After over 40 years, everything has changed for a soccer legend. The manga featuring Captain Tsubasa has concluded, yet there are still new tales to be told.

Multiple generations, including myself, grew up marveling at their goals, dribbles, and unbelievable saves in animation, but the time has come to bid farewell to a soccer legend. Following a 43-year run, the publication of the Captain Tsubasa manga has ceased in Japan. Nonetheless, its creator will continue to produce new stories for his work.

本日『キャプテン翼マガジン』最終号となるvol.20が発売！様々な思いを込めて描かれた『ライジングサンTHE FINAL』『MEMORIES4』、そして高橋先生からのご挨拶&発表と特別な一冊です。もちろん『キャプテン翼』企画も充実！ぜひお手に取って見てください！
　https://t.co/sE1zsr5J64 #キャプテン翼

— グランドジャンプ編集部 (@GrandJump) April 3, 2024

The beginning of a new chapter for Captain Tsubasa

Thus, the Japanese scriptwriter and artist has had to stop after releasing Captain Tsubasa manga since 1981, yet as we mentioned earlier, this does not mean an end to new narratives. Takahashi has made it clear in a statement that this is not the end for his characters:

“Thank you very much for all the kind words regarding the series’ conclusion. I am overwhelmed by the response and at the same time, I feel grateful to everyone. When I was in my last years of elementary school, I began to draw original manga with a pencil in a blank notebook, simply imitating what I saw, and that was the beginning of my career as a manga artist (…) Now, I will do the same as I did back then, a series of manga with pencil drawings.”

For this purpose, he has launched a new website in Japanese, which you can visit at the following link. From there, the manga creator hopes to have more freedom of expression, not being confined to the usual limits of a magazine. Regardless, today marks the end of a legendary era for soccer and manga, and another begins. We don’t yet know exactly what it will look like, but the author is excited about the prospects.