5 best Pokemon TCG decks from 2025 World Championships

Now that the Pokemon TCG 2025 World Championship has concluded, let's check out which decks fared the best. Most Pokemon TCG decks are focused around a single Pokemon (usually a Pokemon ex), working backward from there to get the most out of it. This includes picking other Pokemon cards that synergize with it, as well as Supporters, Items, and Tools.

So, in this article, we will take a look at the best Pokemon TCG sets from the 2025 World Championships.

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5 of the best Pokemon TCG decks seen during the 2025 World Championships

1) Gholdengo ex

Gholdengo ex saw the highest use at the 2025 Pokemon World Championships (Image via TPC)

Gholdengo ex was expected to perform decently at Worlds, but for it to be the most used deck came as a surprise to most. The main reason for this was the new Genesect ex card from the Black Bolt expansion. That card gave players a way to find and use Gholdengo ex faster, making this deck a far more potent choice in the meta.

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2) Dragapult ex

Dragapult ex was used by runner up Justin Newdorf at 2025 Worlds (Image via TPC)

Dragapult ex has been a dominant force in the Pokemon TCG meta since its introduction. Naturally, the 2025 World Championships were no exception to that, leading to a second-place finish. The low cost of its move, Phantom Dive, combined with its high damage output and useful secondary effect, means Dragapult ex will remain until it's rotated out of the meta.

At Worlds, the most common version of Dragapult ex decks saw it paired with Dusknoir from Prismatic Evolutions. While Dragapult ex dealt huge damage, Dusknoir would finish off weaker opponents with its ability Cursed Blast.

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3) Raging Bolt ex

Raging Bolt ex had a decent showing at 2025 Worlds (Image via TPC)

Another Dragon type that dominated the meta, Raging Bolt ex had a respectable presence at Worlds. While only one deck used by Shizuki Nakagawa made the Top 16, he made it all the way to third.

At the 2025 Pokemon TCG World Championships, Raging Bolt ex was commonly paired with Teal Mask Ogerpon ex. This card would use its ability, Teal Dance, to collect Grass Energy. Raging Bolt ex will then discard them for its move Bellowing Thunder that deals more damage for each Energy discarded this way.

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4) Gardevoir ex

Riley McKay became the Pokemon TCG 2025 World Champion with a Gardevoir ex deck (Image via TPC)

Gardevoir ex decks have had a relatively low presence compared to the others mentioned on this list. However, as Pokemon TCG 2025 World Champion Riley McKay used a Gardevoir ex deck to win, it earned the right to be here.

What makes this deck dangerous is the synergy it has with two cards, Munkidori and Lillie's Clefairy ex. Gardevoir ex's ability lets it attach Energy from the discard pile to itself and its allies. While doing so means attaching damage counters, Munkidori's ability Adrena Brain lets you remove some of them and attach them to the opponents' Pokemon instead.

As for Lillie's Clefairy ex, it gives all Dragon types a weakness to Psychic types like Gardevoir ex and itself. So in these cases, Gardevoir ex has a distinct advantage over Dragapult ex and Raging Bolt ex.

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5) Charizard ex

Charizard ex surprisingly did well with Junya Tanaka reaching 4th at the Pokemon TCG 2025 Worlds with it (Image via TPC)

Charizard ex was a dark horse deck that did surprisingly well at Worlds 2025. Alongside Pidgeot ex, with which it has synergy, these decks did very well. As a matter of fact, three players using these decks made it into the top 16. Two of them would then go on to make the top eight.

Charizard ex can attach energy to itself and its allies when it evolves. But what makes it dangerous is its move Burning Darkness, which becomes stronger for each Prize card your opponent takes. This makes Charizard ex dangerous in the late game.