Pokémon Champions tops iPhone App Store installs in 13 countries on launch day

• Pokémon Champions launched on mobile on June 17th, 2026.
• The title was the most-downloaded iOS game in 13 countries on launch day, including the US and Japan.

The Pokémon Company’s new dedicated PvP battling hub Pokémon Champions topped the iPhone App Store download charts in 13 countries when it launched on mobile on June 17th, according to data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

Across Asia, Pokémon Champions topped iOS download charts in Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Macau, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand. In the West, it was the most-downloaded game in the US, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Brazil.

According to figures, it also made the top five in 29 countries.

Pokémon Champions also ranked as the most downloaded game on the iPhone App store in 38 countries.

At the time of writing, on June 18th Champions has stayed on top in the iPhone App Store overall download rankings in nine countries.

Trainers get installing

Though there is currently no rankings data available for Google Play, the store page features 21.2k reviews of the game, with an average 4.4 rating.

To celebrate yesterday’s mobile launch, The Pokémon Company began a distribution event giving out Pikachu’s evolution Raichu and its two Mega Stones, allowing the Pokémon to power up during battle. The event will run until September 2nd, encouraging early downloads.

Notably, while this distribution is meant to celebrate Pokémon Champions’ mobile release, it can also be claimed on the Switch version. Players can connect their same save data on both platforms, allowing them to continue with the same team on console or mobile. Battles can now take place cross-platform.

Part of Champions’ appeal on Switch is the ability to transfer in Pokémon from the main series, allowing for amalgamated teams pulling from Pokémon Sword, Shield, Scarlet, Violet and more. The title is also compatible with Pokémon caught in Pokémon Go, allowing mobile fans who don’t have access to the main series to battle with their favourites.

Alternatively, complete newcomers to Champions can rely on its gacha-esque recruitment system, choosing from a selection of random Pokémon every 22 hours. In-game resources can be used to skip the timer and to permanently recruit these Pokémon, who otherwise have limited availability.

This will likely form part of Champions’ monetisation on mobile, alongside its battle pass system and membership options.