In a historic shift for the Pokémon World Championship Series, the 2026 season and beyond will feature the unreleased Pokémon Champions as the official VGC title, replacing the traditional mainline game. To further refresh the competitive landscape, Pokémon Champions will officially include the Mega Evolution mechanic.
Traditionally, players spend the year battling for a spot at the Pokémon World Championships using the latest core series title, such as Pokémon Scarlet and Violet or, previously, Pokémon Sword and Shield.
Pokémon Champions is not a story-driven adventure but a new multiplayer battle experience for mobile and Nintendo Switch. With a streamlined training system, it aims to make competitive play more approachable than ever. The game will also integrate with Pokémon Home, letting trainers transfer their existing Pokémon collections. Exactly which Pokémon from past games will be eligible for next year's format remains to be confirmed.
The game includes core-style battles and incorporates mechanics from across the Pokémon series, such as Mega Evolution from Pokémon X and Y and Terastalization from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. For now, we know Mega Evolution will be part of this year's official Ranked Battles. Mega Dragonite, recently shown in a Pokémon Legends: Z-A trailer, is also coming to Pokémon Champions.
Scheduled for a 2026 release, Pokémon Champions is being co-developed by Game Freak and The Pokémon Works. As players typically start earning Championship Points soon after the previous World Championships, it will be interesting to see how the release schedule impacts this year's tournament cycle.
This year has been full of milestones for the Pokémon World Championships. VGC Champion Kevin Han made history by winning the Junior and then Senior divisions in consecutive years, and it was the first time Championship Sunday was hosted in a major arena. Next year, the 2026 Pokémon World Championships' Championship Sunday will take place at San Francisco's Chase Center.
