Under the California sun, from August 15 to 17, the Anaheim Convention Center was transformed into the Pokémon capital of the world. In those halls, colored by exclusive booths, global streaming, and thousands of spectators with ears of Pikachu and Eevee, the Pokémon World Championships 2025, the most prestigious event in the official competitive, was held.
It’s a tournament that goes beyond just playing: winning an invitation requires months of qualifying between regional and international events, self-funded travel and hours of strategic coaching.
Arriving in California, players competed in the four official disciplines – TCG (trading card game), VGC (Pokémon Scarlet and Violet video games), Pokémon GO and Pokémon UNITE – in a sort of “nerd Olympics” that brings only the world’s elite to the stage.
This year Italy presented itself as the favored nation, on the strength of its 2024 successes and a season dominated by figures such as Federico Camporesi, winner of the North American Internationals, and Marco Silva, Latin American champion. They were joined by the charisma of Luca “Ceree” Ceribelli, reigning world champion, and the solidity of Alberto Conti, number one in the Italian TCG.
Expectations were high, but the race was cut short before the finish line. Of the 27 Italians entered in the VGC category, only five made it past the first day of competition. The last to surrender was Giuseppe Musicco, 30, originally from Puglia but living in the UK, who made it all the way to the Top16, where he surrendered to strong American Montana Mott.
The result, however, remains good: seventh place in the world in the Masters category, confirming steady growth.
A hallmark of the Italian movement is the strength of its community. Many of the protagonists belong to the competitive “Server” team, a collective that combines training, strategy study and off-court friendships. From this group have come some of the greatest achievements of recent years: the 2024 world championship won by Ceribelli and the internationals dominated by Silva and Camporesi.
“The more strong players there are, the more new ones are created,” Musicco explained. “In local tournaments we train with top-level opponents, and that raises everyone’s standard.”
The Pokémon phenomenon beyond competition
The World Cup is not just about heart-pounding challenges. Around the tournament lives an ecosystem that intertwines pop culture, collectibles and business. The Pokémon universe, born in Japan in 1996, is now the most profitable entertainment brand in the world: video games, cards, merchandise, animated series and movies generate billions of dollars each year.
In Anaheim, you can feel it everywhere: mile-long lines for limited-edition cards, official booths stormed by fans, influencers and streamers live-telling every match. It’s a global celebration that mixes competition and passion, where every player-from the engineer from Puglia to the Japanese kid-embodies the dream of becoming “the absolute best,” just as the series’ motto states.
Next year, the challenge starts again. With one certainty: among the colorful pavilions of the Pokémon World Cup, Italy will continue to be a protagonist.
The article Pokémon World Cup 2025 in California: Italy stops in Top16 comes from TheNewyorker.
