Girl Gang in the Ring
In western wrestling, typically we see sweaty white men rolling around on the floor in dramatic fashion, while the female wrestlers are seen as the secondary show. In Joshi however, women are the main event, with their own dedicated practice based on martial arts. Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling was a joshi puroresu (women's professional wrestling) promotion established in 1988. The introduction of Joshi broke the glass ceiling for women in wrestling and pushed the feminist movement forward in Japan.
With Joshi rising in popularity again, the practice is making its debut in America. Taking center stage is Sukeban, an all-female Japanese pro-wrestling league, will for the first time bring the Joshi phenomenon outside of Japan and to the rest of the world. On September 21, 2023, Sukeban’s U.S. tour will premiere in New York at CAPITALE, bringing the biggest names in Joshi to a global audience.
The tour and fights will keep true to the Joshi traditions and experience, while elevating the genre to open its doors to new fans. The league’s name, Sukeban, is an ode to the girl gangs of the 1960s and 1970s that helped bring feminism to the forefront of Japan. Their schoolgirl style is also the inspiration for some of the wrestlers’ new looks.
Check out some images of the team below:
