Rugby in Japan has come on leaps and bounds in recent years, but one stain has blighted the sport in the past 12 months.
Japan's Super Rugby side Sunwolves had a tough first season in the competition, losing 13 of their 15 games. Despite their testing year on the pitch, the team's mascot turned most heads.
The mascot looked frightening with small pupils, and was not the most appealing to children. Instead of trying to entice younger fans to games, the mascot looked like a character from a horror movie.
ãƒãƒ¼ãƒ オリジナルグッズストアã§æ•°é‡é™å®šã‚¢ã‚¤ãƒ†ãƒ ã‚’GETã—よã†ï¼
詳ã—ãã¯å…¬å¼FBページã§ðŸ‘‡https://t.co/tNFrSOsL2D
Get a limited #sunwolves Original Goods tmrw! pic.twitter.com/Ng3cwszACI— HITO-Com SUNWOLVES (@sunwolves) February 26, 2016
The Tokyo-based side have clearly seen the error of their ways and introduced a new, more suitable mascot. Earlier his week, Wolvy was revealed to the world.
Bigger eyes, and with a friendlier looking face, Wolvy has been received more positively than the previous incarnation.
åˆã‚ã¾ã—ã¦ï¼ #サンウルブズ オフィシャルマスコット㮠#ウルビー ã§ã™”¼
2/25ç§©çˆ¶å®®ãƒ©ã‚°ãƒ“ãƒ¼å ´ã«ä¼šã„ã«ãã¦ã”¼ãƒãƒªã‚±ãƒ¼ãƒ³ã‚ºæˆ¦ã§åµã‚’èµ·ã“ã—ã¡ã‚ƒãŠã†ã‹ãª https://t.co/OzthdXKEtv
★ãƒãƒªã‚±ãƒ¼ãƒ³ã‚ºæˆ¦ãƒã‚±ãƒƒãƒˆã€€https://t.co/k8LAHKFSdd pic.twitter.com/gRQIzEBt8N— HITO-Com SUNWOLVES (@sunwolves) February 20, 2017
The Sunwolves begin their Super Rugby campaign this weekend on Saturday at home to the Hurricanes.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.