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The Imperial Universities (Kyūjitai : 帝國大學, Shinjitai : 帝国大学, teikoku daigaku, abbr. : 帝大 teidai) were founded by the Empire of Japan between 1886 and 1939, seven in the Mainland Japan (now Japan), one in Korea under Japanese rule (now the Republic of Korea) and one in Taiwan under Japanese rule (now the Republic of China). They were run by the imperial government until the end of World War II. They are often described as the former Imperial Universities (旧帝国大学, kyū-teikoku daigaku, abbr. : 旧帝大 kyū-teidai), and are viewed as some of the most prestigious in Japan. These former imperial universities are generally perceived as Japan’s equivalent of the U.S. Ivy League.
The alumni club of these nine imperial universities is Gakushikai (学士会).
Athletic Competition
The athletic competition started among these seven schools in Japan under the sponsorship of Hokkaido University, formerly known as National Athletic Competition of the Seven Universities (全国七大学総合体育大会, zenkoku nana-daigaku sōgō taiiku-taikai) in 1962. Its name was later recoined as Seven Universities Athletic Meet (国立七大学総合体育大会, kokuritsu nana-daigaku sōgō taiiku-taikai) in 2002. The competition is commonly called the Competition of the Seven Imperial Universities (七帝戦, shichi-tei sen) or the national athletic meet of the seven former imperial universities (七大戦, Nanadai-sen).