Osaka Expo May Be Over But Mascot Myaku-Myaku Still Popular

By Akiko Minami / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

21:00 JST, November 29, 2025

OSAKA — The official mascot of the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo, Myaku-Myaku, continues to remain popular even after the event concluded last month. New products are still being released and pre-order websites have seen a high volume in traffic.

The Myaku-Myaku mascot is also in high demand at events all over the country, bringing joy to those who are sad about the Expo’s closing.

Mizuno Corp., a major sports manufacturer based in Osaka, began accepting pre-orders for sneakers featuring Myaku-Myaku on its official website on Nov. 13, but it crashed for about an hour due to the amount of traffic. The product, nicknamed the Black Myaku-Myaku sneakers, replaced the red and blue pattern of Myaku-Myaku with black and gray and are priced at ¥30,800, tax included.

The company had planned to withdraw from the merchandise business because all the products it manufactured mostly sold out during the event. But after learning that Expo merchandise was still popular with people even after the event ended, it decided to start selling new products.

The flood of pre-orders led the company to significantly increase the number of sneakers available for pre-order. “We never expected Myaku-Myaku’s popularity to continue this long,” a company official said.

The licensing agreement to manufacture and sell official Expo merchandise was originally scheduled to expire on Oct. 13, the closing date of the Expo, according to the Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan Master Licensing Office, which has been entrusted with managing intellectual property for the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition. However, due to the popularity of the merchandise, the expiration date has been extended to the end of March. Related merchandise can be sold until the end of September.

The Myaku-Myaku mascot has been busy traveling and visiting almost all of the about 10 official merchandise stores in Osaka, Tokyo and other areas since the end of the Expo. In late October, the mascot participated in a photo session with visitors at an event held at the newly opened official store in Osaka City.