The Pokémon Company is in trouble after a miscommunication ruins a World Championship invitee's dream of attending the biggest international event of the year.
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On August 6, South African Pokémon TCG player Josh Lillie posted a message on X (formerly Twitter) explaining his current situation regarding the World Championships in Honolulu, Hawaii next week (August 16-18). According to the pro's statement, Lillie was informed by Play! Pokémon in June that he had earned a Travel Award to cover his travel expenses to attend. This came as a surprise, as all qualified South African competitors would be disqualified from receiving Travel Awards.
The TCG player said he filed multiple support tickets with Play! Pokémon seeking clarification on the conflicting information. While he waited for a response, he applied for a U.S. visa and hired a travel agent. Fast forward to August, and Lillie still hadn’t received a response from Play! Pokémon, but another South African participant eventually did receive an email from the company.
In the email, Play! Pokémon admitted that it was a mistake on their part to send Travel Award forms to the South African players and confirmed that those awards would not be issued for their trips to Hawaii. As Lillie had said, he relied on the Travel Award and would not have been able to afford the trip otherwise. This turn of events has left the TCG player devastated, as his "lifelong dream of being able to compete in the [world] championships" has been taken away from him.
