[Sports Day Cheer Songs] A roundup of classic cheer anthems and recommended parody-song picks [2026]
Cheer songs and background music are essential for sports days and athletic festivals! Classic staples that make you want to start running the moment you hear them are a given, but it’s also long been common to rewrite the lyrics of popular J-pop songs and sing them as parodies.
In this article, we’ll introduce plenty of Japanese songs that are perfect for cheering at school sports events! Of course, we’ve also picked out songs that will hype up the crowd even if you sing them as-is.
Be sure to read through to the end!
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[Sports Day Cheer Songs] A roundup of classic cheer anthems and recommended parody-song picks [2026] (21–30)
Happinessarashi
How about a smash hit from the national idol group Arashi? Released in 2007 as their 20th single, it was used as the theme song for the drama “Yamada Taro Monogatari” and became a huge hit.
Its endlessly bright and poppy sound is perfect for livening up a school sports day! You’ll want to belt it out cheerfully and loudly with your friends.
The chorus, in particular, is easy to adapt into a parody.
Judging from the lyrics, it might be a great fit for running events like the 100-meter dash or relays.
RPGSEKAI NO OWARI
It’s a hit song that was chosen as the theme for the film Crayon Shin-chan: Very Tasty! B-class Gourmet Survival!!.
It’s a track by SEKAI NO OWARI, a band active overseas as well, released in 2013.
With a marching band-style sound and lyrics that highlight the message that we’re not alone, it’s an uplifting anthem.
Sports festivals are team competitions, so even without changing the lyrics it fits perfectly—but this is your chance to add your own flavor.
It might be a good idea to rework it to match the last line of the chorus.
together; along with; bothWANIMA
WANIMA’s “Tomoni” has completely become a household favorite.
It’s an upbeat, uplifting song that gives you a push to move forward and upward! It’s also great as a cheer song for sports days, so pick this track to hype up the crowd for the occasion.
MiracleGReeeeN
Kiseki, sung by GReeeeN, was the theme song for the TBS drama ROOKIES, which focused on high school baseball.
Because of that, it’s been used as the entrance march for the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament and is a popular cheering song for baseball.
Its passionate, youth-filled lyrics are perfect for sports, so you often hear it as a cheer song at school sports days as well.
If you make a parody version by working words like “victory,” “fighting spirit,” and “giving your all” into the lyrics, it’ll probably hype everyone up even more.
Definitely try creating a parody and unite as a team to aim for the championship!
GUTSarashi
The perfect song for cheering on your classmates as they shine at a school-wide sports day is “GUTS!” Released in 2014 by the nationally beloved idol group Arashi, it was used as the theme song for the drama “Even If You’re Weak, You Can Win: Mr.
Aoshi and His Ambitious High School Baseball Team.” It features a catchy sound with a bright, brassy band arrangement.
As a full-throttle, positive cheer song, it’s perfect for the excitement of a heated sports day! Why not straighten your posture like a cheer squad and send your best shout of encouragement?
One Heartatarashii gakkou no rīdāzu
A song that brings everyone’s hearts together! It’s a青春 (coming-of-age) cheer anthem that echoes through the gym.
Atarashii Gakko no Leaders created a brand-new song for Bourbon’s “Fettuccine Gummi” TV commercial, premiering in March 2025.
This powerful track expresses the drive to keep moving forward, and through fans’ cheers and dance performances, it brings both adults and kids together in excitement.
For the music video shoot, about 300 fans gathered to pull off a large-scale group performance in a gymnasium.
It’s a fresh, energetic, and powerful song that will lift spirits not only at graduations and sports days, but also for anyone starting a new chapter in life.
A view I’ve never seen beforeSuda Masaki
It’s an emotional rock number that makes you want to sing and shout until your voice gives out.
It was actor Masaki Suda’s debut single as a singer, released in 2017.
The song was featured in au’s commercial supporting Japan’s national soccer team and became a hot topic.
The overall tone of the track is one thing, but Suda’s passionate vocals are just insanely cool.
You can feel motivation welling up from deep inside as you listen.
Even as a parody, the song’s intensity doesn’t fade!