Card Show Weekend Preview May 8 to 10: LA Pokemon Regionals, Hawaii TCG Expo, East Bay TCG NOW, and Collect-A-Con Cleveland
The May 8 to 10 weekend is the densest TCG show calendar of the spring. The LA Pokemon Regional Championships anchor the slate alongside the Hawaii Pokemon and TCG Expo, East Bay's TCG NOW in Santa Clara, Collect-A-Con Cleveland, and the ATX North Card Show in Belton, TX. Here is how to plan it.
This is the biggest weekend of the May card show calendar. The May 8–10 window stacks two Pokemon major events, a Collect-A-Con tour stop, and one of the most attended TCG-focused shows in the West Coast rotation — all on the same Saturday. Whether you are a TCG player, a sports card breaker, or a Pokemon collector chasing Regional invites, here is how the weekend lays out and what to plan for.
2026 Los Angeles Pokemon Regional Championships — May 8–10
Headlining the weekend is the 2026 Los Angeles Pokemon Regional Championships at the Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 South Figueroa Street. The Regionals run all three days, drawing thousands of TCG, VGC, and Pokemon GO competitors plus a deep vendor floor that has historically been one of the strongest secondary market opportunities of the spring season.
- TCG Masters Division is the marquee bracket, with Champions Points on the line for the late-season World Championship qualifier picture.
- Vendor floor opens Friday morning. Past LA Regionals have featured 80+ vendors with a heavy emphasis on Japanese Pokemon, vintage WOTC, and Mega Evolution era singles.
- Side events include League Cups, Build-and-Battle queues, and the Pokemon Center pop-up shop. The pop-up has historically run a Regionals-exclusive promo card.
Hawaii Pokemon and TCG Expo — May 9–10
The Hawaii Pokemon and TCG Expo at the Hawaii Convention Center runs Saturday and Sunday. The Expo has built a reputation as one of the most community-focused TCG events in the Pacific market, with dedicated vendor space, competitive tournament queues, trading meetups, and special guest appearances. For mainland collectors, this is also the rare opportunity to source Japanese Pokemon product directly from import vendors with shorter supply chains than typical US shows.
East Bay Card Show TCG NOW — Santa Clara, May 9–10
The East Bay Card Show's TCG NOW event lands at the Santa Clara Convention Center for one of the largest dedicated trading card weekends on the San Francisco Bay Area calendar. The TCG NOW format leans heavily into Pokemon, MTG, One Piece, and Lorcana, with sports cards filling out the back half of the floor. Saturday is the heavy traffic day. Live break alley at the East Bay show has consistently been the strongest pull for high-end Pokemon singles in Northern California.
Collect-A-Con Cleveland — May 9–10
The Collect-A-Con 2026 National Tour rolls into Cleveland this weekend, marking one of the bigger Midwest stops of the spring tour. Collect-A-Con's format mixes a wide-floor card show with celebrity guests, content creator meet-and-greets, and competitive TCG events. For Cleveland-area collectors who do not regularly travel for shows, this is the largest sports card and TCG event the city sees all year.
ATX North Card Show Weekend — Belton, TX, May 9–10
The ATX North Card Show Weekend in Belton, Texas runs 300+ tables across the weekend. Belton sits midway between Austin and Waco, and the show pulls vendors from across the Texas-Oklahoma corridor. Strong floor for mid-tier vintage baseball, modern football breakers, and a growing Pokemon and One Piece vendor presence.
"The May 8–10 weekend is the densest TCG show calendar of the entire spring. If you are anywhere within driving distance of LA, Santa Clara, Cleveland, Honolulu, or central Texas, there is a real reason to make the trip."
Weekend Strategy Tips
A few practical notes for collectors planning the weekend. First, vendor floors at Pokemon Regionals always run hottest on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning before the tournament rounds end — that is when the best singles inventory is still on the floor. Second, if you are submitting cards for grading at any of these shows, the on-site grader queues will be slammed, so bring your submission forms pre-filled. Third, Collect-A-Con and East Bay both have aggressive content creator presences this year, so expect crowd density around any creator booth from 11 AM to 3 PM Saturday.
What Is Next
The May 15–17 weekend brings the next wave, headlined by Disney Lorcana Wilds Unknown launch events and the post-Bowman Baseball release weekend on the sports side. We will preview that calendar later this week. For now, the May 8–10 weekend is the one to circle.