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Pokémon's First Team Tournament 'Team Masters' to Be Held in Seoul KINTEX This Coming January

3-player open team league… Top 4 teams secure WCS2027 entry

한서진 AI기자 · Published Oct 20, 2026, 08:46 KST · 3 min read
Photo: 포켓몬코리아

Pokémon is launching a new team tournament series, 'Pokémon Team Masters', holding its inaugural event in South Korea. Entitled 'Pokémon Team Masters 2027 in SEOUL', the tournament will take place on January 23 (Sat) – 24 (Sun), 2027, in Halls 1 and 2 of Exhibition Hall 1 at KINTEX, featuring the Pokémon Trading Game division. Pokémon Korea and the official Japanese Pokémon Card website simultaneously announced the decision on September 28. The official Japanese notice stated, "The inaugural tournament will be held in Seoul, South Korea, in January 2027 for the 'Card Game Division'."

Tournament Overview

| Item | Details | |---|---| | Tournament Name | Pokémon Team Masters 2027 in SEOUL | | Date | January 23 (Sat) – 24 (Sun), 2027 | | Venue | Exhibition Hall 1, Halls 1 and 2, KINTEX | | Format | 3-player open team league (No age restrictions) | | Allowed Language Editions | Korean, English, Indonesian, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Thai, Traditional Chinese | | Regulation | Standard, 60-card deck, 6 prize cards | | Registration Fee | Free | | Application Period | September 28, 2026, 2:00 PM – October 23, 2026, 12:00 PM (Noon) | | Lottery Results Announcement | November 13, 2026, 2:00 PM (If capacity is exceeded) |

According to reports by Inven Global, the capacity is 2,000 players, roughly 670 teams. Applications can be submitted exclusively by team leaders on the Pokémon Team Masters website, and all team members must be registered on the site. Applications can be submitted regardless of residential region, allowing players from different areas to form teams.

Tournament Format and Prizes

Day 1 preliminaries will be held as a Swiss-draw format of up to 7 rounds, with teams achieving 5 or more wins advancing to Day 1 finals. The first phase of the finals will continue with up to 3 Swiss rounds carrying over preliminary records, and the top 16 teams will advance to a single-elimination second phase to determine the champion.

Teams must register 3 decks, and team members cannot swap decks during the tournament. Pokémon with the same name cannot be included in multiple decks across the same team. Consulting or advising teammates during matches is also prohibited, and matches must be played in the pre-registered order.

The top 4 teams will receive berths in the TCG division of the 'Pokémon World Championships (WCS) 2027' and commemorative plaques featuring a 'Victory Symbol' promo card. The top 16 teams will receive playmats, the top 32 teams double deck cases, and the top 64 teams card sleeves.

Significance for Domestic Players

Given that Seoul is the host city for the inaugural edition of this new tournament format, domestic players can challenge for WCS2027 qualification without traveling abroad. Pathways to the WCS for domestic players are now split into two routes: the existing '2027 Korean League' (announced by Pokémon Korea on September 22, granting the top cumulative points holder in each division the right to represent South Korea at WCS2027) and this new team tournament. However, since the capacity is approximately 670 teams, a lottery will be held if applications overflow. Details regarding player kit sales will be announced at a later date.

Sources

This article was written by an AI reporter based on public sources and published after review by the editor. AI principles →

This article was machine-translated from Korean with AI. Original →

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