Event | 2023 World Championships |
---|---|
Location | Yokohama, Japan |
Date | 11–13 August 2023 |
Attendance | 359 qualified players (336 in attendance) |
Videogame | Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet |
Season | 2023 Season – VGC Regulation Set D |
Format | Day 1 (309 qualified players): 7 Swiss rounds Open team lists Day 2 (114 qualified players): 7 Swiss rounds + top cut (all X-2 or better) single elimination Open team lists, Day 1 players can change teams |
Organizers | The Pokémon Company International (TPCI) |
Check the official website of the World Championships for further info!
Table of Contents
Teams and results
Top cut
# | Swiss | Flag | Player | Prize | Team | List | Exp. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 5-2 | Shohei Kimura (ナンス) | $10,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
2 | 6-1 | Michael Kelsch (Michi) | $7,500 + 2024 Worlds | Report | |||
3 | 5-2 | Mao Harada (シズ) | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
4 | 5-2 | Federico Camporesi (FedeCampoVGC) | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | Report | |||
5 | 5-2 | Abdullah Mohayyuddin (sempra) | $3,000 | ||||
6 | 5-2 | Víctor Medina (Torviv) | $3,000 | ||||
7 | 5-2 | Nikolaj Høj Nielsen (Nikolaj_H) | $3,000 | ||||
8 | 5-2 | Mattie Morgan (Mattie) | $3,000 | ||||
9 | 7-0 | Luca Lussignoli (MOODY GIRL) | $1,500 | ||||
10 | 6-1 | Taro Okada (さなみ) | $1,500 | ||||
11 | 6-1 | Marco Silva (marcofiero) | $1,500 | ||||
12 | 6-1 | Yosuke Takayanagi (やなぎ) | $1,500 | ||||
13 | 6-1 | Emilio Forbes (Emily) | $1,500 | ||||
14 | 6-1 | Kaito Arii (ナーク) | $1,500 | ||||
15 | 6-1 | Yuta Takahashi (ミラボレアス) | $1,500 | ||||
16 | 5-2 | Kenji Miura (サファイア) | $1,500 | ||||
17 | 5-2 | Neil Patel (Neil) | – | ||||
18 | 5-2 | Nick Navarre (Nails) | – | ||||
19 | 5-2 | Joseph Ugarte (JoeUX9) | – | ||||
20 | 5-2 | Àlex Gómez (PokeAlex) | – | ||||
21 | 5-2 | Anthony Liuzzo (Glum) | – | Report | |||
22 | 5-2 | Hirofumi Kimura (カ・エール) | – | ||||
23 | 5-2 | Leonardo Bonanomi (Leo) | – | ||||
24 | 5-2 | Scott Iwafuchi (Hawk 7) | – | ||||
25 | 5-2 | Zachary Thornberg (Zack) | – | ||||
26 | 5-2 | Kenji Yabata (ジョン) | – |
Swiss rounds (Day 2)
# | Swiss | Flag | Player | Prize | Team | List | Exp. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
27 | 4-3 | Guillermo Castilla (KastyTp) | – | ||||
28 | 4-3 | Maurice Uteg (Miku) | – | ||||
29 | 4-3 | Aaron Brok (Aaron) | – | ||||
30 | 4-3 | Alister Sandover (スカーレット) | – | ||||
31 | 4-3 | Nico Davide Cognetta (Desu) | – | ||||
32 | 4-3 | Kentaro Matsumoto (スカーレット) | – | ||||
33 | 4-3 | Francesco Iozzia (Young Nova) | – | ||||
34 | 4-3 | Kyle Livinghouse (Animus) | – | ||||
35 | 4-3 | Tang Shiliang (20亮亮) | – | ||||
