Anime like Free!

SK∞

Also known as SK8 the Infinity.

Studio: bones , Aniplex of America , ABC Animation , Movic , Aniplex
Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Sports

Reki, a high school sophomore and skater, is addicted to “S,” a highly secret and dangerous downhill skateboarding race that takes place in an abandoned mine. The skaters are especially wild about the “beefs,” or heated battles that erupt in the races.

Reki takes Langa, a transfer student returning to Japan after studying abroad, to the mine where the races are held. Langa, who has no skateboarding experience, finds himself pulled into the world of “S”...



Note: On March 13, 2021 a recap episode (9.5) went on air, postponing the broadcast of the regular episodes by one week.

Tags: Skateboarding , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , Ensemble Cast , Parkour , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , LGBTQ+ Themes , Slapstick , Urban , Found Family , Boys' Love , School , Artificial Intelligence , Butler , Gambling , Motorcycles , Restaurant

Yuuri!!! on ICE

Also known as Yuri!!! on ICE.

Studio: MAPPA , Crunchyroll
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Sports

Yuri Katsuki makes his way to the Grand Prix ice skating competition as Japan’s top representative with his eyes on the prize. However, instead of celebrating, Yuri walks away defeated and ready to retire for good. But a run-in with champion Viktor Nikiforov and rising star Yuri Plisetsky ignites a new fire within him. With the two of them close by his side, Yuri will take to the ice once more.



Tags: Ice Skating , Primarily Male Cast , Male Protagonist , LGBTQ+ Themes , Foreign , Bisexual , Boys' Love , Primarily Adult Cast , Rotoscoping , Coming of Age , CGI , Asexual , Tsundere , Tanned Skin

Tsurune: Kazemai Koukou Kyuudou-bu

Also known as Tsurune.

Studio: Kyoto Animation
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life , Sports

Minato played Japanese archery in middle school, but after a certain incident, he ran away from the sport. In high school, Minato meets new friends, and together as part of their school's archery club they aim to win the prefectural tournament.



Tags: Archery , School Club , Rehabilitation , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , School , Martial Arts , Tsundere , Twins , Coming of Age

RE-MAIN

Also known as RE-MAIN.

Studio: MAPPA , Bandai Namco Arts
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Sports

Just after winning a national water polo title in his third year of junior high, a car accident left Minato Kiyomizu in a coma. Nearly a year passes before he awakes, but with no memory of his last school year. Now in high school with a fresh start, he leaves the sport behind, but a promise has him returning to it. However, his new team is weak, and that’s just a sign for more problems to come.



Tags: School Club , Swimming , Male Protagonist , Amnesia , Primarily Male Cast , Tragedy , School , Anti-Hero , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Primarily Teen Cast , Ensemble Cast , Family Life , Tanned Skin , Suicide

Haikyuu!!

Also known as HAIKYU!!.

Studio: Production I.G , Sentai Filmworks
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Sports

Inspired after watching a volleyball ace nicknamed "Little Giant" in action, small-statured Shouyou Hinata revives the volleyball club at his middle school. The newly-formed team even makes it to a tournament; however, their first match turns out to be their last when they are brutally squashed by the "King of the Court," Tobio Kageyama. Hinata vows to surpass Kageyama, and so after graduating from middle school, he joins Karasuno High School's volleyball team—only to find that his sworn rival, Kageyama, is now his teammate.

Thanks to his short height, Hinata struggles to find his role on the team, even with his superior jumping power. Surprisingly, Kageyama has his own problems that only Hinata can help with, and learning to work together appears to be the only way for the team to be successful. Based on Haruichi Furudate's popular shounen manga of the same name, Haikyuu!! is an exhilarating and emotional sports comedy following two determined athletes as they attempt to patch a heated rivalry in order to make their high school volleyball team the best in Japan.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Tags: Volleyball , School Club , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , Shounen , Ensemble Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , School , Coming of Age , Fitness , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Kuudere

Bakuten!!

