After 8 years, anime's biggest rival is finally being revived by Toei Animation.

Toei Animation is a phenomenal anime studio that was founded in 1948 and has since brought many popular hit manga series to life. Of course, the two most popular works it has adapted are those of Eiichiro Oda a piece and of Akira Toriyama Dragon Ball. When it comes to the former, fans recognize it as the world's best-selling manga, which features Monkey D. Follows the story of Luffy and his adventures to find the ultimate treasure. a piece. Meanwhile, Dragon Ball Follows the story of Son Goku as he takes on many powerful enemies and grows stronger with each challenge.

For decades, One Piece and Dragon Ball have enjoyed a very exciting rivalry. However, 8 years ago, Dragon Ball Super ended, and this rivalry quietly ceased to exist. Now, in 2026, Dragon Ball vs. One Piece is getting a revival as the former is getting not one but two new animated projects that were officially confirmed on January 25, 2026 at Genkidamatsuri.

Dragon Ball Super is officially returning to rival One Piece as Toei Animation's biggest anime franchise.

Earlier this year, the biggest Dragon Ball In the last few years there was an event called Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri. On January 25, 2026, we went into the event not expecting much but were quite surprised as Toei Animation revealed not one but two major anime projects for the Dragon Ball franchise.

The first project was less exciting, called Dragon Ball Super: Beerus. As the name suggests, Beerus is not a new anime, but a remastered version of the original anime that aired in 2016. This anime already has a release date and it is coming in late 2026, probably around October. This new anime will give us a chance to experience Goku vs. Beerus once again after many years, and only this time with cutting edge modern animation, it brings the old stuff to the surface.

The second announcement was an even more exciting project, and that is Dragon Ball Super: The Galactic Patrol. This is a brand new anime that continues the story of the Dragon Ball Super manga. The Dragon Ball fandom as a whole experienced disappointment after the anime was pulled from airing in 2018 and stopped following the Tournament of Power. Now, we're excited and can't wait to see the new adventure that Goku and the Z Warriors have as the Moro arc is finally brought to life. 2026 is definitely going to be an amazing year for Dragon Ball fans, and the next few years will be as well.

Dragon Ball and One Piece will once again rival each other for top honors

Dragon Ball is an iconic series, and its main character, Son Goku, is often cited as the face of anime. Some fans even call it the father of all shonen anime. After all, Toriyama's work was groundbreaking and went on to shape the industry, and the likes of One Piece and Naruto couldn't exist without it. With that in mind, not many series can stand as a rival to this monumental franchise. but, a piece Franchising on the same scale has been proven many times over Dragon BallIf not bigger. In the case of manga sales, a piece Absolutely blown away Dragon Ball Out of the Water and became the best-selling manga of all time, selling over 600 million copies worldwide.

Both in Japan and around the world, Dragon Ball and a piece Has often been a rival series. Unfortunately, this rival stopped when Dragon Ball The franchise hit big. On a brighter note, this is exciting for us to know a piece and Dragon Ball Almost guaranteed to air later this year. Toei Animation has already announced the Elbaf arc a piece It will air for 13 episodes starting in April 2026. After 3 months, a piece goes to break again. Then, after a 3-month hiatus, the anime will begin airing once again in October 2026, as confirmed through a new strategy used by Toei Animation aimed at improving the quality of the series.

Dragon Ball Super: Beerus No exact air date yet. We have only confirmed information that it will air in late 2026. That said, rumors indicate that this highly anticipated remaster will be released around October 2026. In other words, it's very likely that the Elbaf and Beerus arcs will air together, and fans are definitely excited to see the two great shonen-side-by-side.

October 2026 Set to Rekindle the Greatest Toei Animation Rivalry of All Time

Image by Toei Animation

Dragon Ball anime content slowed down in the last decade, and Toriyama's death had a major impact on the franchise. But now, with Dragon Ball Revival officially confirmed at Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri, it can be said that the rivalry with One Piece will soon be revived. As previously stated, the Elbaf and Beerus arcs will wind up together, but it doesn't stop there.

Fans can't forget about the actual official anime return of Dragon Ball Super with the Galactic Patrol arc. This arc should be released around 2027, and it is possible that it will air together with Elbaf. Thanks to Toei Animation, the Dragon Ball franchise is now going to receive a significant boost, and this only means that its revenue will increase significantly, going to rival One Piece.

Despite the return of Dragon Ball, One Piece will continue to dominate as Toei's flagship series.

While Dragon Ball and One Piece are definitely two of the biggest hits Toei Animation has worked on, One Piece is still expected to remain as Toei's flagship series. Dragon Ball Super, while exciting, is not technically illustrated or fully written by Toriyama. More than that, the story just isn't as engaging as one piece and lacks depth in various areas. Furthermore, One Piece is only growing faster worldwide with its new projects such as a live-action adaptation, and now, a new anime remake is set for February 2027.

As the final saga gets richer, the story of One Piece keeps getting more exciting. The anime will soon have a big reveal, and fans can't wait to see it all. Even in the audience, it is impossible to see the Dragon Ball pass in one piece. After all, Dragon Ball didn't have Dragon Ball Dama that long ago, but it wasn't as popular as One Piece's anime. Still, it will surely be fun to see these series go head-to-head once again.

Both Dragon Ball Super and One Piece are available to stream on Crunchyroll.