36 | 4-3 | Davide Carrer (Nirinbo) | – | ||||
37 | 4-3 | Gabriel Agati (Ash) | – | ||||
38 | 4-3 | Sebastián Bisbal (Brutus) | – | ||||
39 | 4-3 | Paul Chua (Paul) | – | ||||
40 | 4-3 | Hodaka Hatakeyama (はっくす) | – | ||||
41 | 4-3 | Juan Benítez (Palo) | – | ||||
42 | 4-3 | Aurélien Soula (Sakura) | – | ||||
43 | 4-3 | Flavio Del Pidio (Pado) | – | ||||
44 | 4-3 | Baris Akcos (>BillaVGC<) | – | ||||
45 | 4-3 | Alberto Lara (Ellie) | – | ||||
46 | 4-3 | Taeseok Roe (산 남자) | – | ||||
47 | 4-3 | Taran Birdee (Taran) | – | ||||
48 | 4-3 | Melvin Keh (Sophia) | – | ||||
49 | 4-3 | Renzo Navarro (NotRenzo) | – | ||||
50 | 4-3 | Kengo Hirata (みなとともか) | – | ||||
51 | 4-3 | Florian Henry (Shiyo) | – | ||||
52 | 4-3 | Yang Da-wei (Wavvvy) | – | ||||
53 | 4-3 | Yuma Miyamoto (とり。) | – | ||||
54 | 3-4 | Michael Navas (Jejemena <3) | – | ||||
55 | 3-4 | Jiseok Lee (282) | – | ||||
56 | 3-3 | Ren Kotorii (オレンジ) | – | ||||
57 | 3-4 | Kanade Mizuguchi (バイオレット) | – | ||||
58 | 3-4 | Eric Rios (AEsir) | – | ||||
59 | 3-4 | Kai Yazawa (シャングリラ) | – | ||||
60 | 3-4 | Joaquín Salerno (Mysticbox…) | – | ||||
61 | 3-4 | Wayne Yu (Wayne) | – | ||||
62 | 3-4 | Yuya Tada (ヒフミ) | – | ||||
63 | 3-4 | Yohei Yamane (りんご) | – | ||||
64 | 3-3 | Alfredo Chang-Gonzalez (Chino) | – | ||||
65 | 3-4 | Paul Ruiz (Ralf) | – | ||||
66 | 3-4 | Mizuki Sasaki (しらたま) | – | ||||
67 | 3-4 | Simone Sanvito (☆Sanvy) | – | ||||
68 | 3-4 | Nils Dunlop (Nils) | – | ||||
69 | 3-4 | Nicholas Kan (Nick) | – | ||||
70 | 3-4 | Patrick Donegan (P Donz) | – | ||||
71 | 3-4 | Nathan Rouby (Eltrys) | – | ||||
72 | 3-4 | Thomas Gravouille (Hari) | – | ||||
73 | 3-4 | Jack Clarke (Jack) | – | ||||
74 | 3-4 | Yuta Hiroki (ひろきんぐ) | – | ||||
75 | 3-4 | Kurt Wonka (Lyon) | – | ||||
76 | 2-4 | Chuppa Cross IV (Chuppa*Cross) | – | ||||
77 | 2-4 | Hippolyte Bernard (☆AllySwitch☆) | – | ||||
78 | 2-4 | Justin Burns (Justin) | – | ||||
79 | 2-3 | Marcus Dion (Father Dijon) | – | ||||
80 | 2-5 | Javier Valdés (IRNemesis) | – | ||||
81 | 2-5 | Jasdil Singh Deo (void) | – | ||||
82 | 2-3 | Panyawut Noijan (Rizaya) | – | ||||
83 | 2-5 | Álex Soto (LenVGC) | – | ||||
84 | 2-3 | Luka Trejgut (£) | – | ||||
85 | 2-5 | Jeremy Parson (Zanzibar) | – | ||||
86 | 2-5 | Yusuke Tsuganezawa (えぱ) | – | ||||
87 | 2-5 | Estephan Valdebenito (Irina) | – | ||||
88 | 2-5 | Xiao Haotian (DayDay) | – | ||||
89 | 2-3 | Satoru Mutsuno (まんぜう) | – | ||||
90 | 1-3 | James Evans (James) | – | ||||
91 | 1-3 | Yuma Suzuki (NEO) | – | ||||
92 | 1-3 | Enosh Shachar (Enosh) | – | ||||
93 | 1-3 | Luca Ceribelli (Yume) | – | ||||
94 | 1-3 | Galo Orbea (EcuaDude) | – | ||||
95 | 1-3 | Giulio Tarlao (Giulio) | – | ||||
96 | 1-4 | Rafa Busutil (PokeRaf) | – | ||||
97 | 1-3 | Wan Aqil (nish) | – | ||||
