Mahjong Pros Publishing, the licensing arm of mahjong equipment company Mahjong Pros, revealed two new manga acquisitions at Anime Expo on Thursday, both arriving in November 2026 in physical and digital formats.

The first title is Golden Sakura, created by writer Sayaka Okada and artist Kazuo Maekawa. The story follows Takuya Saotome, a failed professional mahjong player buried under $50,000 in debt with nowhere left to turn. Desperate for a fresh start, Saotome makes a bold decision: cross-dressing as Sakura Shindou to infiltrate the women's professional mahjong circuit. It's a high-stakes gamble that plays with gender, identity, and the cutthroat world of competitive mahjong.

The second manga is Maetel of the Glassy Sea, by Katakei and Yoshiki Suda. This one takes a different approach, following Akina Mizuhara, a college student who studied film abroad in Portland before discovering mahjong as a substitute for her failed movie dreams. The series traces her unlikely path from private uncertainty to becoming a standout player for U-NEXT Pirates in Japan's M.League, navigating marriage, rivalry, losing streaks, and the weight of MVP expectations along the way.

Both titles tap into a growing interest in mahjong-themed stories, blending the game's strategic depth with character-driven drama. Mahjong Pros Publishing, which launched its publishing imprint in June 2025, specifically focuses on licensing and localizing mahjong-related manga and educational materials—a niche but dedicated market.

These licenses represent the imprint's effort to bring mahjong stories to English-speaking audiences at a time when the game itself is experiencing renewed interest in Western pop culture. With both titles hitting shelves simultaneously this fall, fans will have two very different takes on competitive mahjong: one comedic and subversive, the other introspective and grounded in real professional ambition.