The Pokémon Regional Championships in Birmingham was organized chaos in the best way

It was a rush. The Pokémon Regionalꦦ🌼 Championships in Birmingham was buzzing with energy as crowds of people played their matches, watched the main stage, and surged the stores to the side of the action.

After almost becoming Frozen Solid by waiting in wintry weather at Wolverton station for 48 minutes because of a delayed train, I was finally at the NEC in Birmingham. After going to many conventions, I’m used to long lines to enter the premises, but after waiting behind just one person, I finally received my armband to get in and experience the organized chaos of the Pokémon Regional Championships.

Everyone knew their places

Despite the mass of people in front of me, everything was timed and prepared for each entrant of this event. The most popular tournament was for the Trading Card Game, with lines and lines of players battling it out for a win. There was a website that everyone used on their phones that told them which table they were seated at and what time. My cousin was told to go to a match around every 40 minutes. He had eight rounds to go through. Unfortunately, he only won one, and that was because his opponent didn’t show up.

On a random chance, I encountered the adorable Pikachu and Eevee meet-and-greet. These two Kanto Pokémon bobbed their heads up and down fast and created such adorable poses for the people who came to see them. Kids in the middle of the room had papers to color with their favorite Pokémon designs, and in the back section, past games from the series were available, even Pokémon Battle Revolution for the Nintendo Wii. It was cool to see the original hardware and their controllers as a Nintendo 64 played Pokémon Stadium.

There was a speedrun challenge that tasked fans with catching a Jigglypuff the fastest in the original Pokémon Red & Blue. The setup looked comfy, as the organizers placed beanbags on this section. The main stage was also a great place to hang out as you watched the best players duke it out or get interviewed on an adorable set. It was a bit perplexing that we couldn’t hear the announcers on the audio setup, however. I didn’t have much context as to what was happening in front of me.

A heavy air of competition

In the midst of all the fun, there was an air of serious competition and fandom. My cousin said the experience felt more casual when he was a child, but now there are certain metas to follow. He was also told by fellow competitors to have legendaries on his team. It feels odd that powerful Pokémon like Miraidon and Chien-Po were allowed into the mix; it doesn’t seem fair to everyone and limits which of these pocket monsters get chosen, making it less interesting for spectators.

Even the stores took the merch seriously. One store insisted the Japan-imported plush were “collectibles, not toys,” with a 17+ tag at the end, which seemed silly to me, especially for a franchise usually geared towards a family audience. Some signs said they were purchasing Pokémon cards for 70% of their worth for credit. Shopkeepers toiled through massive folders of cards as they were making deals with customers. It’s certainly wildly different from when I experienced the series for the first time as a kid.

Despite the air of competition, my cousin still enjoyed💯 the experience. Even though he lost almost every game, he managed to win a few rounds, as it was a three-round-win system.

A thrill to experience

Overall, the in Birmingham was a thrill to experience. It was the most organized event I’ve ever been to, as the competitors routinely got into the spots they needed to go without much fuss. The 40 minutes also gave them enough time to get food, drinks, etc, before the next battle. Despite there being so many people in at once, I moved around the NEC convention area very well, not bumping into anyone. If you’re a Pokémon fa✅n, you should head to one of these events one day. The £10 entry fee for spectators was worth it.

Despite the miserable experience of “travelling across the land” to Birmingham NEC and then heading back on a coach because of railway issues, it was indeed worth “searching far and wide.”