List of non-Japanese sumo wrestlers

This is a list of foreign-born professional sumo wrestlers by country and/or ethnicity of origin, along with original name, years active in sumo wrestling, and highest rank attained. Names in bold indicate a still-active wrestler.

There are 186 wrestlers who have listed a foreign country as their place of birth on the banzuke or official ranking sheets. The first foreign born wrestler to reach the top makuuchi division was the Hawaiian born Takamiyama in January 1968, who was also the first to win a top division tournament championship or yūshō in 1972. He was followed by fellow Hawaiians Konishiki who was the first foreigner to reach the second highest ōzeki rank in 1987, and American Akebono who became the first foreign yokozuna, the highest rank, in 1993. In 1992, following the entry of six Mongolians to Ōshima stable, there was an unofficial ban (called enryo or "restraint") instigated by the Japan Sumo Association's head Dewanoumi on any more foreign recruitment. Speaking at a Western Japan Press Club luncheon in Osaka in 1995, Dewanoumi reportedly said, "There are no official regulations, but stable masters have a tacit agreement not to scout foreigners actively because they have difficulty adapting to Japanese customs." In 1998 this ban was relaxed but there was also the first official restrictions, a cap of forty foreigners in professional sumo as a whole and each individual heya or training stable restricted to a maximum of two, not counting those who had obtained Japanese citizenship. In February 2002 this was changed to one foreigner per heya with no overall cap, although foreigners recruited prior to the rule change were not affected. Despite these restrictions, foreigners began to dominate the highest levels of the sport. By 2013, foreign born wrestlers made up just seven percent of the 613 wrestlers active in professional sumo, yet occupied one third of the 42 spots in the top division. No Japanese-born wrestler won a top division tournament between Tochiazuma in January 2006 and Kotoshōgiku in January 2016, with 56 of the 58 tournaments held in that period won by Mongolians.

Several foreign-born sumo wrestlers have become sumo elders after their retirement as wrestlers.