Also known as Backflip!!.

Studio: ZEXCS , Fuji TV , Buemon , Aniplex , Fujipacific Music , Dentsu , Animax , Aeon Entertainment , BS Fuji , Movic
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Drama , Sports

Each laugh takes them higher. Each tear makes them stronger.

The final summer of middle school, Shoutarou Futaba discovers boys gymnastics and is completely enamored by it. Shoutarou ends up going to Soshukan Private High School (Also known as Ao High) and decides to visit the boys gymnastics club. He's greeted by very unique senpais and a star gymnast named Misato Ryouya. Dedicating your life to something you love during your fiery days of youth... Of course, there is frustration, and fights, but see how these boys work together as a team towards a similar goal in this drama about sports and youth. This spring, see passionate boys give their all for their youthful dreams!



Tags: Athletics , Primarily Male Cast , Primarily Teen Cast , School Club , Male Protagonist , Acrobatics , School , CGI , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Musical Theater

Aoashi

Also known as Aoashi.

Studio: Production I.G , Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions , NHK Enterprises , BANDAI SPIRITS , Marvelous , Production I.G
Status: Finished
Genres: Sports

Ashito Aoi is a young, aspiring soccer player from a backwater town in Japan. His hopes of getting into a high school with a good soccer club are dashed when he causes an incident during a critical match for his team, which results in their loss and elimination from the tournament. Nevertheless, he catches the eye of someone important who happened to be visiting from Tokyo. How will things turn out for Ashito?



Tags: Football , Male Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Primarily Male Cast , Seinen , Ensemble Cast , Heterosexual , Coming of Age , School , Bullying , Time Skip , Love Triangle

Tsurune: Tsunagari no Issha

Also known as Tsurune - The Linking Shot -.

Studio: Kyoto Animation , Kyoto Animation , Pony Canyon , Bandai Namco Music Live , ABC Animation , Rakuonsha
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Slice of Life , Sports

The second season of Tsurune.

Minato’s return to archery may have helped Kazemai High’s Kyudo Club win a prefectural tournament, but it’s a poor bowman who expects an arrow to fly the same flight every time. With the entry of a radical new team, one of whose members is Minato’s former upperclassman, the old rivalry between Kazemai and Kirisaki becomes a triangle with the upstart team from Tsujimine as serious contenders. And even as the men’s team struggles to adjust to the new paradigm, competition doubles again as the Kazemai women’s team of Rika, Yuna, and Noa prepares to enter their first tourney as well! Prepare to be aquiver as each new arrow makes its mark in TSURUNE - THE LINKING SHOT!

Tags: School Club , Archery , Primarily Male Cast , Male Protagonist , Primarily Teen Cast , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , School , Twins , Martial Arts , Urban

Skate-Leading☆Stars

Also known as Skate-Leading Stars.

Studio: J.C.STAFF
Status: Finished
Genres: Drama , Sports

Kensei Maeshima left the world of figure skating after his rival said, “You’ll never beat me.” Years later, he’s using his athleticism to help several high school teams, never focusing on one. But when his adversary publicly announces a shift to a team sport, a kid familiar with Kensei’s past finds and offers him an invitation to lace up his skates and join the world of skate-leading.



Note: The series premiered on Funimation and affiliated streaming services (Wakanim, AnimeLab) on December 27, 2020. The Japanese broadcast started two weeks later on January 10, 2021.

Tags: Ice Skating , Primarily Male Cast , Male Protagonist , School Club , Athletics , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things

DIVE!!

Studio: Zero-G
Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Slice of Life , Sports

The series revolves around the Mizuki Diving Club (MDC), which is on the verge of closing down after having financial troubles. The club's new coach persuades the club's parent company to stay open on one condition: that the club sends one of its members to next year's olympics as part of Japan's olympic team.



Tags: Primarily Male Cast , Male Protagonist , Swimming , School Club , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Primarily Teen Cast