GO Battle League Season 8 Guide

GO Battle League Season 8 is coming soon to Pokémon GO. There is a lot of exciting upcoming additions in this announcement including a vast move pool update, a new themed cup, an exclusive outfit/pose, the debut of a brand new Fighting type Pokémon and more!

Date and Time

From the official announcement:

Season 8 begins on Monday, May 31, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7)

Trainers,
GO Battle League Season 8 is set to kick-off! This season, Mienfoo, the Martial Arts Pokémon, will be making its Pokémon GO debut as a guaranteed encounter reward at rank 5. You’ll have multiple chances to encounter Mienfoo as you rank up, allowing you to collect enough Candy to evolve it into Mienshao!

Straight off the bat, we can see that Mienfoo, the pure Fighting type is coming to Pokémon GO!

Mienfoo

Mienfoo made its debut in Generation V and makes for a perfect fitting release as a celebration of the new season. Mienfoo evolves into Mienshao, another pure Fighting type.

Mienshao

Mienshao’s stats are as follows:

The Ultra League Remix and Element Cup are coming to Pokémon GO! The Great League Remix is returning for Season 8, and this time, the top 20 Pokémon most used by Trainers who are Ace Trainer rank and above will be ineligible to participate in this cup.

2 new cups, the Ultra League Remix and the Element Cup have been announced. As we know from Season 7, the Remix Cup is a format where the 20 Pokémon most used by Trainers Ace rank and up in the Great League were not be allowed. This will be the same case, but for Ultra League.

More information about the Pokémon that will be prohibited in the Ultra League Remix Cup and details regarding the Element Cup are listed below.

GO Battle Nights are also returning, providing you with an opportunity to earn extra Stardust and complete additional GO Battle League battles. Read on for more details!

As we know from a previous article of ours, GO Battle Night is making a return on June 3rd. For a quick summary of what GO Battle Night is, it’s a 1-night event that allows Trainers to 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.

Season 7 Rewards

When Season 8 begins on Monday, May 31, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7), your end-of-season rewards for Season 7 will be available on the Battle screen, including an Elite Fast TM if you reached rank 19 or higher. Your rating will be reset. Stay tuned—we’ll update you if anything changes.

If you’re on the fence about what Pokémon to use your Elite TM on, be sure to check out our Elite TM Tier List!

GO Battle League Season 8 Timeline

• The Great League will run from Monday, May 31, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, June 14, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).
• The Ultra League and its Premier Cup will run from Monday, June 14, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, June 28, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).
• The Master League, the Master League Classic, and the Element Cup will run from Monday, June 28, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, July 12, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). Battle during this time to receive twice the Stardust from win rewards and end-of-set rewards.
• The Great League and the Great League Remix will run from Monday, July 12, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, July 26, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).
• The Ultra League and the Ultra League Remix will run from Monday, July 26, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, August 9, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).
• The Master League, Master League Classic, and the Ultra League Premier Cup will run from Monday, August 9, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, August 23, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7). Battle during this time to receive twice the Stardust from win rewards and end-of-set rewards.
• All three leagues will run from Monday, August 23, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. to Monday, August 30, 2021, at 1:00 p.m. PDT (GMT −7).

GO Battle Nights Return

GO Battle Nights are returning for Season 8! During GO Battle Nights, you’ll receive three times the Stardust for winning battles, completing sets of battles, and ranking up in the GO Battle League. You’ll also 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. GO Battle night will take place on each of the listed dates below. Please note that the Stardust bonus during GO Battle Night will not combine with the 2× Stardust bonus that will be active from Monday, June 28, 2021, to Monday, July 12, 2021.

We were waiting on the official announcement to see what the bonus incentive of GO Battle Night would be. We can now see that it is three times Stardust which benefits everyone looking to power up your favourite mons.

What’s New in Season 8?

With Season 8 comes some exciting changes to the GO Battle League. We’re excited to announce that rank-up requirements will be adjusted, so you’ll be able to reach rank 20 more quickly!

You won’t want to miss these Season 8 rewards.

• The Pikachu Libre avatar items will be a reward for Trainers who reach rank 5.
• Trainers will be able to earn avatar items and a pose inspired by Korrina, the Fighting-type Gym Leader from Shalour City who made her first appearance in Pokémon X and Pokémon Y.

• At Ace rank, you’ll receive the Korrina-Style Gloves.
• At Veteran rank, you’ll receive the Korrina-Style Shoes.
• At Expert rank, you’ll receive the Korrina-Style Outfit and the Korrina-Style Pants and Top. Switch between these depending on your avatar’s style.
• At Legend rank, you’ll receive the Korrina Pose.
• At rank 19, you’ll receive an Elite Charged TM, and you’ll also receive an Elite Fast TM as an end-of-season reward.

We can see that the featured Trainer this season is Korrina, originally from Pokémon X and Y. The distribution of the Trainer outfit/pose is a little different this season. Starting this season, you can gradually earn each piece of clothing by ranking up until Legend rank where you unlock the Korrina pose.

