How to get sumo tickets for the 2027 Grand Tournaments
Checked against 19 official sources. 8 minute read.
What to know first
Buy on Ticket Oosumo (sumo.pia.jp), the official ticket site named by the Japan Sumo Association (JSA); it has an English version. For the January 2027 tournament in Tokyo (10 January 2027 to 24 January 2027), advance tickets go on sale on Saturday 5 December 2026. Tickets sell out: when we checked, every day of the November 2026 tournament was gone, with nothing sold on the day. The JSA says tickets bought on resale sites such as viagogo and StubHub will be refused at the door.
Next step: Pick your day and set an alarm. Every 2026 English-site sale we checked opened at 10:00 Japan time. If January 2027 follows that pattern, 10:00 on Saturday 5 December 2026 is 01:00 in London, 02:00 in Paris and Berlin, and 20:00 on Friday 4 December 2026 in New York.
- January 2027 tournament
- 10 January 2027 to 24 January 2027At Ryogoku Kokugikan
- Advance sales
- From 5 December 2026English-site sales in 2026 opened at 10:00 Japan time
- Tokyo 2026 prices
- Chair C from ¥3,500English site: ¥2,000 service fee per ticket
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On this page
Which channel fits your situation?
| Your situation | What to do |
|---|---|
| Buying from abroad for the 10–24 January 2027 tournament | Use Ticket Oosumo English (sumo.pia.jp/en) from the general sale on Saturday 5 December 2026. Every 2026 English-site sale we checked opened at 10:00 Japan time; pay by credit card and print the paper tickets at a Seven-Eleven in Japan. Watch for an English advance lottery, as offered for November 2026; whether one is offered for January 2027 must be checked. |
| You want ringside seats or Box S | These are sold on the Japanese site (sumo.pia.jp) only, which needs free registration and phone-number verification; in January 2026, ringside seats came only through the first fan-club lottery. |
| You read Japanese and want the earlier lotteries | Register on the Japanese site and watch for the lottery dates: for January 2026 there were four lotteries before the general sale, and winners had a day or two to pay. |
| Your day is sold out | Try another day or tournament on the English site, which shows remaining seats. Same-day tickets aren't sold when a day sells out in advance. |
| You want the Osaka tournament (14–28 March 2027) | Advance sales open on 6 February 2027 for the 14–28 March 2027 tournament at EDION Arena Osaka; Osaka prices differ from Tokyo. |
| A tour or resale site offers tickets | Ask in writing whether the tickets are JSA-authorised. Tickets from viagogo, StubHub and the other sites the JSA names are refused at the door. |
| You can't go after buying | Japanese-site card tickets not yet printed, or held as QR tickets, can go on face-value resale (refund minus a 10% fee if they sell). Treat an English-site ticket as non-refundable. |
Sources for this section: Japan Sumo Association: ticket information · Ticket Oosumo (English): top page · Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament · Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): January tournament
The six tournaments in 2027
There are six Grand Tournaments (honbasho) a year, each lasting 15 days. Three are at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo; the others are in Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka. Most advance sales open four to five weeks before the first day; July and November open about eight weeks ahead.
January: Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, 10 January 2027 to 24 January 2027. Advance sales open 5 December 2026; rankings (banzuke) published 21 December 2026.
March: EDION Arena Osaka (Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium), 14 March 2027 to 28 March 2027. Advance sales open 6 February 2027; banzuke 1 March 2027.
May: Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, 9 May 2027 to 23 May 2027. Advance sales open 10 April 2027; banzuke 26 April 2027.
July: IG Arena, Nagoya, 11 July 2027 to 25 July 2027. Advance sales open 15 May 2027; banzuke 28 June 2027.
September: Ryogoku Kokugikan, Tokyo, 12 September 2027 to 26 September 2027. Advance sales open 7 August 2027; banzuke 30 August 2027.
November: Fukuoka Kokusai Center, 14 November 2027 to 28 November 2027. Advance sales open 18 September 2027; banzuke 1 November 2027.
