M-League 2022-23 Week 12: Hope

Through the holiday season, people are filled with hope. M-Leaguers are no exception. In the 12th week of M-League 2022-23, M-Leaguers took their chances and had hope that they would triumph. Players passed rons hoping that they would tsumo their winning tile. Players taking wins and hoping for uradora. Teams winning games and being hopeful of what the new year will bring.

Also this week, we had some furiten wins, some big dora ankous and a players moving ahead by just 100 points. With a whole lot to cover, let’s get right into it, shall we?

The Battle Commences!

On Monday, December 26 at 19:00 JST, during the M-League holiday break, Abema will be broadcasting the “Nissin UFO Yakisoba x M-League: Mahjong Alien vs. Earth Delegation” match. Three masked individuals are tasked with defending the Earth against alien Ooi Takaharu. Will the alien invasion be successful or will the earthlings win out?

And a Happy New Year

On December 31 at 23:00 JST, Abema will be broadcasting an “End of Year Special” looking back at M-League over the past year. This event will be hosted by the three main M-League commentators: Hiyoshi Tatsuya, Kobayashi Misa and Matsushima Momo.

M-League Gets Its Wings

On December 23, it was announced that Red Bull Japan is now an official sponsor of M-League. Red Bull has been known to sponsor a variety of activities, from extreme sports to e-sports. With this sponsorship, they are now part of the world that is professional riichi mahjong.

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 11: Improvement

There is always room for improvement, whether short-term or long-term. In the short-term, it is sometimes better to wait dama to try to improve your hand’s value. It is sometimes better to reject tenpai to improve your hand’s shape. In the long-term, a change in strategy could bring your team from the bottom and into the positives. In the 11th week of M-League 2022-23, we saw many examples of improvement, from comeback hands to delayed riichi calls to a whole team going from deep in the negatives to the positives. Also this week, we saw some epic riichi battles, many calls and lots of winning tiles stuck in the dead wall. With a whole variety of hands to cover, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 10: Last Minute Opportunity

Things can change drastically near the end. Near the end of a hand, players can have the opportunity to get to tenpai and win on haitei or houtei. Near the end of the game, a fortuitous win can put one into 1st place. Even a simple noten declaration at an exhaustive draw could have big results. In the 10th week of M-League 2022-23, these last minute opportunities were many. Also this week, we had many back-to-back limit hands, big streaks achieved and big news for the overseas community! With a lot to go through, let’s get right into it, shall we?

The Return to Normal

After almost two months since live M-League broadcasts were blocked to overseas viewers, good news came to the overseas M-League community. In a Tweet posted on Friday, December 9, ABEMA informed viewers that live broadcast will be available again starting on Monday, December 12.

This news was met with joy and relief from both overseas viewers and some big names involved with M-League.

Setokuma Naoki (Team Raiden)
Kobayashi Misa (M-League Commentator)

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 9: Timing

Timing is very important in riichi mahjong. When you call riichi could be the difference between not winning and getting a haneman. How you discard a block could be the difference between dealing in and getting to tenpai. In the 9th week M-League 2022-23, players showed us what perfect timing looks like. An ippatsu tsumo turned a cheap hand into a haneman. Waiting to call riichi, even with a worse wait, turned out to be the optimal move. A fortuitous ron was enough to overtake by 100 points. Also this week, we had back-to-back-to-back big wins, a late win and a shortcut to haneman. With all that, let’s get right to it, shall we?

High Definition

On Thursday, December 1, M-League introduced a new beginner-friendly feature to their broadcasts: definitions. Whenever the commentators say an uncommon mahjong term, the term and its corresponding definition are shown at the top of the screen.

Otakaze (オタ風): A wind tile that isn’t a yakuhai

Defenders Assemble!

After asking the public for suggestions on which M-leaguers should defend the Earth against alien Ooi Takaharu, Nissin Foods has chosen their three defenders. Though their identities have yet to be revealed, they did say that the game will be broadcast at a later date.

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 8: Challenge

Challenge, in all senses of the word, is prevalent in riichi mahjong. Players overcome difficult scenarios to come out on top. Players confront those who get in their path to win. Players going against the textbook and do plays that work out in the end. In the 8th week of M-League 2022-23, all of that was on full display. Also this week, we had a yakuman tenpai, expensive quick hands and a very interesting multi-sided wait situation. With a lot to cover, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 7: Reversal

No lead is insurmountable. No deficit is too big to overcome. When you think that a team is out of the running, they surprise everyone and make a comeback. In the 7th week of the M-League 2022-23 season, these comebacks and reversals were plentiful. Players that were 10,000, 20,000, 30,000 behind 1st place were able grab 1st place. With great South 4 timing, players move up in the standings. One of the teams lingering near the bottom of the standings moved above a team that used to be at the top. Also this week, we had a birthday win, a dama haneman and lots of uradora nonsense! With all that, let’s get right to it, shall we?

Saving the Earth

On November 15, Nissin Foods announced that the world needed saving! The invading alien is Ooi Takaharu, member of the Shibuya Abemas. In a call on Twitter, they asked fans which three M-Leaguers should be the ones to save the Earth. (Deadline November 30)

M-League’s Biggest Fans

Back in September, M-League was looking for submissions for M-League illustrations that would be part of M-League’s official goods. On November 17, M-League announced that they have chosen illustrations made by “Mincha” (みんちゃ) for how they showed the M-Leaguers in a lovely and friendly way.

These illustrations are available for purchase as stickers and fans designs (fans not included) through their sponsor Lawson Print.

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 6: Records

Records are usually few and far between. They come maybe once a season and then everything goes back to normal. But what if I told you that 7 different records were either tied or broken in a single game? In the 6th week of M-League 2022-23, that’s exactly what happened. In one game, M-League changed forever. Also this week, we had two redemption games, a perfectly-timed riichi and a yakuman tenpai. With so many records and highlights to get into, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 5: Craziness

Sometimes this game is filled with madness. The unexpected is expected. The worse wait always wins. This is the craziness of this game we love. In the 5th week of the M-League 2022-23 season, this craziness was on full display. This week we saw a huge sanbaiman, a yakuman chance and an big call to intentionally give someone else a win! We also had a bad wait win, an unusually fast win and a tsumogiri riichi! With all this insanity to get through, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 4: Chance

Riichi mahjong requires a lot of skill. But sometimes, the wheel of chance takes control. In the 4th week of M-League 2022-23, we saw a lot of luck and chance. From riichi roulettes to ura bombs to a yakuman chance, anticipation and suspense filled the air, waiting to see who would win and with how much. We also had a great rivalry, tense all last rounds and player dominance! With all that, let’s get right into it, shall we?

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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M-League 2022-23 Week 3: Tension

Scores can be close. Bonus points can be up for grabs. A single wrong move could be the difference between 1st and 4th. With every draw, the tension grows. In the 3rd week of M-League 2022-23, there was a lot of tension. Half of the games weren’t settled until South 4, there was a furiten riichi that could have failed at any moment and there was a hand where 5,500 bonus points were in limbo. There was also a big dora 3 hand, an expensive dama and cool haitei! With a lot to get into, let’s get right into it, shall we?

The Overseas Struggle: Update #2

After M-League broadcasts were made unavailable to overseas viewers starting October 13, 2022, we now have an update from Abema.

On October 18, 2022, AbemaTV Mahjong sent out a Tweet acknowledging that the issue is related to copyright and that they are working on getting it fixed. For now, viewers may watch the game starting at 19:00 JST the next day on Abema’s M-League 2022-23 page. The VOD will only be available for free for 24 hours, after which it will be locked behind premium.

Intro | Highlights | Results | Standings

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