Blue Lock: Plot

The plot is set after the elimination of Japan's national team from the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which prompts the country's federation to initiate a training program to prepare a team of high school students for the 2022 World Cup. The protagonist, Isagi Yoichi, receives an invitation to join this program after his team's failed attempt to reach the Nationals, because he passed the ball to a teammate who missed the shot instead of scoring himself. The training coordinator, Ego Jinpachi, aims to eradicate the idea of "weak football in Japan" by implementing a new regime that involves isolating 300 young strikers in a prison-like institution called "Blue Lock", created by Jinpachi Ego and funded by the Japan Football Union. There, they undergo rigorous training with the goal of creating the best striker in the world. The project began on November 20, 2018. Faculty members: Anri Teieri: Blue Lock Facility Manager and Assistant Coach for the Blue Lock Eleven. After the defeat of the Japan National Team in the 2018 World Cup, Anri proposes to the executives of the Japan Football Union a plan to help Japan succeed in winning the World Cup. Jinpachi Ego: General director/manager of the Blue Lock Project, handpicked by Anri Teieri. Anri Teieri, part of the Japan Football Union, introduced Jinpachi Ego to the Japan Football Association. He proposed Ego as the leader of the Blue Lock Project, showing faith in Ego's leadership abilities and agreeing to adhere to his demands.

Blue Lock Arcs: Introduction

Introduction Arc: Jinpachi Ego, the creator of Blue Lock, explains to the 300 high school forwards are gathered in order to create Japan's greatest striker all about his goal of creating the world's best striker and making Japan worthy of winning the World Cup. As part of the Blue Lock Project, players will live at the facility and follow a strict training regimen. The project also comes with heavy consequences — those who are eliminated will essentially have their soccer career ruined and be unable to play for Japan in the future. The entrance exam to Blue Lock wherein the 300 participants are divided into 25 groups of 12 people and every 12 people are held in a large room and the last person who is hit with the football by the end of 136 seconds in a game of tag is disqualified. Once that person is eliminated the remaining 11 people form a "team" and proceed to the next selection.

Blue Lock Arcs: First Selection

First Selection Arc: Afterward, Jinpachi Ego announces the First Selection round-robin tournament which divides the twenty-five teams into five subsections. Only the top two teams will advance further in the Blue Lock Project, and the players can advance through the tournament in two ways: through the scores of their team or based on how many goals they personally scored. These rules created conflict in the matches, with players selfishly wanting to score the most points and refusing to work together as a team. As some of the lowest ranked players in the Blue Lock Project, Isagi and his allies are on Team Z. They suffered a brutal 5-1 loss in their first match before coming together better as a team and managing to clutch a win in their second game. A 4-4 tie with Team W resulted in Team Z playing a third round match against Team V, narrowly squeaking by and winning 5-4.

Blue Lock Arcs: Second Selection

Second Selection Arc: On December 30, 2018, following Team Z's survival of the First Selection, Ego quickly moves the players on to an even more rigorous second selection that will narrow the remaining contestants down to just 35. The Second Selection is divided into 4 stages where each player must pass every stage in order to move on to the next round. A holographic goalkeeper forces the contestants to play at the top of their game, scoring 100 goals within 90 minutes to pass through to the next part of the selection process. The difficulty in the holographic challenge increases along the way, with additional holograms being added to make scoring a goal even more difficult. Then, the players face off in a series of grueling matches that put their Blue Lock Project fate on the line. After multiple rounds of exciting Blue Lock games, the Second Selection enters its "clear stage" where teams of four are pitted against each other and the first team to score 5 goals emerges victorious. The winning team chooses one member of the losing team to continue on, and after Isagi's team loses, he is luckily selected to join a winning team and continue his journey to achieve his goals.

Blue Lock Arcs: Third Selection

Third Selection: Forming a team of five, Isagi, Bachira, Rin, Jyubei, and Tokimitsu play against five world class players. With just 35 players remaining in the Blue Lock Project, Ego's Third Selection process forces the surviving players to work together with the current top six best players in the entire project. These highly ranked Blue Lock competitors are Rin Itoshi, Ryusei Shido, Tabito Karasu, Eita Otoya, Kenyu Yukimiya and Seishiro Nagi. The top six split off into three different teams, with Rin and Shido leading Team A, Karasu and Otoya as captains for Team B, and Yukimiya and Nagi rounding things out for Team C. Each and every one of the "Locked-off" players would be offered a second and final chance at Blue Lock by participating in the secret Wild Card challenge. The detail to the challenge remains unknown, but ultimately, only one player would remain standing at the end and would then continue on into the Phase Two selections. A series of five matches ensues, pitting the 35 players against each other under the leadership of the Blue Lock elite. At the end, Ego arrives and announces the Blue Lock Eleven — the official starting lineup for Team Blue Lock, and the best eleven players will be chosen to form the Blue Lock Eleven to challenge Japan's U-20 team.