Here’s a list of Pokémon you can encounter as you rank up this season:

• Rank 1: You’ll be guaranteed to encounter Machamp once.
• Rank 1 and up: You’ll be able to encounter Pokémon such as Machoke, Ariados, Sableye, Snover, and more.
• Rank 5: You’ll be guaranteed to encounter Mienfoo once.
• Rank 5 and up: You’ll be able to encounter Mienfoo, in addition to all Pokémon available at previous ranks.
• Rank 10 and up: You’ll be able to encounter Pokémon such as Toxicroak, Stunfisk, and male Frillish, in addition to all Pokémon available at previous ranks.
• Rank 15 and up: You’ll be able to encounter Pokémon such as Skarmory, Scraggy, and Rufflet, in addition to all Pokémon available at previous ranks.
• Rank 20 and up: You’ll be able to encounter the Legendary Pokémon that are appearing in five-star raids at that time, in addition to all Pokémon available at previous ranks.
• Veteran rank and up: You’ll be guaranteed to encounter Gible once, and then you’ll have a chance of encountering Gible alongside the previous encounter pool.
• Expert rank and up: You’ll be guaranteed to encounter Deino once, and then you’ll have a chance of encountering Deino alongside the previous encounter pool.
• Legend rank: You’ll be guaranteed to encounter a Pikachu Libre. This will be the only time you’ll be able to encounter a Pikachu Libre during the season.

We will be granted different Pokémon for each of the respected ranks to stick with Fighting theme of Korrina, which is a nice touch. Again, Pikachu Libre is the ultimate prize for reaching Legend rank. Remember that Pikachu Libre has a chance of being shiny which is highly desirable for rare shiny enthusiasts and basically anyone looking for some major bragging rights.

Cups

You can look forward to the following cups this season:

Great League Remix: The 20 Pokémon most used by Trainers Ace rank and up in the Great League will not be allowed in the Great League Remix. This includes the following Pokémon.

• Venusaur
• Alolan Ninetales
• Alolan Marowak
• Meganium
• Azumarill
• Politoed
• Umbreon
• Skarmory
• Swampert
• Pelipper
• Vigoroth
• Medicham
• Altaria
• Defense Forme Deoxys
• Bastiodon
• Toxicroak
• Scrafty
• Galvantula
• Galarian Stunfisk
• Talonflame

Ultra League Remix: The 20 Ultra League Pokémon most used by Trainers Ace rank and up in the Ultra League will not be allowed in the Ultra League Remix. This includes the following Pokémon.

• Venusaur
• Charizard
• Clefable
• Poliwrath
• Alolan Muk
• Gyarados
• Lapras
• Articuno
• Umbreon
• Scizor
• Swampert
• Registeel
• Empoleon
• Togekiss
• Altered Forme Giratina
• Cresselia
• Escavalier
• Talonflame
• Melmetal
• Obstagoon

Element Cup: Only Pokémon that can evolve and that are the first in their Evolutionary line will be eligible for this cup. True to its name, only Fire-, Water-, and Grass-type Pokémon are allowed. Pokémon of multiple types are allowed so long as one of their types is Fire, Water, or Grass. The CP limit will be 500.

If you enjoyed the Little Cup in Season 5, you’ll be sure to enjoy the Element Cup. This marks the second 500cp and under Cup in GO Battle League. Many Trainers will be happy to hear that Bronzor will NOT be ruining your day in this cup thanks to only Fire, Water and Grass type Pokémon being allowed.

Stay tuned for our Element Cup meta-analysis coming soon!

Season 8 Attack Updates

The following attacks will be added to Pokémon GO:

• Rock-type Weather Ball: This powerful Rock type version of Weather Ball is now available in Pokémon GO. Hippowdon will be able to learn this attack.
• Feather Dance: This elegant Flying type Charged Attack will sharply decrease the opponent’s Attack stat. Pidgeot will be able to learn this attack.

The following attacks will be updated for Trainer Battles:

• Acid Spray: This Poison type Charged Attack will now require less energy to use.
• Poison Jab: This Poison type Fast Attack now deals more damage.
• Poison Sting: This Poison type Fast Attack now generates more energy.
• Cross Poison: This Poison type Charged Attack now deals more damage and has a higher chance of sharply increasing your Pokémon’s Attack stat.
• Poison Fang: This Poison type Charged Attack now has a 100% chance to decrease the opposing Pokémon’s Defense stat.
• Dragon Tail: This Dragon type Fast Attack now deals more damage but generates less energy.
• Focus Blast: This Fighting type Charged Attack now deals more damage.

The following attacks will be available to Pokémon that couldn’t learn them before:

• Lunge: Ariados will now be able to learn this Bug type Charged Attack.
• Poison Fang: Nidoqueen and Crobat will now be able to learn this updated Poison type Charged Attack.
• Cross Poison: Crobat will now be able to learn this updated Poison type Charged Attack.

From the looks of it, Poison types are the biggest winner here. With many of these moves normally being lacklustre, these buffs will change up the current meta from what we know today. Many Pokémon that were not commonly seen in previous seasons will finally come out to play in Season 8 which is sure to spice things up.

There’s a lot to look forward to this season, so be sure to turn on push notifications in the game settings and follow @PokemonGoApp on Twitter for updates on GO Battle League format rotations and events.

Parting Words

These changes are an exciting addition to GO Battle League. With each and every season comes even more fierce competition. For tips on gaining an edge over your opponent, be sure to check out our advanced tricks and tips article which can help new and even the more experienced player.

Do you have what it takes to become victorious and climb the ranks?
Best of luck in Season 8 of the GO Battle League!

–Adam ‘Avrip’