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The Sunshine Cup is returning to thePokémon GOBattle League, giving competitive-minded Trainers another chance to try out their best Fire, Grass, Ground, and Normal-type Pokémon in battle. With just those four types eligible to enter, you’re going to have to rethink your usual team compositions to verify you outshine the competition.
We might be approaching spooky season, but there’s one last bit of sunshine before we fully give ourselves over to theHalloween festivities. The Sunshine Cup is a limited-time challenge that takes the Great League’s 1500 CP format and strips out the majority of eligible Pokémon, only allowing four elemental types to enter. Oh, and Charizard is banned, too.
Best Team For The Sunshine Cup
Talonflame, Quagsire, And Jumpluff Make An Excellent Trio
One of the best teams you may use for the Sunshine Cup isTalonflame, Quagsire, and Jumpluff. Together, these three Pokémon offer a wide variety of coverage so you can take on almost any opponent that comes your way. They’re also three of the top-rated Pokémon based onPvPoke’s rankings. While this doesn’t always translate to guaranteed wins, it does mean they’re some of the best Pokémon you can have on your team.
Up first isTalonflame, which is expected to be the one to watch out forin this edition of the Sunshine Cup. With a moveset featuring both Fire-type and Flying-type attacks, it will have no problem taking down any Grass-type Pokémon you come up against, but it’s also got key wins over Pokémon like Diggersby and Clodsire. Talonflame has been a Great League star for a while now, so it’s not surprising to see it shine brightly here, too.
Although Talonflame is the star of the show, you’ll still need to watch out for its weakness to Electric, Rock, and Water-type attacks. Rock-type attacks, in particular, are a big threat, although you won’t come across much of those in the Sunshine Cup.
As with any themed cup, you’ll wanta Pokémon that can take down the meta’s biggest threat. To combat any opposing Talonflame, look for a strong Water-type Pokémon like Quagsire. It has an impressive Stamina stat and a great moveset, including Mud Shot to generate energy very quickly. Being a dual Water/Ground-type also means Quagsire only has one weakness to watch out for, Grass-type attacks, so be wary of those.
You can probably guess where that’s leading to –rounding out your team with a strong Grass-type Pokémon, which is where Jumpluff fits in nicely. As well as being a strong and bulky counter to any Water-type Pokémon you face, Jumpluff can also take out fellow Grass-type Pokémon with one of its Flying-type Charged Attacks. As you’d probably expect, the big threat to watch out for when using Jumpluff is Fire-type opponents.
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I would usually recommend being cautious of spending lots of resources powering up Pokémon for a themed cup like the Sunshine Cup, as these often only appear once a year. However, all three of the Pokémon in this team are viable in thetraditional Great League, making them good investments. Chances are, you’ll also get to use them in other themed cups in the future, too, so there’s even more reason to go all out with them.
Best Pokémon For The Sunshine Cup
Make Sure You’ve Got A Range Of Coverage Options
The best Pokémon to use will always be dependent on what your opponent sends out, but there are several Pokémon that should give you a good chance at success. you may see them, as well as their recommended movesets, in the table below:
Fly and Brave Bird
Aqua Tail and Stone Edge
Aerial Ace and Energy Ball
Fire Punch and Scorching Sands
Sludge Bomb and Earthquake
Body Slam and Shadow Ball
Drill Run and Rock Slide
Feather Dance and Brave Bird
Icy Wind and Energy Ball
Leaf Blade and Aerial Ace
Aerial Ace and Dig
Mud Shot
Hydro Cannon and Sludge Wave
Most of the Pokémon that are expected to perform well in the Sunshine Cup have dual typings, such as the Fire/Flying-type Talonflame or the Poison/Ground-type Clodsire. This is often the case with themed cups that limit which types can enter. Not only do dual-type Pokémon have unique resistances, but they can also often access moves that mono-type Pokémon can’t.
Normal-type Pokémon like Lickilicky and Dunsparce are also relatively safe bets in the Sunshine Cup, as their only weakness is Fighting-type attacks and there aren’t many of those eligible to compete (watch out for Diggersby, though!). Normal-type attacks are also largely unresisted, so you won’t have to worry too much about your type matchups.
You’ll notice that all of the recommended Pokémon have two Charged Attacks. This isn’t a necessity, but it definitely helps because having access to a different type of move could be what you need to get the edge on your opponent. If you have the resources to spare, it’s usually worth learning a secondary Charged Attack.
If you don’t have access to any of the Pokémon featured in the table above, it might be best to give the Sunshine Cup a miss. While there’s always room for experimenting and trying out alternative options, chances are you’ll struggle to beat teams that are using the top-rated Pokémon. If you still want to compete, I’d recommend checking outPvPoketo see if there are any other top Pokémon you could use instead.
When Does The Sunshine Cup Start & End?
Here’s When You Can Take Part In This Unique Challenge
The Sunshine Cup will kick off onTuesday, August 14, 2025, at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM BST, and run until Tuesday, August 17, 2025, at 1 PM PT / 4 PM ET / 9 PM BST. This means you’ve got just one week to get your team sorted and compete in this special cup.
If you’re looking for a higher-tier challenge inPokémon GO, why not try the Ultra League? The traditional 2500 CP format will be running alongside the Sunshine Cup, giving you a chance to try out your more powerful Pokémon, including several Legendary creatures. You can check out mybest Ultra League teamguide if you’re not sure which Pokémon to use there.