Blue Lock Arcs: Blue Lock Eleven vs U-20 Japan

Blue Lock Eleven (XI) vs U-20 Japan Arc: The Blue Lock Eleven will face the Japan U-20 in a National Representative match for the chance to secure control of the Japan National team and show their skills to the world. But with Sae Itoshi leading the team and Ryusei Shidou joining him. With the formation of the Blue Lock Eleven, the new team debuts and is ready to face their fated rivals, the Japan U-20 — the very team that the Blue Lock Project was created to take down. At this junction, Ego is closer than ever to being successful at his mission, and he hopes the team perform well enough to secure a victory (allowing him to take over the Japanese National soccer team). Because the Blue Lock Team is made up entirely of strikers, they all tend to be pretty selfish players with very aggressive playstyles, and this proves to be the opposite approach of their rivals on the U-20 team. An intense game between U-20 and the Blue Lock Eleven eventually ended with Isagi making a clutch final goal, changing the tide of the match and giving Blue Lock the win, 4-3. After Blue Lock obtained their surprising victory over the Japan U-20 team, Ego is given complete control over the Japanese National Team and many investors are interested in supporting his endeavors. He uses his new resources to train the players even harder to get them ready for the World Cup, and he also turns Blue Lock into an entertainment program streaming around the world.

Blue Lock Arcs: Neo Egoist League

Neo Egoist League Arc: The Blue Lock Project now emulates Europe's Top 5 soccer leagues with the Neo Egoist League. On March 10, 2019, each and every Blue Lock player who made it to the Third Selection as well as the only Wild Card survivor, along with the regulars from the old Japan U-20 are made to decide on a country to train in. The players must decide on a country to train in based on preference and what they wish to gain from the training. When the players pick their country, they will be separated into strata based on that country and will get to train with the U-20 level players of the best club team in those respective countries and the master striker that reigns over that team and country. After initial training, a team of 11 made up of whoever gets picked as a regular by the master striker from the club team or Blue Lock will play in a Round Robin tournament that will pit Blue Lock rivals and world-class players against each other in short but highly dynamic games. After the tourney is over, only the top Blue Lock players of the remaining 23 players will be picked as regulars for the reconstructed Japan U-20 team in the upcoming U-20 World Cup.

Jinpachi Ego

Jinpachi Ego is the general director/manager of the Blue Lock Project, handpicked by Anri Teieri. Ego is a tall, skinny, pale man with an unusually long neck. He has black hair styled into a bowl cut and is often seen wearing a pair of black-framed eyeglasses, black jeans with a belt, and a black shirt with a bolo tie on his neck. He also wears a silver watch on his left wrist and crocs instead of socks and shoes. His eyes are usually depicted as black with dark circles under his eyes further emphasize his obsessive dedication to his work, giving him a perpetually exhausted yet intense look. During the U-20 match, he was seen wearing a suit (in the anime it's blue), a rare departure from his usual casual attire. By the time of the Neo Egoist League, Ego's hair had gotten noticeably longer. Furthermore, he's often seen in a crouched position when standing or sitting, giving the impression of a bad posture. Ego is introduced as a man who radiates ambition and confidence. His egotistical nature is undeniable, especially given his belief that only his methods can lead to Japan's victory in the World Cup. Ego's grandiosity and self-assuredness drive him to push forward with the Blue Lock project, an idea that seems extreme and ruthless to others. He dismisses conventional football strategies, favoring his approach to fostering egoism in strikers, which he views as the key to greatness. One of Ego's most distinctive personality traits is his disdain for altruism in football.

Anri Teieri

Anri Teieri is a new hire of the Japan Football Union. Sometime after the defeat of the Japan National Team in the 2018 World Cup, Anri proposes to the executives of the Japan Football Union a plan to help Japan succeed in winning the World Cup. She believed in the potential of Blue Lock, a project designed to cultivate world-class strikers. Anri argued that Japan's conventional passing style was a barrier to victory, and a fresh approach was necessary to compete effectively on the global stage. Anri is an attractive young woman with delicate features, neck-length brown hair styled with two braids tied on either side at the back, and square bangs that fall gently over the left side. Her eyes are a deep chocolate brown. She usually wears a secretary-like outfit that suits her role. Anri is a calm but very determined young woman whose biggest dream is to see Japan win the World Cup. She is passionate when it comes to football, and although the majority in the Japan Football Association ridiculed her and treated her as nothing more than a woman with big dreams and a big chest, she sticks to her goals and visions. While generally polite and professional, she speaks her mind, especially in regards to her dreams of winning the World Cup, and is unaffected by the business-minded Japan Football Association ideologies.

