The 1st Story Arc of the Blue Lock manga series, which centers on the main character, Yoichi Isagi, and 299 other high-school Japanese football strikers, being invited to take part in the Blue Lock training program. The program is run by an innovative football coach, Jinpachi Ego, who puts one's ego over playing as a team, which the goal of the program is for one egotistical striker to come out of Blue Lock as the best in the world, and will go on to lead Japan to win the World Cup.
It makes up chapter 1 of the series.
Chapter 1: Dream
In a meeting at the Japanese Football Association, the new young board member, Anri Teieri, desires to see Team Japan finally win the World Cup for their country. Despite the greedy President Hirotoshi Buratsuta, and the other board members, being satisfied that Team Japan in their current state has been bringing in lots of profits, Anri shows off her plan to them where she's hired a new coach, Jinpachi Ego, to make winning the World Cup happen.Meanwhile, Isagi is seen playing in a high-school football qualifier match where his Team Ichinan faces off against Team Matsukaze Kukuo to reach Nationals. In the final minutes down 0-1, Isagi has the ball driving to tie the game up, and stands before the goal. However, Isagi believing in teamwork causes him to pass at the last second to his teammate, Tada Tomonari, who ends up missing the shot at the goal. Matsukaze Kukuo then gets the ball back, which their star player, Ryousuke Kira, goes down and scores against Ichinan. As a result, Team Ichinan ends up losing to Team Matsukaze Kukuo 0-2.
Isagi returns home disheartened over his failure to help his team reach Nationals. However, his parents provide him with a letter where it turns out that he's been scouted out to join the Blue Lock training program. Later on, Isagi arrives at the JFA building where the meeting to enter Blue Lock will take place. It's here that Isagi reunites with Kira, who was also scouted out, and they befriend one another. The two of them enter the building for the meeting where they realize that 298 other young high-school football strikers have been recruited into the program.
Coach Ego then appears to greet the 300 Japanese high-school football strikers, which he announces his plan regarding his Blue Lock training facility. His goal being to create a single egotistical striker that will have defeated the other 299, and then goes on to lead Team Japan to winning the World Cup. Ego explains that to become the best egotistical striker, one much throw away all that they know about teamwork, and instead play for themselves. To have the confidence to take the shot in front of the goal rather than pass it off for a teammate to do it. Kira voices his complaint to Ego that Team Japan has gotten as far as they have through teamwork. However, Isagi starts to believe in playing for one's self after experiencing such a failure at the end of the Ichinan vs. Matsukaze Kukuo match when he chose to pass to Tomonari in front of the goal rather than take the shot himself. As a result, Isagi's the first to step forward to join the Blue Lock program, which the other 299 strikers follow soon after.
After the 300 strikers have gone through the door to enter Blue Lock, Ego remains alone until Anri appears since she'll be assisting Ego's work at Blue Lock. The two of them then head off to begin their work at Blue Lock to create the best egotistical striker.
