Sumo at the Royal Albert Hall

Sumo returns to the Royal Albert Hall in London for the first time in 34 years. While not an official tournament (wins and losses don’t impact the wrestler’s standing), these are the real deal wrestlers. Posters for the event were plastered over the tube, and there was no shortage of Reels and TikToks showing the wrestlers checking out sights like the Buckingham palace, British Museum, and even some showing the Yokozuna Horshoryu checking out Chelsea FC. Despite my best efforts, I didn’t end up running into any of the wreslters out when I was exploring London.

I was lucky enough to get ringside seats for the tournament. These red seat cushions were just inches away from the ring. I got to sit right behind the wrestlers waiting to enter the ring– after signing a waiver.

There are a handful of ceremonies before the matches begin. The wrestlers enter in two waves, one for the west and one for the east. They wear special mawashi (the belts they wear) called kesho mawashi. These are silk aprons with designs from people or companies that sponsor each wrestler.

There’s also a special ceremony for the Yokozuna– the higest rank in the sport. Above you can see Onosato, one of two current Yokozuna. The other being Horshoryu. They’re easily spotted by the 15KG silk ropes they wear during ceremonies.

You’ll see a lot of salt being thrown during Sumo tournaments. This is done to clear the purify the ring. Sumo is full of rituals, many dervied from Shintoism. Below you’ll see wrestlers with their hands held out, a signal that they are not carrying any weapons on their body.