San Francisco, Ten Years Later: What Worlds Has Always Been About For Me

The Pokémon World Championships return to San Francisco this weekend, and there's something poetic about the timing. It's been exactly ten years since Wolfe Glick claimed the title right here in this city, piloting a team almost nobody saw coming and cementing his name in the format's history. That run still gets talked about alongside twenty fourteen's iconic Sejun Park run with Pachirisu, teams that, if you weren't around for them, are absolutely worth digging into on your own. There's no shortage of retrospectives out there.

For me, Worlds has never really been about any one team or one champion. It's been about the years, and the people I shared them with.

2015 Worlds photographed by a much younger me!

I first watched from afar back in twenty twelve, twenty thirteen, twenty fourteen, dreaming of the day I'd get to attend, whether as a spectator or, eventually, a competitor. That chance came in twenty fifteen, my first Worlds, in Boston. It's an event some remember for darker reasons, and I won't dwell on that here. What I remember is the magic of it: showing up every single day, bringing a different friend along each time, wandering the Pokémon Center pop-up for the first time, and meeting people who are still in my life today. Worlds back then still felt like it was finding its shape, side events and the big Worlds Open Tournament just starting to take hold alongside the main event.

2018 Nashville Worlds!

San Francisco and Anaheim followed in twenty sixteen and twenty seventeen, but as a broke college kid, the West Coast simply wasn't in reach. By the time twenty eighteen rolled around, I'd planted real roots in the Chicago Pokémon community, organizing locals, judging events, getting to know the same faces week after week. So when Nashville came around that year, a whole crew of us packed into an Airbnb built for ten people, twenty of us checking in, blowing the air conditioning within a night. We spent the rest of that trip sweating it out and loving every second, mostly grateful the convention center had working AC. Nashville also marked a shift for me since 2015: a bigger venue, higher stakes, and a format bringing mega evolutions back into the spotlight after the more restrictive formats during the season.

Somewhere around then, I also landed the rare opportunity to spend a season as a commentator, producing and building out a broadcast team. Getting to stand alongside people who turn a turn-based strategy game into genuine entertainment, year after year, gave me a whole new appreciation for what goes into making Worlds a must-watch.

Then came twenty nineteen, Washington DC, still one of the best events I've ever attended. The fossil theme ran through everything, down to a limited hatch-print poster from the Pokémon Center that I still have, one of only five hundred made using a process where individually painted parts are pressed together into a single image. That trip felt different too, a bit more room to breathe financially, a different friend group to chill with, and a different rhythm entirely.

2019 World Championships! (Any Fossils look familiar from the current Chicago exhibit?)

That's the thing I've come to understand about this game over the years. The events change. The formats change. Sometimes you're there with your local game store crew, sometimes with friends made purely online, sometimes with a partner who's along for the ride. Every single one carries its own feel, shaped entirely by who you're standing next to. So as Worlds returns to San Francisco this weekend, ten years after Glick's win in this very city, what I'm thinking about isn't just who lifts the trophy. It's the people I've shared this ride with, at every regional, every international, every local.

If you’re watching from home or attending this spectacular event, I hope you’re surrounded by those who make this event better. Either in person or on a Discord call, hyping up the latest top-level play.

Do you have memories of prior Worlds? Reach out to share them with us or comment below!

Thanks for reading!