Sources for this section: Japan Sumo Association: Grand Tournament schedule
Where to buy: official channels only
Ticket Oosumo English (sumo.pia.jp/en) sells from the general-sale date. For the November 2026 tournament it also ran an International Advance Lottery from 8 to 11 September 2026 (results on 16 September), with a ¥550 special sales fee per ticket on top of the service fee. As of 18 October 2026 no such lottery had been announced for January 2027, so check the English site in November. For 2026 tournaments it took credit cards only, issued paper tickets printable only at a Seven-Eleven in Japan, and allowed no changes or cancellations "for whatever reason". Plan a convenience-store stop before the day, and don't lose the ticket: lost tickets can't be used to enter.
The English site added a ¥2,000 service fee per ticket. It doesn't say whether a four-person box counts as one ticket or four, so check the total on the confirmation screen before you pay. The Japanese site charges a ¥275 system fee per ticket, counted per person.
Ticket Oosumo Japanese (sumo.pia.jp) has more seat types and the earlier lotteries, but it is in Japanese and needs free registration; since June 2025 it has asked you to verify the phone number you register, without saying whether a non-Japanese number works. Some tickets are QR codes on your phone, and screenshots and printouts of them are refused.
The phone line (0570-02-9310, 10:00–18:00) is Japanese only and stops taking bookings two days before each day's bouts. The Kokugikan's tea houses sell boxes with food and an escorted entrance, but their operator says tickets are now hard to arrange.
Sources for this section: Japan Sumo Association: ticket information · Ticket Oosumo (English): top page · Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament · Ticket Oosumo (English): November tournament · Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): January tournament · Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): system fee notice · Kokugikan Service: sumo tea houses (Japanese)
Pre-sales before the general sale
As of 18 October 2026 the January 2027 pre-sale dates hadn't been posted. For January 2026 there were four Japanese-language lotteries before the general sale: two for paid fan-club members, one for registered Ticket Oosumo users and one on Ticket Pia, and winners had a day or two to pay. The first fan-club lottery was the only route to ringside seats.
The fan club's terms don't bar overseas residents, but they warn that without a home in Japan some services may not be available. The cheapest course that enters the first lottery (Sekiwake) cost ¥33,000 a year when we checked; Ozeki was ¥110,000 and Yokozuna ¥330,000. For most visitors, the English general sale is the realistic route. For November 2026 the English site also held an International Advance Lottery about a week and a half before the general sale; watch sumo.pia.jp/en in case one is offered for January 2027.
Sources for this section: Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): January tournament · Sumo Official Fan Club: payment and course fees (Japanese) · Sumo Official Fan Club: advance-lottery list (Japanese) · Ticket Oosumo (English): top page · Ticket Oosumo (English): November tournament
Seat types and 2026 Tokyo prices
These are January and September 2026 Tokyo prices (weekday / weekend and holiday). They match the JSA's price sheet dated 20 May 2024, but 2027 prices hadn't been published on 18 October 2026. Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka prices differ. In January 2027, Monday 11 January 2027 (Coming of Age Day) is a holiday.
Ringside (tamari-seki), a floor cushion beside the ring: ¥20,000 per person, Japanese site only. Box S (masu-seki) for four, nearest the ring: ¥56,000 / ¥60,000, Japanese site only.
Box A for four: ¥48,000 / ¥52,000. Box B: ¥40,000 / ¥42,000. Box C, furthest back: ¥34,000 / ¥38,000. All three are sold on the English and Japanese sites, as whole boxes.
Second-floor chairs: S ¥9,000 / ¥9,500, A ¥8,000 / ¥8,500, B ¥5,000 / ¥5,500, C ¥3,500 / ¥4,000, on both sites. Chair D is a QR ticket on the Japanese site only: adult ¥2,500, child (4–15) ¥500. Wheelchair seats for a user and one companion cost ¥8,000 for two and were booked by phone only, in Japanese.
Children aged 4 and over need a ticket, and so does a younger child who needs their own seat. The English site has no child prices. Our view: four adults in one box is a tight fit for hours, so chair S or A is more comfortable for most first visits.
Sources for this section: Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament · Japan Sumo Association: ticket prices by venue (PDF, 20 May 2024) · Cabinet Office, Japan: national holidays (CSV)
Worked example: four adults on a weekday in January 2027
Using the 2026 prices: Box A on a weekday is ¥48,000. If the English site's ¥2,000 fee counts the box as one ticket, the total is ¥50,000 (¥12,500 each); if it counts four tickets, it is ¥56,000 (¥14,000 each).
