FAQ Topics

• General Questions

• Qualifying through the Pokémon TCG Online Leaderboard

• Pokkén Tournament DX

General Questions

Q: How will I know if I have qualified?

A: Pokémon TCG and VG players who qualify for the Region Qualifiers will be emailed a link to begin the registration process.

Q: If I qualify for the Region Qualifiers, what email will be used to contact me?

A: You will be contacted at the email address attached to your Pokémon Trainer Club account. Please make sure this email address, and the other information on your profile, is up-to-date in order to compete in the Pokémon Players Cup III.

Q: What formats will be played?

A: The Pokémon TCG tournament will use the Standard format. The Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield tournament will use the Pokémon Video Game Championships Format. Pokkén Tournament DX will use Basic Battle 1v1 Format.

Q: During the Region Qualifiers, how many games will make up a match?

A: Matches for all Region Qualifiers will be best of three.

Q: Which countries are eligible, and what region will they be in*?

*Country eligibility subject to change.

**Latin America is not eligible for the Pokkén Tournament DX event.

Q: Why does Oceania have fewer slots?

A: The only countries supported for Oceania for this competition are Australia and New Zealand. Because it has fewer eligible players than other regions, Oceania has fewer slots available.

Q: Why is the Pokémon Players Cup III supporting only the Masters Division?

A: Several third-party platforms require accounts that don’t support younger age divisions. A way to support younger divisions is being continually evaluated.

Q: What happens if I qualify for the Region Qualifiers for more than one tournament (TCG, VG, or Pokkén Tournament DX)?

A: Players who qualify for more than one Region Qualifiers must choose which (one) event they wish to participate in. If a player attempts to register for more than one, their VG or Pokkén Tournament DX registration will be voided, and they will be entered only into the Pokémon TCG event.

Q: By when should my account be set up and ready?

A: Accounts should be in good order before the first qualification period begins for each tournament.

Q: I qualified for the Region Qualifier phase of the Pokémon Players Cup III; how will I be contacted?

A: Players will be contacted through the email on their account profile.

Q: My parent/guardian created my child account before I was old enough to have my own. Can I update my email now that I’m older?

A: Accounts over the age of consent can modify their email address and some other details of an account. If you have any questions, please contact us through support.pokemon.com.

Q: I’ve been using someone else’s account to play on the Pokémon TCG Online and don’t have any Pokémon TCG cards on my account. Can I transfer the card collection?

A: Card collections cannot be transferred between accounts. You must play using only your own account. The Pokémon TCG Online has a trading feature for players to acquire the cards they may need.

Q: My Pokémon Trainer Club account details are inaccurate and need to be updated, but the system won’t let me change the field that is incorrect. How can I update details of my account?

A: Please contact customer service by logging into your account at support.pokemon.com.

Q: I lost access to my Pokémon Trainer Club account. How do I recover it?

A: Please reach out to customer service regarding your account at support.pokemon.com. To recover an account, you will need to access the email address associated with your account.

Q: Can I transfer Tournament Rep to a new Pokémon Trainer Club account?

A: No.

Q: I lost access to the email address on file with my Pokémon Trainer Club account. Can I still recover my account?

A: Please reach out to customer service regarding your account at support.pokemon.com.

Q: What does The Pokémon Company International (TPCi) do to validate player identity in a Players Cup tournament?

A: If at any point TPCi or its agents, judges, or registration vendors become aware of a player using another person’s account or determine that there is a significant mismatch between the account information and the player’s personal information, that player may lose eligibility to progress further in the tournament and may forfeit any and all prizes. TPCi may reach out to investigate proof of identity and require submission of government identification to verify ID at any point during the tournament. In addition, all players who make the Global Finals phase of the tournament will need to submit proof of identification and residency to the satisfaction of TPCi.

Q: What if I have multiple Pokémon Trainer Club accounts, or my Pokémon TCG Online account has a different Player ID than what I use for physical events?

A: Per the Terms of Use of Pokemon.com and PokemonTCG.com, users are prohibited from creating more than one Pokémon Trainer Club account. If you have multiple accounts, please contact customer service at support.pokemon.com from your primary account.

Q: I used a nickname for my Pokémon Trainer Club account that does not match my ID. What should I do?

A: Please reach out to customer service regarding your account at support.pokemon.com.

Q: When does my Pokémon Trainer Club account need to be in good standing?

A: Players need to be using an account that belongs to them and matches their personal details before the first phase of a Players Cup tournament.

Q: I qualified for the Region Qualifier phase of the Players Cup. How will I be contacted?

A: Players will be contacted through the email associated with their Pokémon Trainer Club account profile.

Q: Will tiebreakers be used in the case of players with zero Tournament Rep points?

A: No. Players must earn at least 1 Tournament Rep point in order to be eligible to advance. If the number of players in a region with at least 1 Tournament Rep point is less than the number of places in the Region Online Qualifiers for that region, the remaining places will become byes in the bracket, as opposed to being randomly chosen from the players with zero Tournament Rep points.

Q: What happens if I qualify for the Region Qualifiers for both Pokémon TCG and VG events?

