-sale day. Make sure your credit card works for Japanese online purchases.
2. Seats can disappear in presale. The JSA warns that any seat type that sells out in the lotteries isn’t offered at general sale.
3. Sale morning: log in 15 minutes early. In 2026 the English sale opened at 10:00 JST on Feb 7, with credit card only, a ¥2,000 fee per ticket, and tickets “only printable at Seven-Eleven in Japan.”
4. Pick a seat type and day, then check out quickly. Box seats (masu) are sold by the whole box (2-, 3- or 4-person).
5. Print at any Seven-Eleven in Japan with your reservation number, at any time before you go.
6. Sold out? Use the JSA’s official fixed-price resale (from the Monday after general sale), check the Osaka tea houses (Futaba plans 2027 sales from about December 2026), or book a guided ticket tour. Avoid scalper sites: Japan’s 2018 Ticket Resale Act (Act No. 103 of 2018, in force since June 2019) bans reselling “specified tickets” above face value, with penalties of up to one year in prison and/or fines of up to ¥1 million, according to the Law Library of Congress. Our sold-out guide covers each route.

Sale time in your time zone

10:00 JST on Saturday, February 6, 2027 (the start time is expected, based on 2026):

2027 Osaka ticket prices (per person, tax included)

Source: JSA “本場所入場料金 (令和9年一月場所以降適用),” announced July 30, 2026 and updated October 1, 2026. Osaka’s new prices apply from the March 2027 basho.

Masu prices are per person, but you pay for the whole box: a weekday 4-person Masu C costs ¥38,000. Add ¥2,000 per ticket on the English site. Each sale may also add special “planning” tickets, such as kids’ or family boxes.

Will it sell out?

Yes, plan on it. Futaba, a JSA-licensed tea house, says the 2026 Osaka basho sold out every day. Ticket Oosumo’s March 2026 page said there would be no same-day tickets at the arena if presale sold out, and no unreserved (jiyu-seki) seats at all. The old trick of queueing at 7:45 for ¥2,100 unreserved seats, which older guides still describe, no longer applies.

If you miss the sale, the Osaka Grand Sumo Tournament Tour with Local Guide and Ticket (from $633) includes a chair seat and an English-speaking guide who briefs you before entry and helps with admission; you watch the bouts on your own. It’s a new listing with no reviews of its own yet, so read the seat class and dates before you book.

Getting to EDION Arena

EDION Arena is at 3-4-36 Nambanaka, about a 5–10 minute walk from the Namba stations (Nankai, Osaka Metro Midosuji/Yotsubashi/Sennichimae, Kintetsu/Hanshin Osaka-Namba). Stay in Namba or Shinsaibashi and you can walk.

A tournament day in Osaka (based on 2026)

• Doors 8:45 on Days 1–12, 10:30 on Days 13–14 and 10:00 on the final day
• Lower divisions in the morning; most visitors arrive after lunch
• Top-division ring-entry and bouts through the late afternoon; the last bout usually ends around 18:00
• One re-entry allowed; you must be back by 17:00

Watch the wrestlers arriving (iri-machi) at the arena entrance in the early-to-mid afternoon, and bring a portable FM radio or a phone with earbuds for the English commentary. Pick up local food (bento, takoyaki-style snacks) at the arena or in Namba beforehand.

Stable lodgings and morning practice (late Feb – March)

Most stables don’t have a permanent base in Osaka, so for the March basho they rent temples, shrines and inns, and a few let the public watch. The 2026 details are below; 2027 dates aren’t out yet, so confirm with each stable’s site or social media. Our morning practice calendar covers the Tokyo stables over the same months.

Free bonus: before the basho, Sumiyoshi Taisha hosts a yokozuna dedication ring-entry. On Feb 28, 2026, yokozuna Hoshoryu and Onosato performed an Unryu-style ring-entry there in front of about 2,500 people, according to a Kyodo wire report carried by regional papers. Hoshoryu’s Tatsunami stable lodges inside the shrine grounds. The 2027 date isn’t announced; we’ll post it here. If you are in Tokyo over New Year, our New Year sumo guide covers the Meiji Jingu ceremony.

Day trip: where sumo began (Nara)

• Sumo Jinja (Anashi, Sakurai): a small shrine within the grounds of Anashinimasu Hyozu Jinja. Tradition says Nomi no Sukune and Taima no Kehaya fought the first bout watched by an emperor here, dated in the Nihon Shoki to the 7th day of the 7th month of Emperor Suinin’s 7th year. It’s about a 30-minute walk east from JR Makimuku Station, near the Yamanobe-no-michi trail.
• Kehaya-za, the Katsuragi City Sumo Museum: 5 minutes’ walk from Kintetsu Taimadera Station, open 10:00–17:00 and closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays (open if those are holidays) and Dec 28–Jan 4. Entry is ¥300 for adults and ¥150 for school-age children; under-school-age is free. It has a full-size ring that anyone, women included, can step onto, a collection of 12,000 items (Osaka Convention & Tourism Bureau), and trophies, plaques and cups donated by the 69th yokozuna, Hakuho.
• Route: Osaka-Abenobashi to Taimadera on the Kintetsu Minami-Osaka Line, then on to Sakurai/Makimuku. It makes an easy half day, or a full day with Taima-dera temple.