Blue Lock: Location

Blue Lock is a training facility (and the main location) that was built for prodigious Japanese football players to live in. The building is a massive structure that spans the entirety of a large cliff in the mountains of Japan, being as tall as a skyscraper. It's shaped like a pentagon and has 3 floors designated as 1F, 2F, and 3F. 1F is the main floor for the players and is divided into five different sections, each section designated as a stratum for a specific team and includes plenty different spaces like: several dormitories, a central canteen for all teams, training rooms and soccer practice fields. Each section of 1F contains 4 high-tech training rooms, lockers, a bathroom, a dormitory, and a data monitoring room for reviewing in-house games and stats. 2F and 3F are large training fields, capable of hosting professional matches. SCHEDULE FOR PLAYERS: 12:00 am to 6:30 am: Sleep. 7:00 am to 7:30 am: Wake up and Breakfast. 8:00 am to 8:30 am: Training with the Machines in the Training Room. 9:00 am to 9:30 am: Individual Warmup and Running. 10:00 am to 11:30 am: Team Training (Tactical Training and Team Practice). 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm: Lunch Time and Break. 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm: Team Training (Tactical Training and Game Practice). 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm: Individual Training (some may finish early, go to shower, and eat). 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm: Dinner Time. 8:00 to 9:30 pm: Team Meeting (Analysis of Tactics and Analysis of Opponents). 10:00 pm to 11:30 pm: Free Time.

Blue Lock Teams: Bastard München

Bastard München is a professional football team in the German leagues in Blue Lock. It's known as one of the best teams in Europe and is home to the best striker in the world, Noel Noa. With logic and rationality, Bastard München performs the best and most ideal plays with the most efficient amount of effort. Has a solid defense using their rationality to shut down all shooting courses and deprive the opposition opportunity in front of the goal. Even if a goal is attempted, they're able to react and counter in the most critical moments and easily transition into attack. The team's biggest flaw is its team play: they're divided in assisting 1 of 2 of its goalscorers while everybody looks for chances to make their own goals. There's no coordination between the best players on the field causing a lack of efficiency in certain areas of the game. COLOR: Black, Red, Gold. COACH: Noel Noa. NOTABLE MEMBERS: 1# Bachman, 2# Mensah, 3# Theo Sachs, 4# Ndiaye, 5# Benedict Grim, 6# Birkenstock, 7# Ali, 8# Alexis Ness, 9# Noel Noa, 10# Michael Kaiser, 11# Yoichi Isagi, 13# Erik Gesner, 15# Kenyu Yukimiya, 16# Ranze Kurona, 20# Igor Schneider, 22# Jingo Raichi, 23# Yo Hiori, 50# Rensuke Kunigami, 69# Jin Kiyora, 76# Gurimu Igarashi, 99# Gin Gagamaru, Teppei Neru (Reserve). KIT PROVIDER: Abibas. LIST OF MATCHES: Bastard München vs. FC Barcha (3-2) [Win] Bastard München vs. Manshine City (3-2) [Win] Bastard München vs. Ubers (3-2) [Win] Bastard München vs. Paris X Gen (2-2) [Ongoing]

Blue Lock Teams: FC Barcha

FC Barcha is a professional football team in the Spanish League in Blue Lock. It is known as one of the best teams in Europe and is home to one of the best strikers in the world, Lavinho. FC Barcha scores goals through freedom, creativity, self-motivation, improvisation, and rhythm. They perform unreadable rhythmic and creative plays that surprise their opponents at every turn, forcing them to act rashly and fall into their rhythm. When the team is lacking in defense they make up for it in unpredictable counters. The main striker and center of the team during the Neo Egoist League is Meguru Bachira using his superior dribbling, passing, and juggling ability to unexpectedly get the ball down the field and creatively sending it to his teammates, putting himself in a position to score right after; Eita Otoya plays as a winger and supports Bachira's unpredictability by finding himself in the most ideal position and using his one touch passing to keep the ball moving. COLOR: Red, Black, Yellow. COACH: Lavinho. NOTABLE MEMBERS: 1# Moro, 2# Ruiz, 3# Uraziz, 4# Gomez, 5# So, 6# Espesso, 7# Bos, 8# Meguru Bachira, 9# Ignacio Lara, 10# Picasso, 13# Eita Otoya, 87# Lavinho, Haru Hayate, Miroku Darai, Teru Kitsunezato, Itsuki Wakatsuki, Aiki Himizu, Shizuka Haiji, Tetsu Sokura (Reserve). KIT PROVIDER: Nike. LIST OF MATCHES: FC Barcha vs. Bastard München (2-3) [Lose] FC Barcha vs. Ubers (1-3) [Lose] FC Barcha vs. Paris X Gen (2-3) [Lose] FC Barcha vs Manshine City (0-0) [Ongoing]

