Is a Major Pokémon Tournament Worth Attending as a Spectator?

On October 31 and November 1 2026, I attended the regional in Gdańsk. It was the first major Pokémon tournament I had ever seen in person, and I went as a pure spectator. That made one question impossible to avoid: if you are not competing, is a major worth your time and your travel?

My short answer is that I am glad I went, but I see it as an experience to live once rather than an event I would keep coming back to. Here is how I got there.

What the public actually gets

The event is organized into several areas. I walked through all of them, some of them more than once, and each one left me with a slightly different impression.

Merchants

I expected a temporary shop, well laid out, with products displayed as part of the decor, the way they are in the Japanese Pokémon Centers. That is not what I found. The few plushes on sale were piled loose in big suitcases, and most stands were independents buying and selling Pokémon cards.

For experts and collectors, this is interesting, and I enjoyed seeing some beautiful cards. But it does nothing to make the commercial area stand out visually from any other trade event.

Side Events

The Side Events are small competitions where you can win prizes. To me they seemed designed first for the parents of the juniors and for players who were knocked out early, not for spectators, who are less equipped.

I would have loved to take part in a VGC side event, but I only have Pokémon Champions on my phone and I had not brought a Switch, so I could not. I also got conflicting information about it on site. To me, that says these events assume a public that is already well informed and used to how things work.

Fan Zone

The Fan Zone lets you play various Pokémon video games, from retro titles to recent ones. I wanted to try Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which I had never played, but only one station offered it and I never managed to get a seat over the two days. There were also puzzles and colouring sheets, with a drawing and colouring contest, plus a few other mini-games.

The stands themed around Magikarp and Spinarak, designed for two players, are what I had hoped to see more of. They add something visual to the event on top of being games. If you enjoy these activities, there is enough to keep you busy, but the offer stays fairly limited, especially in the number of seats.

The players' area and the stages

Each competition has a reserved area for its players, and it is open to everyone. This is where you feel the atmosphere of a major, and the VGC area in particular was very quiet and focused.

There are also stages with seats and screens for the public, where the live-streamed matches are shown, only a few metres from the players themselves. For me, this was the heart of the event.

The photo booth

A photo booth is available, with a very beautiful Pikachu mascot who joins at certain hours. The photos are the only souvenirs anyone can take home from the event. That is already nice, but I would have liked something more, to strengthen the feeling of belonging to the event: a special Pokémon card made for the occasion, with no other purpose than being a collectible.

Who it seems designed for

Put together, my impression is that what is planned for the public is there mostly to keep busy the relatives who come with the players, rather than to offer real interest to someone who simply comes to watch. The Side Events favour parents and eliminated players. The Fan Zone has too few stations and seats to welcome a crowd. Even the merchants speak mainly to those who already collect.

It is not designed for a public that comes in numbers to take part in a Pokémon event for its own sake, and that is not interested only in the live-streamed matches.

So, was it worth it?

Yes, for me. I followed great matches live, crossed paths with plenty of well-known players from the scene, had good moments enjoying the activities, and felt the atmosphere around a major competition by going to see where the players were facing each other.

But as it stands, I would not make a special trip for it unless the event is close to home. It is an experience to have once, not something you gain from repeating.

What I hope comes next

I hope these events will not be designed only for players and their relatives in the future. I would like them to become true Pokémon events, where every fan of the franchise can come together and share an interest, not just follow the matches on a screen.

Erwan
Author of PokéSpread