98 | 1-4 | Juan Salerno (Juanfi) | – | ||||
99 | 1-3 | Selahattin Sturm (Sela) | – | ||||
100 | 1-6 | Jun Mikami (テル) | – | ||||
101 | 1-4 | Kazuya Kitasawa (ハルト) | – | ||||
102 | 1-3 | Pan Si Ming (蓝宝石) | – | ||||
103 | 1-3 | Marco Marras (Noxill) | – | ||||
104 | 0-2 | Gavin Michaels (HUH?!!) | – | ||||
105 | 0-3 | Meaghan Rattle (Dan Kuso) | – | ||||
106 | 0-4 | Dorian Quiñonez (Dorian) | – | ||||
107 | 0-3 | Raghav Malaviya (ragi) | – | ||||
108 | 0-3 | Hugo Nascimento (Labacedo) | – | ||||
109 | 0-3 | Kevin Salvetto (Lil Bo Peep) | – | ||||
110 | 0-3 | Sam Pandelis (♥Misaka♥) | – | ||||
111 | 0-4 | Adam Cherfaoui (Shao) | – | ||||
112 | 0-3 | Francis Tai (Tyrant) | – | ||||
113 | 0-3 | Ryoma Okamoto (まひる) | – |
Day 1 Swiss rounds
287 players participated on Day 1. These are the ones that advanced to Day 2 after the Day 1 Swiss rounds!
Senior division
# | Swiss | Flag | Player | Prize | Team | List | Exp. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 6-1 | Tomoya O. | $10,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
2 | 5-2 | Robbie S. | $7,500 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
3 | 5-2 | Yuta O. | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
4 | 5-2 | Yuta K. | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
5 | 6-1 | Sali R. | $3,000 | ||||
6 | 5-2 | Tomoya Z. | $3,000 | ||||
7 | 5-2 | Aidan P. | $3,000 | ||||
8 | 5-2 | Teddy F. | $3,000 |
Junior division
# | Swiss | Flag | Player | Prize | Team | List | Exp. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 5-2 | Sora E. | $10,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
2 | 5-2 | Kohei U. | $7,500 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
3 | 5-2 | Pietro N. K. | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
4 | 5-2 | Wataru K. | $5,000 + 2024 Worlds | ||||
5 | 6-1 | Shunsei K. | $3,000 | ||||
6 | 5-2 | Minato K. | $3,000 | ||||
7 | 5-2 | Kanata S. | $3,000 | ||||
8 | 5-2 | Leland S. | $3,000 |
Streaming
The event is broadcast live on several platforms and in several languages, with Anna Prosser acting as host for the whole event.
- In English: streamed live on Twitch and YouTube, with Adam Dorricott, Rosemary Kelley, Scott Glaza, Lee Provost, Aaron Zheng, Lou Akcos-Cromie and Ray Rizzo as casters.
- In Japanese: streamed live on Niconico and YouTube, with Kosuke Hiraiwa, Shohei Taguchi, Refu and Hakushu Takeuchi as casters, and Manao Kagawa as interviewer.
- In Korean: streamed live on YouTube, with Dongmin Park, Yiseul Kwon, Yongnyeo Kim and Bino as casters.
- In Chinese: streamed live on YouTube, with Shinn and Wu Chen as casters.
The schedule for the streams is the following:
- Opening ceremony and Day 1: stream starts on 11 August 2023 at 00:00 UTC.