A: Players who qualify for both the Pokémon TCG and VG Region Qualifiers must choose which event they wish to participate in. If a player attempts to register for both, their VG registration will be voided, and they will be entered into the Pokémon TCG event.

Q: Why use a double-elimination tournament format?

A: In an online environment, we have less visibility when players encounter issues during play. Sometimes these problems can take a while to resolve, or it can take longer to troubleshoot two players being unable to connect to each other to play their match. In a Swiss tournament system, we would need to wait until every single match is completed in a round before we can start the next one. In an elimination system, however, we only need to hold up the matches being directly fed by the ones facing delay. This allows us to keep most of the tournament moving with fewer delays. Double elimination gives us this flexibility while still giving a second chance to players who lose one of their matches.

Qualifying through the Pokémon TCG Online Leaderboard

Q: Who is eligible to play in Pokémon Players Cup III qualifier tournaments in the Pokémon TCG Online?

A: You must meet all the criteria below to be eligible to participate.

• You must reside in an eligible country.

• You must meet the age requirement for Masters Division.

• You must have a Pokémon Trainer Club account, and you must have opted in to the Play! Pokémon Terms of Use and been issued a Player ID.

• You must log in to the Pokémon TCG Online between October 18, 2020, and January 18, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. PST with a Pokémon Trainer Club account that has a Player ID associated with it at the time of log-in.

Q: Can I share my account with someone else, such as a parent, sibling, or friend? Can I play using someone else's Pokémon Trainer Club account?

A: No. Logging in to another person’s Pokémon Trainer Club account is a violation of the Pokémon Terms of Use. Sharing accounts may lead to disqualification from the event or additional account actions, including suspension or termination of the accounts.

Q: How long is the qualification period for the Pokémon TCG portion of the Pokémon Players Cup III?

A: The Pokémon TCG portion of the Pokémon Players Cup III will use the rankings from the Pokémon TCG Online Standard format Tournament Rep leaderboard for the month of February. Any Standard format Tournament Rep earned between January 26 at 10:00 a.m. PST and February 26 at 9:59 a.m. PST will count toward the February leaderboard. Tournament Rep earned after February 26 at 9:59 a.m. PST will count toward the March leaderboard and will therefore not count toward qualifying for the Pokémon TCG portion of the Pokémon Players Cup III Region Qualifiers.

Q: How do I play in Pokémon TCG Online tournaments?

A: After logging in to the game, click on the “Play!” button in the upper left-hand corner of the screen, and then choose “Events” to view the list of available tournaments. A Pokémon Players Cup III qualifier tournament queue will be available during the qualification period, with an entry requirement of one Tournament Key.

Q: How do I get Tournament Keys?

A: All eligible players will be granted 50 Tournament Keys on January 25, and any Tournament Keys that have not been used before February 26 at 10:00 a.m. PST will be revoked. Players with at least one unused Tournament Key can view their current balance on the “Events” screen in the game. Tournament Keys cannot be earned through gameplay, and no additional Tournament Keys will be granted during the qualification period.

Q: How do I earn Tournament Rep?

A: Tournament Rep points are awarded based on your final standing in a Pokémon TCG Online tournament.

Note: Standard format tournaments that require Event Tickets for entry will not award Tournament Rep points during the Pokémon Players Cup III qualification period.

Q: How do I see my current Standard format Tournament Rep points and regional ranking?

A: Go to the TCG Online Standard Format Leaderboard page and log in to the Pokémon Trainer Club account you’ve been using to play in Pokémon TCG Online tournaments, then choose your region and the “Tournament Rep” and “This Month” options.

Q: What are the tiebreakers for Pokémon TCG Online Tournament Rep Leaderboard rankings?

A: If multiple players on a leaderboard have the same number of Tournament Rep points, their final standings in each tournament that is eligible for that leaderboard are used as tiebreakers. Once the criteria for one tiebreaker is met, no further tiebreakers are applied.

Any players who are still tied after the final tiebreaker will have the same ranking, and their screen names will be listed in random order.

Q: Will tiebreakers be used in the case of players with zero Tournament Rep points?

A: No. Players must earn at least 1 Tournament Rep point in order to be eligible to advance. If the number of players in a region with at least 1 Tournament Rep point is fewer than the number of places in the Region Online Qualifiers for that region, the remaining places will become byes in the bracket as opposed to being randomly chosen from the players with zero Tournament Rep points.

Pokkén Tournament DX

Q: How do I participate in the Pokkén Tournament DX event?

A: Pokkén Tournament DX players will be able to register online in February. Information will appear on Pokemon.com when registration is open.

Q: Will the number of spaces for Pokkén Tournament DX Region Qualifiers increase?

A: If demand is extreme, the capacity will be reevaluated.

Q: In Pokkén Tournament DX, will anything be done to mitigate lag?

A: Players will need to meet a minimum internet speed test in order to participate.

Q: Why is there not a Region Qualifier for Latin America?

A: The qualification regions match support provided at the International Championships, and Pokkén Tournament DX is not currently supported at the Latin America International Championships.

*All details, including rules, dates, and eligibility, are subject to change.