We’re exactly at the halfway point of the season and there are intense battles at both ends of the standings! Today, we’ll look at how each team is doing and figure out what each team can do to find success.
Continue reading “M-League 2024-25: Mid-Season Review”M-League 2024-25 Week 13: Forward
When things look like they can’t get any worse, when the benefits outweigh the risks, all that’s left to do is move forward. Push back against the riichi and chase. Go for a quick hand to win the pot. Take your team to new heights with a big win.
In the 13th week of the M-League 2024-25 season, players did big chasing riichis and got rewarded with ippatsu wins. We had players multiplying their winnings because of the many riichi sticks in the pot. We had teams breaking score milestones to challenge records. We even had a cool yakuman tenpai!
Let’s move on ahead and get right into it, shall we?
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 12: Firsts
There is always a first for everything. For some players, it’s their first win of the season. For others, it’s their first 4th. And sometimes, we see something for the first time in a long time.
In the 12th week of the M-League 2024-25 season, we had players getting their first 1st (on a very special day too!), some players losing their first game, while one player made a hand that hasn’t been seen in more than 18 months!
Let’s get right into it, shall we?
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 11: South 4
South 4 is the final hand in a typical hanchan. For the final dealer, they have control of how long the game goes on for. For everyone else, it’s their final chance to fight for position. With the value and the right tiles, a player can fly up to 1st place.
In the 11th week of the M-League 2024-25 regular season, many players stepped forward to try to take the top spot. From gathering a lot of yaku to putting all their hope in a single dora, each chance was a moment of excitement for fans all around the world.
Enough with the introduction. Let’s get right into it, shall we?
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 10: Precision
Precision is an important strategy aspect in mahjong. Making the right decisions of what to discard, what to wait on and who to hit can result in great rewards. When a players fail to have precision, it can result in missed chances and knocked tiles, maybe even resulting in penalties.
From the precise to the imprecise, both were on display in the 10th week of the M-League 2024-25 season. As always, we also had challenges, comebacks and close calls.
Now is precisely the time to learn more, so let’s get right into it, shall we?
M-League Fans and Bromides
Starting on November 19, 2024, M-League 2024-25 bromides and fan designs will be available to be printed at Lawson Print stores.
36 designs for both the fan designs and bromides are available, one for each M-Leaguer. Fan designs cost 350 yen, L-size bromides cost 300 yen and 2L-size bromides cost be 500 yen.
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 9: Frustration
Mahjong, with all its chance and variance and rules, can be frustrating. It takes a lot of energy to figure things out and sometimes mistakes are made. How one handles these challenges and frustration is what separates to good players from the great players.
In the 9th week of the M-League 2024-25 regular season, we had some frustrating moment, but we also saw how players overcame them. From a dead hand to good waits being beaten, we watched as players pushed through to succeed.
Just relax and sit back and let’s get right into it, shall we?
Premium Night
On November 11, M-League announced that they will be hosting their next M-League Premium Night on February 10, 2025.
The Premium night will take place at Tokyo Dome City Hall and will have all 36 M-Leaguers in attendance.
The match of the day will feature:
Tickets range from 9,800 yen to 16,000 yen, and will be sold on the Lawson Ticket website starting on December 1 for official supporters and December 4 for the general public. There is also a suite room costing 300,000 yen that can accommodate up to 15 people and includes a light meal and a team meet-and-greet.
Staff Yakuman
Before each game, the M-League staff usually play a hand to make sure that all the equipment and graphics are working.
During the rehearsal on November 12, 2024, the staff member sitting in Watanabe Futoshi’s seat won a suuankou! Even if it was won on ron, the hand would have been worth Riichi/Toitoi/Sanankou/Tanyao/Dora 6/Aka 2 for a 14-han sanbaiman.
This is the second staff yakuman this calendar year since a staff member sitting in Matsumoto Yoshihiro’s seat won a chiihou on January 19, 2024.
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 8: Ippatsu
Ippatsu is a yaku won when you win within one uninterrupted go-around of riichi. It may take a bit of luck, but you are rewarded with an extra han if you manage to get it.
In the 8th week of the M-League 2024-25 season, we had about a dozen wins by ippatsu. In one game, we had five. We also had quite a few big wins and big comebacks, including a big dealer baiman!
Let’s keep this unbroken tradition of articles going and get right into it, shall we?
Intro | Standings
M-League 2024-25 Week 7: Comeback
Fans always love to root for the underdog. A player who is against the odds and seems to be out of the running always has a chance to come back and win. And when that happens, excitement grows even more.
In the 7th week of the M-League 2024-25 regular season, surprising and unexpected comebacks were of full display. In one case, a player was down by almost a yakuman and managed to come back in just two hands! We also had some cool yakuman tenpais!
We’re glad that you came back for another week of M-League, so let’s get right into it, shall we?
M-League Official Trading Cards
On October 28, 2024, M-League announced that they will be launching their own line of online trading cards.
The trading cards feature different players with different rarities, as well as teams and highlight cards.
The online trading cards are available on the M-League Official Trading Cards website (which uses ORICAL, created by ventus inc.), though can only be access through a smartphone. The website also features a trading system, missions, login bonuses and a friend system.
Updates and news releases are posted on the M-League Official Trading Cards Twitter account.
Intro | Standings
Shanghai Zhongxi Sports Co. Becomes Official M-League Broadcaster In China
On October 28, 2024, M-League and CyberAgent (ABEMA’s parent company) announced that they have signed a distribution agreement with Shanghai Zhongxi Sports Co. (上海中玺体育有限公司) to broadcast live M-League games in China.
Live broadcasts will be available starting on Monday, November 18, 2024, and will be streamed on platforms such as bilibili, Douyin (TikTok equivalent in China) and Douyu. Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan are excluded from the agreement.
Shanghai Zhongxi Sports Co. is a broadcaster and organizer of mind sport competitions (including mahjong) and has been running a Japanese mahjong tournament for Chinese university students since 2022.
This is the first M-League international broadcast announcement since ABEMA announced that many of its mahjong broadcasts (including M-League) would be globally available starting April 19, 2019
M-League 2024-25 Week 6: Count
In life, knowing how to count is fundamental. The same is true with mahjong. You have to count tiles, leftover riichi sticks and honba. You have to count han and fu, and then count to make sure that your opponents gave you the correct amount.
In the fifth week of the M-League 2024-25 season, there was a lot of counting, from sticks to fu to streaks. You can count on me to lead you through this week’s highlights, so let’s get right into it, shall we?
Intro | Standings
M-League Watch 