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German football giants Borussia Dortmund made a surprise announcement this Saturday when they revealed a brand-new collaboration with Eiichiro Oda and Toei Animation’sOne Piece. The football club describes the relationship as “combiningthe excitement of footballwith the adventurous spirit and teamwork of the beloved Straw Hat Crew”, and the effects of this newly announced relationship will be visible from the club’s game against 1. FSV Mainz 05 on June 26, 2025, at their iconic home ground, the Signal Iduna Park. The announcement came with an eye-catching visual featuring the Straw Hat Crew wearing the iconic black and yellow of Borussia Dortmund.
This isn’t the first time that a football club has collaborated with an anime, with football-focused hit seriesBLUE LOCKpairing with Italian supergiants Inter for their pre-season in the 2023/24 season; as well as with English giants Liverpool FC in February, and the appearance of Real Sociedad winger Takefusa Kubo inthe 2024 Christmas Special episodeofDoraemon.
About the Borussia Dortmund x One Piece Collaboration
A Chance For Fans to Experience One Piece Characters in a Football Setting
The Borussia Dortmund official website describes the collaboration as an attempt to offer fans a variety of activities to experience their favorite characters from the anime series in a unique football setting. This will include a special walking act featuringthe Straw Hat Crew’s doctor, Tony Tony Chopper, and Borussia Dortmund’s mascot, Emma, and fans will be offered an exclusive “BVB xONE PIECE” goodie bag. From March 24 to April 5, fans will be able to try out theOne Piececard game, with trial sessions of the game hosted by Bandai Card Games and exclusive limited promo cards given to fans who visit the Dortmund Fanwelt during the collaboration’s duration.
Many of our players are big ONE PIECE fans, so Borussia Dortmund has had already a natural connection to the anime for a long time. Last year we did activations together during our tour in Asia. Now ONE PIECE visits our stadium in Dortmund – it is the logical next step of our partnership and we are excited to host them.
– Borussia Dortmund Managing Director Carsten Cramer
The goodie bag will contain a scarf, stickers and an exclusive promo card. The collaboration follows Borussia Dortmund’s tour of Asia in 2024, during which the club collaborated withOne Pieceanime production studio Toei Animation, an experience that many of the club’s players enjoyed due to their love forOne Piece. To top it all off, the official X account of Borussia Dortmund shared an image of a Number 23 jersey signed byOne Piececreator Eiichiro Oda himself.
Source: Borussia Dortmund onInstagram,BVB 09 official website
