The Pokemon World Championships take place later this month, and Pokemon Go is holding its own in-game event to celebrate. The World Championships event kicks off on Aug. 18 and features special Pokemon encounters, bonuses and other features. Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming event.
World Championships event schedule
Pokemon Go’s World Championships event kicks off 10 a.m. local time on Aug. 18. and ends 8 p.m. local time on Aug. 23.
Featured event Pokemon
A new Pokemon will make its debut during the event: World Championships Pikachu. This version of the electric mouse will be wearing a special suit and top hat, and it’ll be appearing in one-star raids throughout the event. You’ll also have a chance to encounter one by completing Timed and Field Research tasks.
In addition to Pikachu, both Zacian and Zamazenta will return to five-star raid battles. You’ll also be able to encounter the following Pokemon in the wild and lower-tier raids:
Wild spawns
- Nidoran (F)
- Mankey
- Machop
- Mudkip
- Sableye
- Meditite
- Swablu
- Spheal
- Croagunk
- Scraggy
- Dewpider
- Galarian Stunfisk
One-star raids
- World Championships Pikachu
- Galarian Farfetch’d
- Marill
- Barboach
- Timburr
- Scraggy
Three-star raids
- Primeape
- Lickitung
- Skarmory
Five-star raids
Mega raids
Event bonuses
Along with the featured Pokemon, various in-game bonuses will be active throughout the event. First, you’ll earn triple the usual amount of Stardust for winning Go Battle League matches. You’ll also be able to encounter trainers with teams inspired by Regional Champions at PokeStops, and Victory Road-inspired music will play during battles against other players.
In the meantime, Pokemon Go’s August Community Day is set for Aug. 13. The mythical Pokemon Genesect is also back in five-star raids as part of the Bug Out event. You can see everything else happening in the game this month in our August events roundup.