Top 10 School Clubs in Anime

“Love Live! School Idol Project” (2013-14)
What happens when your school is about to be closed down? Why, you start a school idol group of course! Due to their popularity and appeal, several different girls from the various cliques of Otonokizaka Academy join together to form a club dedicated to researching what makes a great idol. They eventually find what they need in order to become Otonokizaka’s very own group known as “Muse” and manage to save their school before tackling various competitions. With so many unique personalities, from the bubbly Honoka to the stern Eli, it’s definitely a good leeway for those interested in the school idol scene.

“High School DxD” (2012)
If you ever want an excuse to skip class, what better reason is there than to hunt down devils! After being killed by a fallen angel, Issei Hyodo is brought back to life and into the service of the beautiful but deadly Rias Gremory. The Occult Research Club serves as their cover, where they meet and discuss how to deal with oncoming supernatural threats. Whether its hunting down devils disguised as an otaku or escorting a girl inside samurai armour, all the craziest missions come from this place. Though you would be forgiven if you wanted to join to purely because of the club’s president Rias.

“My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU” (2015)
It takes real empathy, charisma and heart to be a member of Sobu High School’s Service Club. After all you’re joining a society that basically helps out students in any way they can, whether it be physical or emotional. The fact that two of its members are well known for their lack of interest in people and icy personalities make this club as dysfunctional as it is hilarious. With their conflicting outlooks, services such as baking cookies, helping with club activities and even confessions of love become incredibly arduous tasks for Hachiman, Yukino and the rest of the group. Still, you can’t argue they get results…just not necessarily as smoothly as one might think.

“Kuroko no Basket” franchise (2012-15)
These guys don’t just play basketball, they live it. Before the start of the series, the members of this group were so gifted at the sport that they were nicknamed the Generation of Miracles; players with such overwhelming talents they practically had superpowers. Their eventual divide is what leads to the anime’s overarching conflict as former members play against each other in competing skills and ideals. While their graduation into professional basketball serves as great character development, we’re still hoping to see Teiko get back together for a reunion match one of these days.

“Hyouka” (2012)
The Classic Literature Club of Kamiyama High is actually something of a deceptive name. Sure, their main focus is on the fiction of yesteryears, but the overarching narrative centres on various mysteries, often ones found through the older texts. At the behest of his older sister, the pragmatic but unenthusiastic Hotaro Oreki joins the club along with several other nuanced characters. As they try to solve a whole plethora of enigmas that vary in size and scope, it becomes clear that the club itself is a conduit for where the members can solve the mysteries of who they are, and who they want to become.

“Haikyuu!!” (2014-16)
You thought volleyball couldn’t be awesome? Just you watch! Regarded as the fallen champions ever since they failed to get past preliminaries after their initial win, the nicknamed “flightless crows” are determined to win back their glory with a new team. This includes fierce rivals Shoyo Hinata and Tobio Kageyama, who are just as eager to prove which of them is the better player as well as put Karasuno back on the top. With a strong focus on offense and one hell of a winning streak, these crows seemed to be well on their way to reclaiming their title.

“K-On!” (2009-10)
What started as a way to stop an afterschool club from being permanently disbanded soon becomes the start of one group’s path to become a musical powerhouse. With four equally adorable but very different characters, from the initially musically-inept Yui to the extremely shy Mio, their new hangout becomes as much a place of hilarious mishaps. From their debut at the school festival all the way to their graduation ceremony, the Light Music Club is very much a catalyst that brought out the talents of our heroines.

“Free!” franchise (2013)

Ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes on some of the most athletically-gifted young men in all of anime, here to offer you endless amounts of fanservice, homoerotic undertones, friendship and more swimming then you’ll know what to do with. After graduating from their elementary swimming club, several friends, including the water-obsessed hunk Haruka Nanase, reunite and form a brand new club. One that ends up battling it out with an old friend of theirs in the mother of all swimming competitions. Whether you love the dynamics between the characters, are you are just as mad about the sport as Haruka is, then this is the club for you!

“Ouran High School Host Club” (2006)
In a school filled with the prestigious and insanely wealthy, what kind of club would interest such denizens of the upper class? Why a club where young ladies can go to be waited on and hand and foot by the men of their dreams of course. Bizarre yet chivalrous, the Host Club entertains the mostly female population of the school with their unique quirks and charm. From the princely Tamaki, the strong but silent Mori, and the resident commoner-who-is-actually-a-girl-disguised-as-a-boy,Haruhi, this particular group will make your heart swell in ways you can’t imagine…even if they do charge ridiculous amounts for their time.

Before we reveal our number one pick here are a few honourable mentions.

Cycling Club
“Yowamushi Pedal” (2013-15)

Karuta Club
“Chihayafuru” (2011-13)

Holstein Club
“Silver Spoon” (2013-14)

The Neighbours Club
“Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai” (2012-13)

The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture
“Genshiken” (2007-13)

Newspaper Club
“Rosario + Vampire” (2008)

“The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya” (2006-09)
While this particular SOS isn’t the abbreviation associated with an emergency, the fact that this club’s president is essentially God does warrant a whole amount of worry. Made up of the titular reality-altering Haruhi, an alien, a time traveller, an esper and one hell of an unlucky student, the club typically revolves around making sure Haruhi doesn’t destroy the world, while covering the extraordinary collateral damage caused by her powers. All kept within slice of life genre ensures that due to all the hilarious and crazy events that follow them wherever they go, this club is like no other one out there!

Do you agree with our list? What’s your favourite club in anime? With new top tens published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.