Blue Lock Teams: Ubers

Ubers is a professional football team in the Italian leagues in Blue Lock. It is known as one of the best teams in Europe and is home to one of the world's best strikers, Marc Snuffy. Ubers is a team based in defense that prioritizes individual strength, strategy, and teamwork to achieve victory. Ubers runs as an army more than a team, boasting an ultimate defense and a flexible play style of teamwork and strategy, scores goals by achieving synchrony on the field with a strong attack and defense that surprises and confuses the enemy through intricate technical plays. Ubers biggest flaws is their over reliance on Baro as a striker when multiple players have goal scoring abilities to offer, giving the team less options and making them more predictable when everybody has a designated job and never plays out of that position. COLOR: Black, White. COACH: Marc Snuffy. NOTABLE MEMBERS: 1# Canali, 2# Don Lorenzo, 4# Abdi, 5# Drago, 6# Rico, 8# Peron, 10# Marc Snuffy, 13# Shoei Baro, 17# Jyubei Aryu, 18# Shuto Sendo, 23# Oliver Aiku, 25# Ikki Niko, 50# Gen Fukaku, Yukio Ishikari (Reserve), Kyohei Shiguma (Reserve), Shingen Tanaka (Reserve) KIT PROVIDER: Duma. LIST OF MATCHES: Ubers vs. Paris X Gen (2-3) [Lose] Ubers vs. FC Barcha (3-1) [Win] Ubers vs. Bastard München (2-3) [Lose] Ubers vs. Manshine City (3-1) [Win]

Blue Lock Teams: Manshine City

Manshine City is a professional football team in the English leagues in Blue Lock. It's known as one of the best teams in Europe and is home to one of the best strikers in the world, Chris Prince. Manshine City is a team that achieves victory by stealing goals through the laws of physical prowess. Due to the speed and coordination of the players, the team's defense is very solid and easily fortified by multiple players making it hard for them to be scored on. The team's biggest flaw is the developmental phase the center of their attack is going through: as an inexperienced and not properly motivated player, Nagi lacks drive to be creative, this spreads to the rest of the team because they most focus on assisting Nagi and they become predictable in their counters as time goes on. COLOR: White, Blue, Cyan. COACH: Chris Prince. NOTABLE MEMBERS: 1# Rook, 2# Damon, 3# Busby, 4# Young, 5# Driver, 6# Swift, 7# Chris Prince, 8# Arthur, 9# Agi, 11# Seishiro Nagi, 14# Reo Mikage, 44# Hyoma Chigiri, Kazuma Nio, Reiji Hiiragi, Junichi Wanima, Hajime Nishioka, Taiga Tsunzaki (Reserve), Kairu Saramadara (Reserve) KIT PROVIDER: Nike. LIST OF MATCHES: Manshine City vs. Bastard München (2-3) [Lose] Manshine City vs. Paris X Gen (1-3) [Lose] Manshine City vs. Ubers (1-3) [Lose] Manshine City vs. FC Barcha (0-0) [Ongoing]

Blue Lock Teams: Paris X Gen (PXG)

Paris X Gen is a professional football team in the French Leagues in Blue Lock. It's known as one of the best teams in Europe and is the home country of some of the best strikers. PXG is a team that is known for its talent and potential above all else. Rookies join this team full of talent and money in hopes of becoming a superstar themselves. Paris X Gen has double standard system. Each of the two systems have a centered striker, being Rin Itoshi & Ryusei Shidou and 2 specific supporting teammates to assist them. Charles Chevalier acts as the heart of the team because of his exceptional passes and ability to adjust his play style to the centered strikers. The team's biggest flaw is the team play: the double systems are competing each other in assisting their respective goalscorer. COLOR: Blue, White, Red. COACH: Julian Loki. NOTABLE MEMBERS: 1# Renoir, 3# Gabon, 4# Michelin, 6# Charles Chevalier, 8# Chapa, 9# Rin Itoshi, 10# Julian Loki, 20# Aoshi Tokimitsu, 27# Tabito Karasu, 29# Zantetsu Tsurugi, 77# Nijiro Nanase, 99# Ryusei Shido, Debussy (Reserve), Poussin (Reserve), Ohana (Reserve), Domenech (Reserve), Cousin (Reserve), Cucuron (Reserve), Kento Cho (Reserve), Akira, Endoji (Reserve), Haruhiko Yuzu (Reserve). KIT PROVIDER: Nike. LIST OF MATCHES: Paris X Gen vs. Ubers (3-2) [Win] Paris X Gen vs. Manshine City (3-1) [Win] Paris X Gen vs. FC Barcha (3-2) [Win] Paris X Gen vs. Bastard München (2-2) [Ongoing]