This past weekend, the Pokémon World Championships and Pokémon XP were held in San Francisco, California. This was my first time getting to attend the Pokémon World Championships as well as going to San Francisco. For those who don't know, I'm a big fan of Pokémon and have grown up with the series from the Red and Blue days. A lot was going on, so let's get right into it!
As I mentioned earlier, I have never been to the Pokémon World Championships before, so it was also something I really wanted to do. When I was allowed to cover it as Media, I had to jump on it. I haven't been to California since E3 died, so I was looking forward to getting back out there,
If you aren't aware, the Pokémon World Championships are where players of the Trading Card Game, Video Games, Pokémon Go, and Pokémon Unite compete for bragging rights as the best trainers in the world. I believe this is the last year for Pokémon Unite at Worlds because they're being moved into their own event next year. This is also the 30th anniversary of the Pokémon series, so there was also a fan event called Pokémon XP being held at the same time. At XP, you could play Pokémon-themed games and take part in Pokémon-themed activities. If you were there to cheer on family or friends, XP felt like a nice place to relax a little bit and get your mind off things. That being said, XP felt like a bit of a wasted opportunity. There was a giant slide that I never saw anyone using, and I think it was shut down on the weekend. The hair salon and games were a big hit, and I saw many people getting their hair done, nails done, and playing!
There was another event going on at XP and Worlds, the Pin Rally, but more on that later!
There was a lot to see on the show floor at the event. You could check out the Bandai Namco booth and grab some cool Pokémon model kits. These models are really easy to put together. I have quite a few at home and added a few to my collection. I was lucky enough to attend the workshop for Bandai Namco model making and make a sleepy Pikachu model. There were other workshops you could sign up for, but I didn't get accepted into the random lottery for them. If you believe what was said online, tons of people signed up for these workshops, but very few got into them.
One thing the Pokémon company does a good job with is photo ops at events. You could take your picture with all kinds of Pokémon stuff. I got my picture with Eevee, the Pokémon Champions championship belt, the Winds and Waves starter Pokémon, and more. One of the cooler photo ops was with the Pokémon trolley. You can't go to San Francisco and not see a trolley! You could also shop at the Build-A-Bear store and make some of your favorite Pokémon. You know I had to get a Squirtle to bring home! Nintendo also had a booth where you could play Pokémon Pokopia, classic Nintendo games, and more! If you did, you got to take home some cool Nintendo swag, like a Pokémon Champions poster!
At conventions, I always try to see what freebies I can get my hands on. If you went through the Pokémon 30th Celebration booth, you could see some of the upcoming cards and get your hands on a promo card. The card was random, and it was an energy, but still cool. The LEGO booth let you build a LEGO trophy, but there was a line out the door every time, so no trophy for me. That brings me to the Pin Rally! The Pin Rally was an event that let trainers get a free pin to add to their collection. There were 12 in total, and all you had to do was get your badge scanned at locations. It was one per person. This was probably the first run event of the weekend. People were lining up hours in advance to get in line. The staff would give out what they had, and then the line would shut down and reopen at different times. The staff also took breaks at odd times, and no pins would be given out. The second day saw way more people attend, and the Pin Rally lines were capped, closed, and shut down super quick. I needed four pins to complete my collection but never got them. The reason why was that the lines were closed on Saturday, and the Pin Rally event was terminated on Sunday. Reports say the Fire Marshall shut the Pin Rally down because the lines were too much of a fire hazard. If you saw these lines, and by now, you probably have seen them online, you can believe the fire marshal. It sucks that so many people didn't get to collect any pins from the event, but I understand the reasoning.
The Pokémon Center was the highlight of the trip for me because I'm a huge fan and really wanted some merch to say I was at the event. We got in on Sunday afternoon and got all kinds of goodies. Grabbed some cool merch, and I was one happy camper! I have to say the selection on Sunday afternoon, the last day of the event, wasn't too bad. There was only one thing I didn't see in my size. I was afraid I wasn't going to get anything with the last day's appointment, but I was mistaken.
Sunday was also the grand finale, the finals, for all the games. It was held in the Chase Center, where the Golden State Warriors play basketball. Where the matches were played looked really cool. The Pokémon Company had cool trainer art and illustrations of the Pokémon being used. I think the event would have gone even smoother if there was a slight dress rehearsal before the matches, so players would know where to go on stage, but that was a minor issue I had. The final match of the Masters division in the video game was probably the best game of the night, with a Mega Dragonite being the fan favorite and a killer taunt read winning the championship. Fast forward to the end of the night with the announcement of a new movie, new monsters coming to Champions, and Singapore holding the event next year!
I had a blast at Pokémon Worlds/XP 2026. I would love to go back year after year to cover the event. I have never been too big into competitive Pokémon, but I think that's going to change! I really want to get good at Pokémon again and make my way to the World Championships. The tournament and finals were really cool and exciting. I think XP and the Pin Rally were the lowlights of the event. If the Pokémon Company decides to have XP again, I think there is more they can do with it. As for the Pin Rally, you know next year's event will have some major changes to it. It was great to finally get to attend the Pokémon World Championships, and I'd like to thank the Pokémon Company for allowing me to attend as Media!