Manga Plus Service Adds Captain Tsubasa Manga in English

Shueisha announced on Sunday that its MANGA Plus service has added all chapters of Yōichi Takahashi‘s original Captain Tsubasa manga in English. All chapters will be free to read for one week. As of April 13 Japan time (April 12 at 11:00 a.m. EDT), the series will no longer be free but will be available through MANGA Plus‘ Deluxe Subscription plan.

This is the first time the manga is getting a solo English release. A bilingual edition in Japanese and English was released for the “eOneBook” reader device in September 2020.

Shueisha describes the manga:

Tsubasa Ozora is a boy who grew up considering his soccer ball as a friend. Tsubasa’s
dream is to be a part of Japan winning the World Cup. After transferring to Nankatsu
Elementary School, Tsubasa meets and challenges genius goalkeeper Genzo Wakabayashi
of Shutetsu Elementary to a match! The journey of Tsubasa becoming the best soccer player
in the world begins here!

Takahashi’s original 37-volume Captain Tsubasa manga ran in Shueisha‘s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine from 1981 to 1988, and it inspired four television anime series, four anime films, several OVAs, and a stage play. The manga is available in about 20 countries.

The Captain Tsubasa: Rising Sun manga revolves around Tsubasa as he aims to participate in the Olympics as a representative from Japan. Takahashi launched the manga in Shueisha‘s Grand Jump magazine in December 2013. The manga then moved to Captain Tsubasa Magazine, Grand Jump‘s spinoff magazine that focuses on the franchise, when it launched in April 2020.

Captain Tsubasa: Rising Sun The Final, the “final saga” of the overall Captain Tsubasa series, launched in Captain Tsubasa Magazine in April 2023. The manga ended in April 2024 alongside an announcement that Takahashi would retire from serializing manga. A new Captain Tsubasa: Rising Sun Finals manga is continuing the story in storyboard form on the franchise’s website.

Source: Press release