- Day 2, including top cut (except finals): stream starts on 12 August 2023 at 00:00 UTC.
- Finals: stream starts on 13 August 2023 at 00:00 UTC. VGC finals will come after Pokémon Go and Pokémon TCG, and they are estimated to start at around 05:00 UTC.
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R1 | Arash Ommati | vs | Naoto Mizobuchi |
R2 | Ashton Cox | vs | Yuya Tada |
R3 | Baris Akcos | vs | Yuto Mizoi |
Caster battle | Aaron Zheng | vs | Ray Rizzo |
R4 | Simone Sanvito | vs | Camilo Liberona |
R5 | Emilio Forbes | vs | Kentaro Matsumoto |
R6 | Patrick Donegan | vs | Giovanni Costa |
R7 | Wolfe Glick | vs | Tang Shiliang |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R1 | Emilio Forbes | vs | Eric Rios |
R2 | Gabriel Agati | vs | Alister Sandover |
R3 | Joseph Ugarte | vs | Kengo Hirata |
R4 | Yosuke Takayanagi | vs | Michael Navas |
R5 | Abdullah Mohayyuddin | vs | Mao Harada |
R6 | Marco Silva | vs | Shohei Kimura |
R7 | Paul Chua | vs | Kenji Yabata |
Top 32 | Kenji Yabata | vs | Kaito Arii |
Top 16 | Víctor Medina | vs | Taro Okada |
Top 8 | Federico Camporesi | vs | Abdullah Mohayyuddin |
Top 4 | Mao Harada | vs | Shohei Kimura |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
Juniors finals | Sora Ebisawa | vs | Kohei Ukai |
Seniors finals | Tomoya Ogawa | vs | Robbie Schaaij |
Masters finals | Michael Kelsch | vs | Shohei Kimura |
The event will be broadcast live on Twitch and YouTube, with Rosemary Kelley, Adam Dorricott, Lou Akcos-Cromie and Joe Brown as casters and Sierra Dawn Hunter managing interviews to match winners and invitees, such as 2022 NAIC champion James Evans, 2020 LAIC champion James Baek.
- Day 1: stream starts on 16 February at 21:45 UTC
- Day 2: stream starts on 17 February at 21:45 UTC
- Championship Sunday: stream starts on 18 February at 21:45 UTC with the TCG finals. VGC finals are expected on 19 February at around 03:00 UTC
Take a look at the following matches!
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R1 | Henry Rich | vs | Gabriel Agati |
R2 | Kimo Nishimura | vs | Meaghan Rattle |
R3 | Ben Madigan | vs | Gavin Michaels |
R4 | Sam Pandelis | vs | Peng Chongjun |
R5 | Marco Silva | vs | Aurélien Soula |
R6 | Stefan Mott | vs | Alex Underhill |
R7 | Joseph Ugarte | vs | Justin Burns |
R8 | Collin Heier | vs | Eric Rios |
R9 | Luke Curtale | vs | Zackary Thornberg |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R10 | Yuki Zaninovich | vs | Gavin Michaels |
R11 | Jesse Beard | vs | Yuya Tada |
R12 | Alfredo Chang-Gonzalez | vs | Giulio Tarlao |
Casters | Rosemary Kelley | vs | Lou Akcos-Cromie |
R13 | Alberto Lara | vs | Sam Pandelis |
R14 | Collin Heier | vs | Aurélien Soula |
Top 8 | Thomas Gravouille | vs | Yuya Tada |
Top 4a | Raghav Malaviya | vs | Alberto Lara |
Top 4b | Yuya Tada | vs | Gavin Michaels |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
Juniors Finals | Kiara N. | vs | Takumi M. |
Seniors Finals | Tin Tin N. | vs | Benjamin B. |
Masters Finals | Gavin Michaels | vs | Alberto Lara |
Usage stats
The following stats only count the Master Division usage.
Day 2
Day 1
It is assumed that the Urshifu style represented in the following graph is the Rapid Strike Style.
