GO Battle League Season 4 begins Monday, September 14, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7)

Trainers,

As Season 3 of the GO Battle League finishes up, here’s a look at what you can expect for Season 4!

Season 3 rewards, Season 4 timeline, and what to expect

When Season 4 begins on Monday, September 14, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7), your end-of-season rewards for Season 3 will be available on the Battle screen, including an Elite Charged TM if you reached rank 7 or higher! Season 4 will follow a similar league rotation as Season 3, noted in the schedule below. These dates are tentative. Stay tuned—we’ll update you if anything changes.

• The Great League will run from Monday, September 14, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, September 28, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).
• The Ultra League and its Premier Cup will run from Monday, September 28, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, October 12, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). This Premier Cup will have a 2,500 CP limit.
• The Master League and its Premier Cup will run from Monday, October 12, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, October 26, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). This Premier Cup will have no CP limit.
• The all-new Halloween Cup will run from Monday, October 26, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7) to Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PST (GMT −8). You can see more details about the Halloween Cup below.
• All three leagues and the Premier Cup (no CP limit) will be available from Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, November 9, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PST (GMT −8).
• Season 5 will begin Monday, November 9, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PST (GMT −8).

You can look forward to the all-new Halloween Cup, which will run from Monday, October 26, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7) to Tuesday, November 3, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PST (GMT −8). In this format, only Poison-, Ghost-, Bug-, Dark-, and Fairy-type Pokémon will be allowed. In addition, you can earn reward encounters with Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle, all wearing Halloween costumes! The Halloween Cup will have a 1,500 CP limit.

You can expect the following to stay the same in Season 4.

• There will not be a walking requirement in order to battle in the GO Battle League.
• The Friendship level requirement for battling remotely will remain at Good Friends throughout Season 4. Remember that you can scan another Trainer’s QR Code to battle them, no matter where they are.
• The avatar items inspired by Pikachu Libre will continue to be rank 7 rewards.
• The avatar items inspired by Blue from the Pokémon RPGs will continue to be rank 10 rewards.
• The win rewards and Pokémon reward encounters will remain the same as Season 3. As a reminder, the Pokémon encounter rewards are as follows.
• Pidgeot starting at rank 1
• Galarian Zigzagoon starting at rank 4
• Galarian Farfetch’d starting at rank 7
• Rufflet starting at rank 8
• Scraggy starting at rank 9
• Pikachu Libre starting at rank 10

What’s new in Season 4?

There are some notable changes coming to the GO Battle League for Season 4.

• Rank progression will be changing in Season 4. You can reach rank 2 by completing a certain number of battles, and you can reach ranks 3 through 9 by winning certain numbers of battles. You’ll still need to reach a rating of 3,000 to reach rank 10, similar to past GO Battle League seasons.
• The end-of-season rewards will be similar to those in Season 3.
• Stardust from rank 1 to rank 3
• Stardust, TMs, and a Raid Pass from rank 4 to rank 10
• If you reach rank 10, you’ll earn a brand-new avatar pose!
• If you finish Season 4 at rank 7 or higher, you’ll receive an Elite Fast TM rather than an Elite Charged TM.

GO Battle Night

On Thursday, September 24, 2020, from 6:00 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. local time, you can experience the all-new Flying Cup during the limited-time GO Battle Night event!

Features

• The Flying Cup will be available! In this format, only Flying-type Pokémon will be allowed, and the CP limit is 1,500.
• You’ll be able to complete 20 sets of GO Battle League battles, up from the regular five sets, for a total of up to 100 battles.
• You’ll receive twice the Stardust for winning battles, completing sets of battles, and ranking up in the GO Battle League.
• Evolve Pidgeotto (the evolved form of Pidgey) during the event to get a Pidgeot that knows Gust!

The following new attack will be added to Pokémon GO.

• Lunge: This Bug-type Charged Attack will lower the opposing Pokémon’s Attack. Initially when this attack becomes available, only Masquerain and Galvantula will be able to learn it.

The following attacks have been updated for Trainer Battles.

• Bug Buzz: This Bug-type Charged Attack now has a chance of lowering the opposing Pokémon’s Defense.
• Flame Charge: This Fire-type Charged Attack now deals less damage and will raise the user’s Attack.
• Signal Beam: This Bug-type Charged Attack now has a chance of lowering the opposing Pokémon’s Attack and Defense.

Along with these updates to existing attacks, the following Pokémon can learn an attack it couldn’t before.

• Vespiquen and Signal Beam: This powerful Bug-type attack is a perfect fit for a powerful Bug-type Pokémon like Vespiquen.

We’re also excited to give you a sneak peek at the next season. Season 5 will be shorter than previous seasons, at just three weeks long. Additionally, ratings won’t be in effect for this season: you’ll progress through the ranks by winning a certain number of battles. We hope to see Trainers try out new strategies, test different battle teams, and prepare for Season 6!

Please be aware of your surroundings and follow guidelines from local health authorities when playing Pokémon GO. Upcoming events are subject to change. Be sure to follow us on social media, opt in to receiving push notifications, and subscribe to our emails to stay updated. For the latest on in-game events and feature updates, be sure to check this help center article.

—The Pokémon GO team