• Guide

2019 Pokemon World Championships: Prize pool, schedule, and how to watch

The Pokemon Masters all gather in the nation's capital for the 2019 Pokemon World Championships. Shacknews has your full guide on how to watch all of the action.

Ozzie Mejia

August 15, 2019 2:00 PM

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The 2019 Pokemon World Championships are about to begin, with the world's top trainers coming forward with a desire to be the very best, like no one ever was. From Friday through Sunday, competitors from over 35 countries will gather in the nation's capital of Washington DC to compete across Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon, The Pokemon Trading Card Game, and Pokken Tournament DX. Shacknews is here with our full guide on how to witness all of the action.

How much is the 2019 Pokemon World Championships prize pool?

The 2019 Pokemon World Championships will award over $500,000 in cash and scholarships across three different age groups. Here are the current prize totals for each of the three games set to be played over the weekend:

Pokemon Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon

• 1st place - $10,000
• 2nd place - $7,500
• 3rd-4th place - $5,000
• 5th-8th place - $3,000
• 9th-16th place - $1,500

The top four players in all age groups will receive an automatic invitation to the 2020 Pokemon World Championships. The top 16 players will also receive 72 Pokemon Trading Card Game booster packs.

The Pokemon Trading Card Game

• 1st place - $25,000
• 2nd place - $15,000
• 3rd-4th place - $7,500
• 5th-8th place - $5,000
• 9th-16th place - $2,500
• 17th-32nd place - $1,500

Just like with Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, the top four players in all age groups will receive an automatic invitation to the 2020 Pokemon World Championships. The top 16 players will also receive 72 Pokemon Trading Card Game booster packs.

Pokken Tournament DX (Masters Division)

• 1st place - $6,000
• 2nd place - $4,000
• 3rd place - $3,000
• 4th place - $2,000
• 5th place (tie) - $1,500
• 7th place (tie) - $1,000

Pokken Tournament DX (Senior Division)

• 1st place - $3,000 Pokemon Visa Prepaid Card
• 2nd place - $1,500 Pokemon Visa Prepaid Card
• 3rd place - $500 Pokemon Visa Prepaid Card

What are the different competitive Pokemon age groups?

If you're new to the world of competitive Pokemon, you may be unfamiliar with the idea of the Masters, Senior, and Junior divisions. These represent the three different age groups that will compete this weekend. Here are the specific age groups:

• Masters Division - Born in 2000 or earlier
• Senior Division - Born anytime from 2001-2004
• Junior Division - Born in 2005 or later

Both the Pokemon TCG and VGC competitions have a Masters, Senior, and Junior divisions. Pokken Tournament DX features a Masters and Senior division only.

The 2019 Pokemon World Championships schedule

Here's the full schedule for this weekend (all times listed in PT):

How to Watch the 2019 Pokemon World Championships

There are four Twitch streams available throughout the weekend:

• The main Pokemon stream
• The Pokemon Trading Card Game stream
• The Pokemon Video Game stream
• The Pokken Tournament stream

There are also YouTube mirrors for Day 1, Day 2, and the Finals.

2019 Pokemon World Championships - On-site events

Beyond the competitions themselves, there's something for every Pokemon fan if you're attending the 2019 Pokemon World Championships in person.

If you own a copy of Pokemon Ultra Sun, Ultra Moon, Sun, or Moon for the Nintendo 3DS, you can collect a special Pokemon for your game. All attendees will receive a special Level 50 Aerodactyl, equipped with a Rare Bone. This Flying/Rock-type will have the Unnerve ability, which makes the opponent nervous and unable to eat Berries. It will have the moves Celebrate, Ancient Power, Rock Polish, and Wide Guard.

Hands-on demos for Pokemon Sword and Shield on Nintendo Switch and Pokemon Masters on mobile devices will also be available.

And if you're looking to take a break from the action, you can find exclusive swag from the Pokemon Center pop-up shop. Or you can go catch a screening of Detective Pikachu on Friday and Saturday.

How to watch the 2019 Pokemon World Championships VODs

The top matches from throughout the weekend will be posted in full on the Pokemon YouTube channel, all of which can be viewed on demand.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?