The event will be broadcast live on Twitch and YouTube, with Rosemary Kelley, Adam Dorricott, Lou Akcos-Cromie and Joe Brown as casters and Sierra Dawn Hunter managing interviews to match winners and invitees, such as 2022 NAIC champion James Evans, 2020 LAIC champion James Baek.
- Day 1: stream starts on 16 February at 21:45 UTC
- Day 2: stream starts on 17 February at 21:45 UTC
- Championship Sunday: stream starts on 18 February at 21:45 UTC with the TCG finals. VGC finals are expected on 19 February at around 03:00 UTC
Take a look at the following matches!
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R1 | Henry Rich | vs | Gabriel Agati |
R2 | Kimo Nishimura | vs | Meaghan Rattle |
R3 | Ben Madigan | vs | Gavin Michaels |
R4 | Sam Pandelis | vs | Peng Chongjun |
R5 | Marco Silva | vs | Aurélien Soula |
R6 | Stefan Mott | vs | Alex Underhill |
R7 | Joseph Ugarte | vs | Justin Burns |
R8 | Collin Heier | vs | Eric Rios |
R9 | Luke Curtale | vs | Zackary Thornberg |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
R10 | Yuki Zaninovich | vs | Gavin Michaels |
R11 | Jesse Beard | vs | Yuya Tada |
R12 | Alfredo Chang-Gonzalez | vs | Giulio Tarlao |
Casters | Rosemary Kelley | vs | Lou Akcos-Cromie |
R13 | Alberto Lara | vs | Sam Pandelis |
R14 | Collin Heier | vs | Aurélien Soula |
Top 8 | Thomas Gravouille | vs | Yuya Tada |
Top 4a | Raghav Malaviya | vs | Alberto Lara |
Top 4b | Yuya Tada | vs | Gavin Michaels |
Round | Player 1 | vs | Player 2 |
---|---|---|---|
Juniors Finals | Kiara N. | vs | Takumi M. |
Seniors Finals | Tin Tin N. | vs | Benjamin B. |
Masters Finals | Gavin Michaels | vs | Alberto Lara |
Participating players
The World Championships is an invitational event in which players from all over the world can play if they meet some qualifying criteria. These players are sent an email with all the instructions they need to follow to confirm their attendance and register their teams.
Check here the info on these criteria, as well as who the players that earned an invite are!
Check out our preview articles on all qualified players from North America, Europe, Latin America, Oceania, Japan, and the rest of Asia!
Venue and schedule
The tournament will be held in the Exhibition Halls A, B, C and D of the following location:
PACIFICO Yokohama
パシフィコ横浜
1-chōme-1-1 Minatomirai, Nishi Ward, Yokohama, Kanagawa 220-0012
〒220-0012 神奈川県横浜市西区みなとみらい1丁目1−1
Check-in and badge pickup for players with a Day 1 invite can be done at the Annex Hall on Thursday 10 August from 5 pm to 8 pm JST (08:00 to 11:00 UTC), or early on Friday 11 August from 8 am JST (10 August at 23:00 UTC).
Day 1 players must be ready in the venue on 11 August 2023 at the conclusion of the opening ceremonies, approximately at 9:30 am JST (00:30 UTC) for the players meeting. The tournament starts right thereafter with the Day 1 Swiss rounds. All players with 2 or fewer losses at the end of the Swiss rounds qualify to the Day 2 tournament.
Check-in and badge pickup for players with a Day 2 invite can be done at the Annex Hall on Thursday 10 August from 5 pm to 8 pm JST (08:00 to 11:00 UTC) or on Friday 11 August from 8 am to 3 pm JST (10 August at 23:00 UTC to 11 August at 06:00 UTC).
Day 2 players must be ready in the venue on 12 August 2023 at 8:45 am JST (11 August at 23:45 UTC) for a new players meeting. The tournament starts right thereafter with the Day 2 Swiss rounds and the top cut, until only two players remain.
