Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu Sells for $3.08 Million in Goldin's Pokémon 30th Anniversary Auction
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Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu Sells for $3.08 Million in Goldin's Pokémon 30th Anniversary Auction

Written by:
Ilknur Gubel
Published
October 10, 2026
Updated
October 27, 2026
1997 Pokémon Japanese promo Gold 1st Place 1st Tournament Trophy Pikachu No. 1 Trainer card in a PSA NM-MT 8 holder
The Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu offered as lot 1. Image: Goldin.

A 1997 Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu graded PSA 8 sold for $3,080,500 in Goldin's 2026 Pokémon 30th Anniversary Auction, closing at 10:30 p.m. ET on October 25, 2026 after 32 bids, according to the lot page. That is a $2,525,000 hammer price plus Goldin's 22% buyer's premium. Another PSA 8 copy of the same card sold for $982,100 at Goldin in March 2026, so this one made more than three times as much.

Updated October 26, 2026 with the final result. This page first covered the auction on October 10, when the bid stood at $2,225,000.

What the Trophy Pikachu Is

This card was not sold in packs. It was a prize for winning the first official Pokémon TCG tournament, held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan, in June 1997, Goldin's lot description says. The card is a Trainer titled "No.1 Trainer" and shows Pikachu holding a gold trophy on a first place podium, illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita.

Key details from the lot page:

  • Grade: PSA NM-MT 8
  • Population: one of eight copies in PSA's census, per Goldin
  • Comparison: Goldin notes PSA has graded 56 Pikachu Illustrator cards, seven times as many as this card
  • Result: $2,525,000 hammer after 32 bids, $3,080,500 with premium, sold at 10:30 p.m. ET on October 25, 2026 (lot page checked October 26). Per Goldin's lot data, the winning bid came in on October 23, and no new bids arrived on close night

How It Compares to Other Pikachu Records

Pikachu Illustrator: a PSA 10 sold for $16,492,000 at Goldin in February 2026, which Guinness World Records lists as the most expensive trading card sold at auction. Our guide to the most valuable Pikachu cards covers that sale.

1998 Bronze Trophy Pikachu (No.3 Trainer): a PSA 10 sold for $1,769,000 at Goldin in May 2026, a $1,450,000 hammer plus premium, per the lot page, Wargamer and ComicsBeat.

Another PSA 8 of this card: a different 1997 Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu graded PSA 8 sold for $982,100 at Goldin in March 2026, an $805,000 hammer plus premium after 28 bids, per the lot page.

The October result beats both trophy card sales above. It is also the highest price for any Trophy Pikachu (the No.1, No.2 and No.3 Trainer prize cards) we found in Goldin's sold results from every year, checked October 26, 2026. At Goldin, only a Pikachu Illustrator has sold for more.

Final Results for Other Notable Lots

This page tracked these lots while the auction was open. Their final prices, including Goldin's 22% premium, per each lot page checked October 26, 2026:

2015 Art Academy Daisuke Ochiai Mudkip, PSA 10

2004 EX Team Rocket Returns Gold Star Mudkip #107, PSA 10

  • $610,000 after 29 bids, per the lot page

2002 Legendary Collection reverse holo Charizard, PSA 10

  • $463,600 after 47 bids, per the lot page

2000 Black Star Venusaur promo #13, PSA 10

  • $427,000 after 33 bids, per the lot page

1999 Japanese Masaki promo Gengar #94, PSA 10

  • $396,500 after 30 bids, per the lot page. Another PSA 10 sold for $207,400 at Goldin in August 2026

2004 EX Team Rocket Returns sealed booster box

  • $384,300 after 21 bids, per the lot page

2005 EX Deoxys sealed booster box

2006 EX Holon Phantoms Gold Star Mewtwo, PSA 10

  • $298,900 after 26 bids, per the lot page

2003 Skyridge Gengar H9, BGS Pristine 10

2000 Black Star Pokémon League Eevee promo, PSA 10

Bar chart of final prices for selected lots in Goldin's 2026 Pokémon 30th Anniversary Auction, led by the $4,880,000 Art Academy Mudkip and the $3,080,500 Trophy Pikachu
Final prices for the lots this page tracked, buyer's premium included. Source: Goldin lot pages, checked October 26, 2026.

What It Means for Collectors

Prize cards led the night. The four highest results were all cards never sold in packs: the Art Academy Mudkip ($4,880,000), this Trophy Pikachu ($3,080,500), and the Art Academy Gourgeist and Sableye at $976,000 each, per Goldin's lot pages checked October 26, 2026.

Our take: the March sale was not the ceiling. Two PSA 8 copies of the same card sold seven months apart for $982,100 and $3,080,500. With eight copies graded by PSA, per Goldin, each sale is the newest comp for the next one.

Where to Go From Here

Few collectors will bid on a seven-figure prize card, but the same hunt for scarce Pokémon cards runs at every price level. The Polkastarter marketplace gives you a free mystery pack when you sign up, and every Lootbox lists its contents, values, and chances before you open.

Details checked October 26, 2026. Prices are past results and include buyer's premium unless marked as hammer prices. Nothing here is financial advice. Polkastarter is not affiliated with Goldin, Fanatics Collect, The Pokémon Company, Nintendo, PSA or the other companies named.

Sources

Ilknur Gubel
Social Media Manager
BA, Sociology

Ilknur Gubel is a social media manager at Polkastarter. Ilknur has spent the past four years working as a project manager, marketing manager, and social media strategist across Web3. She has held marketing and project management positions at several crypto companies, including Polygen, Nitro League, Kaizen.Finance, and ChainPort.

At Polkastarter she has covered trading card releases, collectible market pricing, and how token holders can spend crypto on real cards and videogames.

Based in Istanbul, Ilknur earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from Istanbul Aydın University.

You can connect with her on LinkedIn for more information.

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