Following the release of Pokémon Champions, further details regarding its first competitive ruleset, Regulation Set M-A, have been released. Most Mega Evolutions return for this new ruleset, but there are a noticeable amount that are not present in Pokémon Champions at launch, including notably some of the game's biggest threats in Mega Salamence, Mega Metagross, and Mega Mawile.
The Play! Pokémon Video Game Championships (VGC) Tournament Handbook was updated at the end of March 2026 to include rules and guidance relating to Pokémon Champions and VGC's transition to the upcoming title. It includes insights into currently unannounced features present in Pokémon Champions, future rulesets, and the controversial removal of local communication.
A ton of new information relating to the upcoming Pokémon Champions has been released following the public demo of the game at PAX East, and the private demo shown to a handful of content creators.
After more than a year since the game's first announcement on Pokémon Day 2025, The Pokémon Company International and Nintendo today confirmed that Pokémon Champions will be released for free download on the Nintendo Switch worldwide in just over two weeks, on Wednesday, April 8th.
The next ruleset for the Pokémon Scarlet & Violet's Video Game Championships (VGC) has been announced. Regulation Set I will once again return from 1 April 2026 onwards, with no end date currently announced. Regulation I was the ninth official ruleset for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet VGC, and allows the use of up to two Restricted Special Pokémon per team, such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
Pokémon Champions' first Online Competition has been announced. The sign-up period for the 2026 Global Challenge I runs from 24 April 2026 at 02:00 UTC to 4 May 2026 at 01:59 UTC, with the event itself running from 1 May at 02:00 UTC to 4 May at 01:59 UTC. The results and winning teams from this event will be found here on Bulbagarden once the event has concluded.
The 2026 Pokémon Europe International Championships were won by 6x Regional Champion and 2023 Europe International Champion Paul Chua. The event ran from 13–15 January 2026, and featured a total of 1,455 trainers battling for an invite to the 2026 Pokémon World Championships. This was the largest-scale tournament to use the Regulation Set F ruleset in the 2026 Championship Series, banning the use of powerful Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
The fifth Online Competition in the 2026 Championship Series has been announced. The sign-up period for the 2026 Grand Challenge V runs from 12 February 2026 at 00:00 UTC to 19 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC, and the event itself runs throughout the weekend before Pokémon Day 2026 — 20 February 2026 at 00:00 UTC to 22 February 2026 at 23:59 UTC. The results and winning teams from this event will be found here on Bulbagarden once the event has concluded.
The 2026 Pokémon Toronto Regional Championships were won by Cary D'Ortona. The event ran from 17-18 January 2026, and featured a total of 750 trainers battling for an invite to the 2026 Pokémon World Championships. This was both the first official tournament in 2026, as well as the first to use the Regulation Set F ruleset in the 2026 Championship Series, allowing the use of all Paradox and Legendary Pokémon, with the exclusion of Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon and Miraidon.
The fourth Online Competition in the 2026 Championship Series has been announced. The sign-up period for the 2026 Grand Challenge IV runs from 1 January 2026 at 00:00 UTC to 8 January 2026 at 23:59 UTC, and the event itself runs throughout the weekend of 9 January 2026 at 00:00 UTC to 11 January 2026 at 23:59 UTC. The results and winning teams from the 2026 Grand Challenge IV, known colloquially as the 2026 Grand Challenge 4, will be found here on Bulbagarden once the event has concluded.
Pokémon has had a long competitive history, something that the brand likes to reference and showcase; interstitials of streams, feature clips, and commentary, as well as the brief Pokémon Championships History series on YouTube. The aforementioned videos are shortform clips, but a new production aims to fill the space of longform competitive Pokémon video analysis.
The 2024 Pokémon Charlotte Regional Championships were won by 2016 World Champion Wolfe Glick. The event ran from 20-21 January 2024, and featured a total of 845 trainers battling for an invite to the 2024 Pokémon World Championships. This tournament used the Regulation Set F format, allowing access to every Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, excluding Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
"Balan's VGC Wonderworld", an unofficial Video Game Championships (VGC) tournament, was won by 2025 Singapore Premier Ball League Champion Jude Lee, also known as magicaura. The event ran from 6-7 December 2025, and featured a total of 967 trainers battling for a share of the $1,500 USD prize pool. This makes it one of the largest unofficial online events in Pokémon VGC history.
The 2024 Pokémon Portland Regional Championships were held from 6-7 January 2024, and were won by 3x Regional Champion Alex Underhill. This tournament used the Regulation Set F format, allowing access to every Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, excluding Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's Ranked Season 36 ran from 1-30 November 2025, with Kirameki Neon taking 1st place in the Double Battle division, attributing their victory to a team featuring Terapagos and Calyrex's Shadow Rider form. Keep reading for more details on the team that achieved the impressive 1st place finish, as well as the top Pokémon, Restricted Pokémon, and Mythical Pokémon in Ranked Season 36.
The next ruleset for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's Ranked Battles has been announced: Regulation Set I will return from 5 January 2026 onwards, with a currently unannounced date for when it will end. Regulation I was the ninth official ruleset for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet and first ran from 1 May to 31 August 2025.
The 2026 Pokémon Stuttgart Regional Championships were won by 2024 World Champion Luca Ceribelli. The event ran from 29-30 November 2025, and featured a total of 661 trainers battling for an invite to the 2026 Pokémon World Championships. This was the final tournament in the 2026 Championship Series to use the Regulation Set H ruleset, banning the use of all Paradox, Legendary, and Restricted Special Pokémon.
The 2024 Pokémon Trainers Cup Finals, a National-level event held in South Korea, were won by 2017 Senior World Champion Juyoung Hong. The event ran from 5-6 May 2024, and rewarded the Top 16 trainers with invites to the 2024 Pokémon World Championships. This tournament used the Regulation Set F format, allowing access to every Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, excluding Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
The 2024 Pokémon Melbourne Regional Championships were held from 3-4 February 2024, and were won by Kiran Singh. This tournament used the Regulation Set F format, allowing access to every Pokémon in Scarlet and Violet, excluding Restricted Special Pokémon such as Koraidon or Miraidon.
