The 2026 Pokémon North America International Championships, better known as NAIC, lands at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in downtown New Orleans on June 12 to 14, 2026, and it is the single biggest trading card event the Gulf South will see all year. As one of the premier stops on the Play! Pokémon Championship Series, NAIC draws thousands of the world's best competitors, content creators, and collectors into one massive hall, and for the New Orleans hobby community it is a genuinely once-in-a-region chance to be at the center of the Pokémon universe.
NAIC is a true multi-format championship. The main stage hosts world-class competition in the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the Pokémon video games, Pokémon GO, and Pokémon UNITE, and the 2026 event marks the International Championships debut of the new Pokémon Champions title. Beyond the competition, the show floor is the real draw for collectors: a sprawling vendor midway packed with vintage WOTC-era singles, modern Scarlet & Violet chase cards, sealed booster boxes and elite trainer boxes, graded PSA, CGC, and Beckett slabs, Japanese exclusives, plushies, pins, and hard-to-find promos. Expect official Pokémon Center pop-up merchandise, artist appearances, and event-exclusive product that routinely sells out.
The championship runs across three full days, Friday June 12 through Sunday June 14, 2026, with competition typically beginning Friday morning and running through the Sunday finals. Doors, side-event schedules, and stream times vary by format, so check the official schedule before you go. Registered competitors receive a competitor kit loaded with a cap, playmat, sleeves, deck box, pin, and an International Championships-stamped promo card.
Admission works on two tracks. Competitors must hold a Pokémon Trainer Club account and register their division and format in advance through RK9.gg; spectators can generally enter the main show and vendor area, and side events and Last Chance Qualifiers are open to walk-up players who meet age-division rules. Children are welcome, and the Junior and Senior divisions are a huge part of the weekend, so families are very much part of the experience.
The Morial Convention Center sits along Convention Center Boulevard in the Warehouse District, an easy walk from the French Quarter and dozens of hotels, with on-site paid parking garages and ride-share drop-offs right out front. Booking a hotel early is strongly recommended, as the city fills up fast around major convention weekends.
Who should attend? Competitive TCG and video game players chasing Championship Points, casual fans who want to watch top-tier play, collectors hunting rare singles and sealed product, and families introducing kids to organized Pokémon play. Even if you never sit down for a match, the vendor hall alone is worth the trip.
To get the most out of NAIC, arrive early each morning for the freshest vendor inventory and shorter lines, bring cash and a clear want list, and pack sleeves and a slab case to protect your pickups. Track the schedule through the official event app or the RK9.gg pairings page, and follow the live streams if you want to study the meta in real time.
For registration, formats, age divisions, and the full schedule, visit championships.pokemon.com and the RK9.gg event page for NAIC 2026, and follow @PlayPokemon on social media for announcements.