also paid with extra revenue from these events. Written rankings, known as banzuke, were introduced from 1761 and the assembly of lords that organized these rankings began to emerge as an full fledge organization. In this time, sumo came to be called "ōzumō" (大相撲), "grand sumo" or professional sumo. As sumo began to showcase the power of daimyo, lords began to codify the sport and negotiated with each other to secure ownership of wreslters under a system called kakae (抱え). Slowly, noble houses (the most prominent of which was the ) began to develop methods of sponsor to ensure dominance over this popular form of entertainment. Licenses began to be introduced in the eighteenth century, creating the rank of yokozuna (in 1789), or the rank of tate-gyōji ; both of them still existing today. In the 19th century, the Meiji Restoration leaders abolished the shogunate and the feudal system that supported it. To adapt and survive, the lords introduced the change to the system of salaries and directors that is known today. In 1884, Emperor Meiji began to support sumo tournaments which helped to give sumo wrestling a reputation as a national event. However, due to the diminishing power of lords that regulated the sport, parallel organizations began to develop their own form of tournaments. In 1869, the Osaka-sumo Association (大坂相撲協会, Ōsaka zumou kyōkai) was founded and created a rivalry that emulated the history of sumo. Each associations had their own history and changes. For example, from 1888 to 1894 the "Hirōkaku-gumi" (廣角組), composed of Onaruto stable and Tonori stable, broke off from Osaka-sumo. In December 1925, Tokyo-sumo became the Greater Japan Sumo Association (Dai-Nihon Sumō Kyokai, 大日本相撲協会). In January 1927, Osaka-sumo merged with the Greater Japan Sumo Association after a long decline. The 88 elders of the Tokyo contingent and the 22 elders from the Osaka contingent merged together and disputed their first common tournament with a common banzuke during the Hatsu basho (January tournament). In the run-up to the merger during 1925 and 1926, a series of three joint tournaments was held to assess the relative strength of the rikishi in both organizations. Confirming the prevailing opinion that Osaka-sumo was inferior, the Tokyo camp largely won out and wrestlers as high as ōzeki in Osaka sumo were relegated to the third makushita division in the new merged rankings. However, the yokozuna from both sides were maintained, as there