Four Chair S seats on the same weekday: ¥9,000 × 4 = ¥36,000, plus ¥2,000 × 4 = ¥8,000 in fees, so ¥44,000 (¥11,000 each). The chairs cost less and are easier on the knees; the box puts you on the floor closer to the ring.
Sources for this section: Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament
Resale sites, agencies and cancellations
The JSA names viagogo, BuySumoTickets, StubHub, ticketstreet, Ticket Ryutsu Center, Yahoo! Auctions and Mercari as unofficial, says their tickets will be refused entry, and lists fake tickets, tickets that never arrived and prices more than double face value. Its terms ban resale or transfer without permission, except non-profit transfers to family, friends or business contacts. Before booking a tour that includes sumo tickets, ask in writing whether they are JSA-authorised.
If you can't go, the Japanese site offers a face-value resale service for card-paid tickets that are not yet printed, or held as QR tickets. If someone buys your ticket you are refunded minus a 10% fee; if nobody does, you get nothing back. The English site doesn't mention resale, so treat an English-site ticket as non-refundable.
Sources for this section: Japan Sumo Association: be careful of ticket resale sites · Japan Sumo Association: spectator terms (Japanese) · Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): face-value resale guide · Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament
What to expect on the day
These were the 2026 Kokugikan arrangements; check the 2027 tournament page. Doors opened at 8:45 on most days, bouts ran until about 18:00, and the top division started around 14:00. One ticket covers the whole day, Tokyo allowed one re-entry if you were back by 17:00, and Nagoya allowed none.
The JSA bans bottles, cans, cool boxes, banners that block views and flash that disrupts bouts, and bags can be checked. The Sumo Museum inside the Kokugikan is free for ticket holders from 12:30 to 16:00 on tournament days. Our view: unless you want the whole day, arrive by about 13:00.
Sources for this section: Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament · Ticket Oosumo (English): July tournament · Japan Sumo Association: spectator terms (Japanese) · Japan Sumo Association: Sumo Museum
If tickets sell out
Try another day or tournament: the English site shows remaining seats, and Osaka's March 2027 sale opens on 6 February 2027. Same-day tickets aren't sold when a day sells out in advance.
Visit the Sumo Museum on a weekday between tournaments: it is free, open 10:00–16:30 (last entry 16:00), and closed on weekends, national holidays and over New Year. Regional tours (jungyo) visit smaller towns between tournaments, with tickets sold by each organiser; the JSA hadn't posted a 2027 tour schedule when we checked.
Watch a morning practice (asageiko) only where a stable's own notice or an arranged tour clearly allows it: the JSA's stable guide publishes no visitor rules. Stay quiet, ask before filming, never use flash, and never step onto the practice ring.
Sources for this section: Ticket Oosumo (English): top page · Japan Sumo Association: Sumo Museum · Japan Sumo Association: provincial tour schedule · Japan Sumo Association: sumo stable guide
Common mistakes
Buying on a resale site and being turned away at the door.
Showing a screenshot or printout of a QR ticket.
Forgetting to print paper tickets at a Seven-Eleven in Japan, or losing them.
Getting the date wrong: 10:00 on a Saturday in Japan is Friday evening in the Americas.
Key facts, checked 18 October 2026
January 2027 tournament: 10 January 2027 to 24 January 2027 at Ryogoku Kokugikan; advance sales from 5 December 2026 (JSA).
English-site sales in 2026 opened at 10:00 Japan time; the January 2027 time was not posted on 18 October 2026.
English site, 2026: credit card only, ¥2,000 service fee per ticket, paper tickets printed at Seven-Eleven, no changes or cancellations. For November 2026 advance-lottery purchases, a further ¥550 special sales fee applied per ticket.
Tokyo 2026 prices: Chair C from ¥3,500; Box A ¥48,000 for four on weekdays.
Sources for this section: Japan Sumo Association: Grand Tournament schedule · Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament · Ticket Oosumo (English): November tournament
Questions about this guide
What time do sumo tickets for January 2027 go on sale?
Advance sales open on Saturday 5 December 2026. The time wasn't posted when we checked, but in 2026 the English site opened at 10:00 Japan time, which is late Friday evening in the Americas and the small hours of Saturday in Europe. Log in and choose your day before then.
Can I buy sumo tickets before the general sale from overseas?
