2018 World Championships

The 2018 World Championships was held at the Nashville in from August 24 to 26, 2018. It was the fifteenth invitation-only championships for players of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the tenth for players of the Pokémon video games, and the third for players of Pokkén Tournament. This was the first time the competition was held in Nashville.
Invitations for the Trading Card Game and the video game events were awarded to players who accumulated enough Championship Points throughout the season. Invitations for Pokkén Tournament were awarded to the top placements at two International Championships and the UK Regional Championships. There were also Last Chance Qualifiers held on Friday for Pokkén Tournament.
Saddle Up, Trainers! was composed as the competition's theme song.
==Trading Card Game Championships==
The Pokémon Trading Card Game featured the , using all cards from onward. Players received invitations from gaining enough Championship Points throughout the year or from the previous year's World Championships.
Day One of the tournament consisted of Swiss rounds for all players who didn't receive a Day Two invitation. Players with enough points moved onto Day Two, where a new set of Swiss rounds were played that did not carry over Day One's records. Decks could be changed between the two days. The top eight then competed in a single-elimination tournament.
===Junior Division===
Tobias Strømdahl was the defending champion but became eligible for the Senior Division in 2018. He earned an invitation to Day Two where he finished 72nd.
Naohito Inoue of Japan became the new World Champion with a record of 9-0-1.
===Senior Division===
Zachary Bohkari was the defending champion but did not attend.
Magnus Pedersen of Denmark finished with a record of 8-1-1 to become the new World Champion.
===Master Division===
Diego Cassiraga was the defending champion, which earned him an invitation to Day Two where he finished 96th.
Robin Schulz of Germany became the first German Pokémon World Champion with a record of 8-0-2.
==Video Game Championships==
Day One of the tournament consisted of Swiss rounds for players who didn't receive a Day Two invitation. Invitations from the 2017 World Championships were only for Day One, meaning all Day Two invitations were awarded through Championship Points accrued through the year. Players with two or fewer losses and no ties advanced on to Day Two. Day Two consisted of a new set of Swiss rounds not using the previous day's records and players could change teams between the days. Players from this round with two or fewer losses and no ties were then seeded into a single-elimination tournament.
Matches took place in Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon and were all Double Battles. All Pokémon except Ash-, , and special Pokémon were eligible, given they had an . All held items were allowed, including Mega Stones. Levels for all Pokémon were adjusted to level 50 and no duplicate Pokémon or items were allowed. Players were given five minutes of move selection time per game.
===Junior Division===
Nicholas Kan was the defending champion but became eligible for the Senior Division in 2018. He finished 25th on Day Two.
Wonn Lee, a South Korean living in Japan, became the new World Champion.
===Senior Division===
Hong Juyong was the defending champion but was eligible for the Masters Division in 2018. He received an invitation to Day Two where he placed 43rd.
James Evans of the United States defeated Bram De Jonge of the Netherlands to become the new World Champion.
===Masters Division===
Ryota Otsubo was the defending champion but was knocked out in Day One.
After finishing in the Top 4 in the previous year, Paul Ruiz defeated Emilio Forbes to become the first Ecuadorian Pokémon World Champion.
==Pokkén Tournament World Championships==
After the previous year combined the age divisions, the 2018 Pokkén Tournament Championships reintroduced the Senior and Masters Divisions. The limited number of entrants did not increase however, with the Masters Division keeping the 16 player limit and the Senior Division having an eight player limit. Invitations were given out to top placements at the Oceania and North American International Championships and the Sheffield Regional Championships. Two Senior and four Masters invites were awarded at the North American and Sheffield Championships each, while the Oceania Championships only awarded one Senior and two Masters invites. The remaining invitations were split between Japanese players and players who made it through the Last Chance Qualifiers.
Pokkén Tournament DX was used for the tournament, with every player required to use their own HORI Pokkén Tournament DX Pro Pad. Unlike previous years, stages were not limited to Ferrum Stadium. The double-elimination format was used, with matches being best three out of five rounds.
Hisaharu "Tonosama" Abe was the defending champion but did not attend.
===Senior Division===
Kato Yusuke defeated Colin "Ashgreninja1" Jones to become the Pokkén Tournament Senior Division World Champion.
===Masters Division===
Jacob "ThankSwalot" Waller defeated Kota "TARUTARO" Aragaki to become the first American Pokkén Tournament Masters Division World Champion.
==Event Pokémon==
Category:Video Game World Championships
de:Pokémon-Weltmeisterschaften 2018
fr:Championnats du Monde 2018
zh:宝可梦世界锦标赛2018