Good news for Pokémon fans, the dates and venues for this year’s Pokémon World Championships and North America Internationals have finally been announced on the official Pokémon website. The North America International Championships will take place at the Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio and will last from June 21 to June 23. The North America International Championships is the final period of time to earn points to qualify for the Pokémon World Championships. The Pokémon World Championships itself will take place at Washington, DC and will last from August 16 to August 18. For those who are interested in attending as a spectator, information for purchasing spectator badges will be released soon.
For those unfamiliar with the Pokémon World Championships, it is the “pinnacle of competitive Pokémon play”. The top qualifying players of both the Pokémon Trading Card Game and the Pokémon video games compete for cash prizes, return invitations, and the bragging rights that come with the title of “Pokémon World Champion”. Obviously the points necessary to qualify are a different type depending on whether the player is competing for to participate in the Pokémon TCG World Championships or the Pokémon Video Game World Championships. For those who are interested in a different type of Pokémon game, the Pokkén Tournament World Championships are also coming up. For more information regarding qualifications for the Pokkén Tournament World Championships, you can read about the qualifiers, rewards, and locations here.
If competitive Pokémon isn’t your cup of tea but you’re still a fan of the series, there are still upcoming events. This past weekend there was a Pokemon Go raid event for Latias, with Latios being announced to have raid event during a later, unspecified weekend. There is also a Meltan event currently underway which will last until March 4, giving players the opportunity to encounter a Shiny Meltan when opening the Mystery Box. Palkia is also available to be found in raid battles until February 28. For coverage on future Pokémon news, you can find it here.