Source: CBS Sports
WorldGrand Sumo Tournament comes to London for the second time outside Japan in the sport’s 1,500-year historyByArchie ClarkeUpdated on: October 18, 2025 / 10:01 AM EDT/ CBS NewsLondon —The world of professional sumo wrestling stepped outside of Japan for only the second time in its centuries-long history on Wednesday night, as fighters clashed on a specially constructed ring in the middle of London’s Royal Albert Hall.The iconic venue in the British capital is hosting the Grand Sumo Tournament—the roughly 1,500-year-old sport’s most important competition—for the second time, drawing more than 44 professional wrestlers, or rikishi, to compete in 100 bouts over five days. The only other time the tournament was held outside Japan was in 1991, when it also came to the Royal Albert Hall.There are unique challenges in bringing sumo to London, as the contemporary national sport of Japan is rooted in two millennia of tradition, interwoven with the Shinto religion, and thus treated with the utmost respect and protection to ensure adherence to its rituals and norms.Sumo wrestlers Kitanowaka Daisuke and Fukutsuumi Akira of Japan pose with a London Black Cab following an event to announce the Grand Sumo Tournament being held at the Royal Albert Hall, in London, England, Dec. 4, 2024.Ryan Pierse/Getty”One of the things that we’ve worked really hard at is to make sure that we have a good understanding of the cultural and religious significance that sumo has,” Matthew Todd, the Royal Albert Hall’s programming director, told CBS News.He said attention to detail was “really critical to the authentic presentation that we’re able to make here.”That meant shipping 11 tons of clay from Japan to construct the ring, or dohyo, in the center of the concert venue, where the wrestlers compete. Shipping containers were at sea for three months making the voyage. A big team of ring attendants (yobidashi), also had to make the trip from Japan—alongside 11 interpreters to help them communicate with British workers.A general view as the ring, or dohyo, is constructed for the Grand Sumo Tournament at Royal Albert Hall, Oct. 13, 2025, in London, England.Ryan Pierse / Getty ImagesThe roof for the dohyo, now suspended from the Albert Hall ceiling, was built in Britain, but its design is taken straight from traditional Japanese Shinto shrines, which, according to Todd, “helps to show that this is a sacred area,” in which routines and holy ceremonies are conducted as part of the tournament.It’s a vital step, he said, to ensure the Shinto gods are paid their due respects before the fights.Female sumo wrestlers fight for visibility in Japan’s male-dominated sportSumo is deeply intertwined with Japanese culture and religion in ways that many Western sports fans may find difficult to comprehend. According to legend, it originated as a ritual to ask the gods for a bountiful harvest, but it transformed over almost 2,000 years into the sport it is today, drawing competitors still primarily …
Published: 2025-10-18T14:01:26
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