Last year, it was announced Pokémon’s Video Game Championships would shift across to Pokémon Champions in 2026.
With the “free-to-start” game’s release date now locked in for 8th April 2026, it’s been officially reconfirmed Pokémon’s VGC competitions will transition from Pokémon Scarlet & Violet to Champions as the “standard platform for all competitive matches” going forward.
The first major event putting Champions in the spotlight will be the Indianapolis Pokémon Regional Championships taking place in the US between 29th – 31st May 2026, with registration opening on 1st April 2026.
“VGC will transition to Pokémon Champions as the standard platform for all competitive matches with its launch on the Nintendo Switch systems on Wednesday, April 8, 2026.”
It’s also been confirmed that competitors won’t have to wait until the Indianapolis Regionals for an official event featuring Champions. ‘Global Challenge I’ will take place between 1st – 4th May 2026. Along with this, Champions will be used at some side events at Regional Championships during April and May.
As previously confirmed, this year’s Pokémon World Championships, taking place between 29th – 30th August 2026, will also use Pokémon Champions as its main battle platform. For more details about the regulation and format of the Pokémon VGC going forward, you can check out the Pokémon website.
Pokémon Champions will be available on the Switch, and Switch 2 users will also get a free update at launch featuring enhanced visual performance. This will follow with a mobile release at some point later this year.