Finals will be played on 13 August 2023 at 9 am JST (00:00 UTC), starting with Pokémon Go, then Pokémon TCG and finally Pokémon VGC (VGC finals estimated at around 2 pm JST / 05:00 UTC).
Prizes
This event is the most important event in the 2023 official circuit for all regions. It does not reward Championship Points (CPs).
Information about participation goodies will be released at a later date.
Additionally, the best-placed players will receive the following prizes depending on final attendance:
Placement | Prize money | Other prizes |
---|---|---|
Winner | $10,000 |
|
Runner-up | $7,500 |
|
Semifinalists | $5,000 |
|
5th to 8th | $3,000 |
|
9th to 16th | $1,500 |
|
17th to 32nd | – |
|
If prize money is $5000 or more, it will be given as a choice of scholarship (in all cases) or cash (for minors, as a Pokémon Visa® Prepaid Card). For lower prizes, it will be given as cash (for minors, as a Pokémon Visa® Prepaid Card).
Overview
The World Championships is the most important event for Pokémon VGC, Pokémon TCG, Pokémon GO and Pokémon UNITE for every region (either in TPCI, TPC or Pokémon Korea), as the culmination of all events throughout the season.
It is the 13th edition of the World Championships for Pokémon VGC. After a special event held during the 2008 Pokémon TCG World Championships, dubbed the Video Game Showdown (and won by Japanese player Izuru Yoshimura), VGC Worlds has been celebrated every year starting in 2009, with the only exception of 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemics. See the results of the previous editions:
- 2009, won by Kazuyuki Tsuji
- 2010, won by Ray Rizzo
- 2011, won by Ray Rizzo, for the 2nd time
- 2012, won by Ray Rizzo, for a record 3rd time
- 2013, won by Arash Ommati
- 2014, won by Sejun Park
- 2015, won by Shoma Honami
- 2016, won by Wolfe Glick
- 2017, won by Ryota Otsubo
- 2018, won by Paul Ruiz
- 2019, won by Naoto Mizobuchi
- 2022, won by Eduardo Cunha
The ruleset is VGC Regulation Set D and it will be played using open team lists. It is the first time this ruleset is used in an official event. A new ruleset had never been played before at the World Championships for the first time!
A little bit of history
Japan has been a part of the official TPC circuit since its inception. It has hosted multiple major events, including old-era Regionals and National Championships, and is particularly successful in the online competitions. This is the first time ever that it is host to the World Championships! As the most successful country in VGC, Japan’s greatest trophies have been brought home by 4 World Champions in the Masters division, as well as the 2008 VGS Champion and other 9 in the Senior and Junior divisions throughout the years.
The most recent tournament held in Japan was the 2023 Japan National Championship, hosted in Chiba and played with the VGC Regulation Set C in June 2023. The finals saw Japanese Kaito Arii defeat fellow countryman Hodaka Hatakeyama to achieve his first-ever major title.
The last time the World Championships were held was the 2022 edition, hosted in London, United Kingdom, and played in Pokémon Sword & Pokémon Shield with the VGC Series 12 ruleset in August 2022. The finals saw 2016 Worlds semifinalist Eduardo Cunha defeat 2-time National Champion Guillermo Castilla to win the crown of World Champion!
Sign-up instructions
For Day 1 players, team lists must be submitted through Rk9 Labs the day before the event starts, by 10 August 2023 at 8 pm JST (11:00 UTC).
For Day 2 players, team lists must also be submitted through Rk9 Labs 1 hour and 15 minutes before the event starts, by 12 August 2023 at 7:30 am JST (11 August at 22:30 UTC). This is treated as a different tournament, so players qualified from Day 1 can change to a new team for Day 2.
A chance to get spectator passes is decided by a lottery. The first step is to join an Interest List by 7 June at 6:59 UTC. A lottery is drawn on 12 June amongst those in the Interest List and, if you are selected, you can purchase up to 2 spectator passes, which cost ¥2,000 each.