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Japan Weekend swaps IFEMA for the Metropolitano on 26 and 27 September
Japan Weekend Madrid will return on 26 and 27 September with an important change: the autumn edition is leaving IFEMA and moving to Riyadh Air Metropolitano. For two days, the San Blas-Canillejas stadium will host concerts, cosplay competitions, video games, workshops, signings and spaces dedicated to manga and Japanese pop culture.
On Saturday the venue will operate from 10:00 to 21:00 and on Sunday from 10:00 to 20:00. The programme will be spread across different spaces and stages, with activities for almost the whole day, from karaoke and drawing workshops to simulators inspired by Initial D and MF Ghost, video games, origami and dancing.
The international line-up is one of the main attractions. Liella!, the group from the Love Live! Superstar!! project, will be represented in Madrid by Sayuri Date, Nako Misaki and Nagisa Aoyama. Singers May’n and Machico, video-game composer Shōji Meguro and Katsuyuki Konishi will also attend; Konishi voices characters such as Tengen Uzui in Demon Slayer, Kamina in Gurren Lagann and Diavolo in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
The list also includes video-game writer nyalra, writer Chiaki J. Konaka, known for Serial Experiments Lain, manga artist and illustrator Yoshitoshi ABe and VTuber Ironmouse. Cosplayers Lorraine, Shiroki and Shirak will also take part in an edition with several meet-and-sign sessions, although each guest will have their own conditions and schedules.
Cosplay will occupy much of Sunday. The main contest is scheduled from 16:30 and will bring together a catwalk and performances, as well as international qualifiers for Cosplay Central Crown Championships and Yamato Cosplay Cup. The latter competition returns to Japan Weekend after several years and will select the representative who will travel to its international final in Argentina in 2027.
International Cosplay League will not be there, however. Its 2026 final has been postponed to 2027 after the organisation could not maintain the schedule planned at IFEMA because of space requirements linked to Madrid’s new Formula 1 Grand Prix. The September edition has finally moved to the Metropolitano.
The programme goes beyond competitions. There will be a Pokémon area with official competitions, board-game and video-game spaces, K-pop and J-pop activities, illustration and dressmaking workshops and proposals such as Cosplay Derby, which on Saturday will bring Uma Musume themed races and the so-called Naruto Run onto the pitch itself.
General tickets cost 27 euros for Saturday or Sunday, and the two-day pass costs 48 euros. The Anticrisis ticket costs 32 euros and includes the option to choose a manga or anime film from available stock. The family pack costs 90 euros and is for two adults and two children aged up to 17. Children under seven do not need a ticket.
Sales are exclusively online and, when purchasing, it is necessary to choose an entry time slot. Riyadh Air Metropolitano is at Avenida de Luis Aragonés, 4. The most direct public-transport option is Metro L7, stopping at Estadio Metropolitano.
The September edition will also be the first Japan Weekend Madrid at this new venue. The previous event, held in February, was still at IFEMA, so the weekend of the 26th and 27th will make it possible to see how one of the city’s most established Japanese-culture gatherings adapts to a football stadium.