Pokémon players of the world, unite! Then split up based on where you live and start fighting again! That's right: it’s time to band together with your compatriots and cheer each other on in your native tongues as you compete in the fourth annual World Cup of Random Battles! Last year's champion, US Northeast, was new to the podium, let alone the gold medal; will they repeat a performance that many said was a long time coming? Will Oceania—or past winners Benelux and China, neither of whom even made it to the semifinals last year—return for another shot at glory? Or will yet another dark horse team rise rise through the ranks and claim their place in Randbats history? There's only one way to find out!
Qualifiers
Based on their performance last year, 14 teams have already qualified to participate in WCOR '25. Four spots will be open for other teams to compete in a qualifier round for their chance to enter the main tournament.
The structure of the qualifier round will be determined by the total number of qualifying teams, and the top five teams by the end of this stage will advance to the regular season.
Africa + Europe
Asia
Benelux
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Latin America
Oceania
Spain
US Northeast
US South
United Kingdom
Asia
Benelux
China
France
Germany
India
Italy
Latin America
Oceania
Spain
US Northeast
US South
United Kingdom
Brazil
Poland + Portugal
US Midwest
US West
and perhaps more...!
NOTE: Per last year's announcement, Europe's players will likely be subdivided a bit differently this year; Team Poland + Portugal, listed here for historicity's sake, will likely not be an actual team in WCOR '25.
Poland + Portugal
US Midwest
US West
and perhaps more...!
NOTE: Per last year's announcement, Europe's players will likely be subdivided a bit differently this year; Team Poland + Portugal, listed here for historicity's sake, will likely not be an actual team in WCOR '25.
Structure and Formats
WCOR '25 will feature every main generation of Random Battles, plus Gen 9 Random Double Battle. Each team will led by two captains who can, but are not required to, count themselves among the total roster of 12 starters and three to five substitutes.
The structure of the main stage of WCOR '25 will be an 18-team round-robin. In the regular season, players will be placed into groups of six for each slot, where they will battle all five of their opponents. Players will be assigned to each group randomly, and each team will play each other team at least two times and no more than five times.
Teams will be ranked based on records. At the end of the regular season, the eight teams with the best records will advance to the playoffs, a straight eight-team bracket. If two or more teams within the top seven have identical records, their seeding will be determined by coin flip. If there is a tie in records for the last spot, the teams will face off in a tiebreaker series which will consist of three Bo3 matchups: Gen 9 Random Battle and one format chosen by each team.
Gen 9 Random Battle bo5
Gen 9 Random Battle bo3
Gen 9 Random Battle bo3
Gen 9 Random Double Battle bo3
Gen 8 Random Battle bo3
Gen 7 Random Battle bo3
Gen 6 Random Battle bo3
Gen 5 Random Battle bo3
Gen 4 Random Battle bo3
Gen 3 Random Battle bo3
Gen 2 Random Battle bo3
Gen 1 Random Battle bo3
Gen 9 Random Battle bo3
Gen 9 Random Battle bo3
Gen 9 Random Double Battle bo3
Gen 8 Random Battle bo3
Gen 7 Random Battle bo3
Gen 6 Random Battle bo3
Gen 5 Random Battle bo3
Gen 4 Random Battle bo3
Gen 3 Random Battle bo3
Gen 2 Random Battle bo3
Gen 1 Random Battle bo3
Eligibility
Players who are not locked onto a team and are not eligible for grandfathering (new players, or players whose previous teams no longer exist) may only play for the regions associated with their forum IPs. Hosts will not consider any other means of identification for regional eligibility. Please do not submit real-world identifying documents such as passports or birth certificates.
If you have specific questions about eligibility, please contact the hosts.
Players who participated in the last WCOR
If a player participated in the last WCOR, they will be locked onto their team from the previous year, barring the following exceptions:
If a player has IP logs to prove they've spent extended periods of time in multiple regions within the past 12 months (e.g. students who attend university in one region and live in another), they can note their eligibility to join a team associated with either region. Hosts will review these applications on a case-by-case basis.
Players with significant periods of residency prior to the past 12 months, but after their Smogon account was made, may apply to join the team associated with their old IPs used to access Smogon. Hosts will consider these applications on a case-by-case basis, but as a general rule, the minimum amount of time we will consider is one year of residency in the old region. As referenced above, you MUST be able to verify said residency via forum IPs; if your IPs do not reflect this prior residency, your application will not be accepted. Eligibility for the rejected team will be forfeited.
"Cultural eligibility" rules were removed in earlier editions of WCOP & WCOR, and have not been reinstated.
Hosts reserve the right to reject any player they deem to be insufficiently eligible, e.g. a player whose IP drastically changes shortly before the start of the tournament.
Players who participated in the last WCOR
If a player participated in the last WCOR, they will be locked onto their team from the previous year, barring the following exceptions:
- If the team they most recently played for no longer exists, they will be treated as a player eligible for a new team.
- If a player's region has changed since last WCOR, they may choose to instead play for the region currently associated with their forum IPs. This is a one-time choice; doing so forfeits their previous eligibility. They will not be able to be grandfathered back onto their previous team in the future, and even if they someday return to their old region, this eligibility will remain forfeited.
If a player has IP logs to prove they've spent extended periods of time in multiple regions within the past 12 months (e.g. students who attend university in one region and live in another), they can note their eligibility to join a team associated with either region. Hosts will review these applications on a case-by-case basis.
Players with significant periods of residency prior to the past 12 months, but after their Smogon account was made, may apply to join the team associated with their old IPs used to access Smogon. Hosts will consider these applications on a case-by-case basis, but as a general rule, the minimum amount of time we will consider is one year of residency in the old region. As referenced above, you MUST be able to verify said residency via forum IPs; if your IPs do not reflect this prior residency, your application will not be accepted. Eligibility for the rejected team will be forfeited.
"Cultural eligibility" rules were removed in earlier editions of WCOP & WCOR, and have not been reinstated.
Hosts reserve the right to reject any player they deem to be insufficiently eligible, e.g. a player whose IP drastically changes shortly before the start of the tournament.
Prizes
The players on the winning team will be eligible for a shared team custom avatar and will be inducted into the Random Battles Hall of Fame!
IMPORTANT DATES
Captain Signups: June 30th - July6th11th
Qualifier Team Player Signups: July 7th - July 13th
Qualified Team Player Signups: July 14th - August 3rd
Qualifier Round: July 14th - August 1st
Regular Season: August 4th - August 24th
Playoffs: August 25th
(Everything in this post is subject to change)
Captain Signups: June 30th - July
Qualifier Team Player Signups: July 7th - July 13th
Qualified Team Player Signups: July 14th - August 3rd
Qualifier Round: July 14th - August 1st
Regular Season: August 4th - August 24th
Playoffs: August 25th
(Everything in this post is subject to change)
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