Only when the English site offers an advance lottery, which it did once in 2026. For the November 2026 tournament the English Ticket Oosumo site ran an 'International Advance Lottery' from 8 to 11 September 2026, with a ¥550 special sales fee per ticket on top of the ¥2,000 service fee; its rules page had been taken down when we checked, so eligibility and limits are unknown. The January 2026 pre-sales were Japanese-language lotteries, and the first lottery needed a fan-club course costing at least ¥33,000 a year. No English lottery for January 2027 had been announced on 18 October 2026, so the general sale on 5 December 2026 is still the realistic route for most visitors.
Can I buy sumo tickets for friends travelling with me?
Yes. The Japan Sumo Association's terms allow non-profit transfers to family and friends. What they ban is resale or transfer for profit without permission, and tickets from resale sites such as viagogo and StubHub are refused at the door.
Which sumo seat is best for a first visit?
Chair S or A on the second floor for comfort, at ¥9,000 or ¥8,000 on a Tokyo weekday in 2026. A box suits a group of four who want the floor experience and don't mind sitting cross-legged for hours; boxes are sold whole, for four people.
Official pages for this guide
The rules in this guide come from the official pages below. Japan, Booked. does not book or submit requests on your behalf.
- Japan Sumo Association: Grand Tournament schedule
- Ticket Oosumo (English): November tournament
- Sumo Official Fan Club: advance-lottery list (Japanese)
- Japan Sumo Association: ticket information
- Ticket Oosumo (English): top page
- Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament
- Ticket Oosumo (English): July tournament
- Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): January tournament
- Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): system fee notice
- Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): face-value resale guide
- Japan Sumo Association: ticket prices by venue (PDF, 20 May 2024)
- Japan Sumo Association: be careful of ticket resale sites
- Japan Sumo Association: spectator terms (Japanese)
- Japan Sumo Association: Sumo Museum
- Japan Sumo Association: provincial tour schedule
- Japan Sumo Association: sumo stable guide
- Kokugikan Service: sumo tea houses (Japanese)
- Sumo Official Fan Club: payment and course fees (Japanese)
- Cabinet Office, Japan: national holidays (CSV)
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Sources and how this guide was checked
Published · Based on official sources · no affiliate links
Official sources
These official sources explain the rules and conditions used in this guide. Live availability and your own booking, admission or service outcome still need to be confirmed for your trip.
- Ticket Oosumo (English): November tournament
What this confirms: Lists the ¥550 special sales fee per ticket charged on November 2026 advance-lottery purchases, in addition to the ¥2,000 service fee.
Last checked - Sumo Official Fan Club: advance-lottery list (Japanese)
What this confirms: The list checked on 18 October 2026 ends with November 2026 lotteries; no January 2027 entry was listed.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: Grand Tournament schedule
What this confirms: Lists the 2027 venues, dates, advance-sale dates and banzuke dates.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: ticket information
What this confirms: Names Ticket Oosumo as the official sale site.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (English): top page
What this confirms: Shows the 2027 sale dates, the sold-out status of the November 2026 tournament and its International Advance Lottery banner.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament
What this confirms: Gives the 2026 sale time, payment, fee, Seven-Eleven pickup, prices, door times, re-entry and the no-cancellation rule.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (English): July tournament
What this confirms: Shows the 10:00 sale time and that Nagoya allowed no re-entry in 2026.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): January tournament
What this confirms: Lists the 2026 lotteries, QR ticket rules and phone booking.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): system fee notice
What this confirms: Sets the ¥275 system fee per ticket on the Japanese site.
Last checked - Ticket Oosumo (Japanese): face-value resale guide
What this confirms: Explains which tickets can be listed, the deadlines and the 10% fee.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: ticket prices by venue (PDF, 20 May 2024)
What this confirms: Gives seat prices by venue, including the Chair D child price.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: be careful of ticket resale sites
What this confirms: Names unofficial resale sites and says their tickets will be refused.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: spectator terms (Japanese)
What this confirms: Bans unauthorised resale and lists banned items and conduct.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: Sumo Museum
What this confirms: Gives opening hours, closures and tournament-day access.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: provincial tour schedule
What this confirms: Lists regional tour events and links to their organisers.
Last checked - Japan Sumo Association: sumo stable guide
What this confirms: Lists every stable but publishes no rules for visitors.