Chanko in Kansai

Osaka and Kyoto have no Ryogoku-style street of chanko restaurants, so the easiest chanko comes with a show: Kyoto Sumo Club (all-you-can-eat chicken chanko), Sumoan Kyoto, and Hirakuza’s workshop experience (a bowl of “Hirakuza Special Chicken Chanko”). During the March basho, some stables hold chanko events at their lodgings; we’ll list confirmed 2027 events here.

Practical tips

• Pay with an IC card: ICOCA or any Suica/PASMO works on every route here. Most hops cost under ¥1,000, so wide rail passes rarely pay off for sumo alone.
• Where to stay: Namba or Shinsaibashi for Haru Basho; Kyoto Station or Kawaramachi if you’re going to Uji or the Kyoto shows.
• Winter: wear layers for gyms and early-morning practice viewing; jungyo floor seats are shoes-off.
• Etiquette: no flash at practice, keep quiet, and don’t touch wrestlers unless they’re offering handshakes or photos.
• Other months: in Japan in January? Our January 2027 Tokyo ticket guide has the December 5 sale plan, and the February 2027 Tokyo exhibitions fill the gap before Osaka. Heading west to Hiroshima for the Kure stop? Our Kyushu Basho guide covers Fukuoka.

FAQ

Is there a sumo tournament in Osaka in December?

No. December brings the jungyo regional tour (Dec 7–12 in Kansai). The Osaka tournament is in March.

When is the 2027 Osaka sumo tournament?

March 14–28, 2027, at EDION Arena Osaka.

When do Haru Basho 2027 tickets go on sale?

General sale starts Saturday, February 6, 2027 (expected 10:00 JST), after the Japanese presales.

How much are Osaka sumo tickets in 2027?

From ¥4,000 (Chair D) to ¥20,000 (Tamari), per person.

Can I buy same-day tickets at EDION Arena?

Only if seats are left. If presale sells out there are no same-day tickets, and no unreserved seats were sold in 2026.

Does the English ticket site charge a fee?

Yes, ¥2,000 per ticket in 2026; you pay by credit card and print at Seven-Eleven.

Is there sumo in Kyoto?

There’s no tournament, but the jungyo stops in Uji on Dec 12, 2026, and shows run nightly in central Kyoto.

What’s the best sumo show in Osaka?

Hirakuza for a polished show with a meal; Sumo Studio Osaka for a lower price and more time in the ring.

Are sumo shows real sumo?

Retired professionals perform them as entertainment, not official bouts.

Can kids attend?

Yes. Hirakuza sells child tickets for ages 3–12; tamari ringside seats at tournaments have age limits. Our guide to sumo with kids covers ages and child prices in Tokyo.

Can I watch sumo practice in Osaka?

In late February and March some stables open practice at their lodgings (in 2026, Arashio in Sakai and Asakayama in Ikoma).

Where did sumo begin?

Tradition points to Sumo Jinja in Sakurai, Nara; the Kehaya-za museum in Katsuragi honors Taima no Kehaya.

Which Haru Basho day is best?

A weekday in week two gives the best mix of price, availability and title-race drama.

Is the jungyo worth it?

Yes, if you want to get close to the wrestlers: practice, handshakes and top-division bouts in one day for ¥6,500 and up.

How we checked this guide

Haru Basho dates, the February 6 sale and the 2027 Osaka prices come from the JSA’s schedule and its 2027 price list (announced July 30, 2026, updated October 1, 2026). Jungyo dates, venues and ticket status come from the official stop sites, Lawson Ticket, eplus and Ticket Pia, plus local news for Miki. Hirakuza Osaka prices come from Hirakuza’s own ticket page; Kyoto Sumo Club prices from HIS and trepo.jp. GetYourGuide prices and ratings were read from the live listings on October 28, 2026. The Ticket Resale Act summary comes from the Law Library of Congress, and the Kehaya-za details from Katsuragi City.

Some details are still open. Uji’s availability conflicts between Lawson (allocation finished) and an aggregator (“on sale” on October 1), and Miki is only partly sold out. Katano’s finishing time differs by source (about 14:30 or 15:00). The 10:00 JST sale time is assumed from 2026; the date is official. The 2027 Sumiyoshi ring-entry date, stable lodgings and practice dates aren’t announced, and some 2026 practice data comes from aggregators. Kehaya-za’s collection is given as 12,000 items by the city and 13,000 by one tourism site.

Ready to Book?

If your trip falls between December 13 and March 13, book a show: Sumo Studio Osaka for time in the ring, Hirakuza in Namba for a polished hour, or Kyoto Sumo Club for dinner. If you’re in Kansai from December 7 to 12, Katano is the jungyo stop you can still buy, and for March, set an alarm for 10:00 JST on February 6 and keep our Haru Basho ticket plan open.