Last checked - Kokugikan Service: sumo tea houses (Japanese)
What this confirms: Explains the tea-house boxes and notes that tickets are hard to arrange.
Last checked - Sumo Official Fan Club: payment and course fees (Japanese)
What this confirms: Gives the yearly fees for the Sekiwake, Ozeki and Yokozuna courses.
Last checked - Cabinet Office, Japan: national holidays (CSV)
What this confirms: Lists Coming of Age Day 2027 as 11 January 2027.
Last checked
About this guide
January 2027 sumo tickets go on sale on 5 December 2026 at Ticket Oosumo (in English). Tournament dates, seat prices, resale risks, sold-out options.
Checked against Japan Sumo Association and Ticket Oosumo pages on 18 October 2026. The January 2027 sale time, 2027 prices and pre-sale dates were not yet posted; the times and prices below are 2026 figures. Japan, Booked. is independent and this page has no affiliate links.
How we checked this
Sources and limits of this guide
These dated notes clarify what is confirmed by official sources—and what you still need to verify yourself.
If columns are cut off, scroll sideways. Keyboard: focus the table, then use Left/Right Arrow keys.
| Question | What we found | Where it comes from | What this means for your trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| When do January 2027 tickets go on sale? | On 5 December 2026; the time was not posted, but every 2026 English-site sale opened at 10:00 Japan time. | Japan Sumo Association: Grand Tournament schedule | Set an alarm for 10:00 Japan time and recheck the page in November 2026. |
| Can I buy on viagogo or StubHub? | No: the JSA says tickets from those sites will be refused at the door. | Japan Sumo Association: be careful of ticket resale sites | Buy only on Ticket Oosumo. |
| Can I cancel an English-site ticket? | No: the English site allows no changes or cancellations and doesn't mention resale. | Ticket Oosumo (English): January tournament | Buy only for a day you are sure of. |
| What does the English ticket site charge? | In 2026 it charged a ¥2,000 service fee per ticket, took credit cards only, and issued paper tickets printed at Seven-Eleven. For November 2026 advance-lottery purchases, it added a ¥550 special sales fee per ticket. | Ticket Oosumo (English): January and November tournaments | Add the service fee to your budget; the November 2026 advance lottery also added ¥550 per ticket. Print the tickets at a Seven-Eleven in Japan. |
Based on official sources, linked below.
Guide updates Reviewed
When this guide was checked and what changed
- First published
- Last checked
- Check again by
- What we checked
- Japan Sumo Association schedule, ticket, resale, terms, museum, tour and stable pages, Ticket Oosumo English and Japanese pages, the Sumo Official Fan Club, Kokugikan Service and the Cabinet Office, checked 8 October 2026 and 9 October 2026.
- Latest update
- : Added the November 2026 International Advance Lottery and its ¥550 special sales fee per ticket, clarified that eligibility and limits could not be checked, and kept January 2027 lottery details unconfirmed. Checked 18 October 2026.
The date above reflects when these checks were last run. If an individual source was rechecked later, you’ll see that date next to it below. Other copy edits are listed in the update history.
Who edits this guide
One editor looks after this guide
Japan, Booked. is run and edited from Japan. The same editor checks the Japanese and English sources, writes the traveller-facing guidance and keeps the correction history up to date.
What changed
Update history
- English advance lottery
Added the November 2026 International Advance Lottery and its ¥550 special sales fee per ticket, clarified that eligibility and limits could not be checked, and kept January 2027 lottery details unconfirmed. Checked 18 October 2026.
- Scheduled recheck
Rechecked on 11 October 2026: the dated facts in this guide were compared with their primary sources. Nothing had changed.
- Situation table
Added a “your situation, what to do” table, using only facts already in this guide. No facts were rechecked, so the review date is unchanged.
- First published
First published: the six 2027 tournament dates and sale dates, how Ticket Oosumo English works, pre-sales, seat types and 2026 Tokyo prices, a worked example for four adults, resale risks, what to expect on the day and what to do if tickets sell out, checked against official pages on 8 October 2026 and 9 October 2026.
If an operator, organiser or product changes in a way that affects the guide, we check it again sooner. Reader reports help us spot what to investigate, and we verify them against current official information before publishing. Read our update and corrections policy. See every guide's review schedule. Suggest an improvement to this guide.