A 2004 Worlds Trophy Pikachu Sells for $488,000 at Goldin

A 2004 Pokémon World Championships No. 2 Trainer Trophy Pikachu graded CGC Pristine 10 sold for $488,000 at Goldin, closing at 2:44 a.m. ET on November 2, 2026 after 113 bids, per the lot page. That is a $400,000 winning bid plus Goldin's 22% buyer's premium. It is also the highest price in Goldin's records for any World Championships trophy card, 67% above the $292,800 a 2014 No. 1 Trainer brought a month earlier, and above most Japanese Trophy Pikachus Goldin has sold.

The Card Behind the Price

Trophy cards were handed to the top finishers at Pokémon's World Championships instead of going into packs, and this one comes from the first official Worlds. According to Wikipedia's Worlds history, the 2004 event ran August 20 to 22, 2004 in Orlando, Florida, and Worlds began with the trading card game that year.

The card itself spells out what it was for. Under K. Hoshiba's art of Pikachu hugging a silver trophy, the printed text, visible in Goldin's lot photos, reads: "If you won this card at the 2004 Pokémon Trading Card Game World Championships, you may return to battle the best in 2005."

How scarce is it? Goldin's description says just three versions of the 2004 No. 2 Trainer were produced, and fan reference Poképédia lists it as the prize for second place in each of the three age divisions. Goldin also says the PSA census lists only four 2004 Worlds Trophy Pikachu cards, one of them a PSA 9 No. 2 Trainer, and calls this copy the highest graded example in CGC's census. Pop counts move as more cards get graded, so read those as Goldin's numbers at listing time.

How $488,000 Compares

Before this sale, the best single World Championships trophy card in Goldin's records was a 2014 No. 1 Trainer in CGC 9 at $292,800 on October 5, 2026. Below that sit a 2018 No. 1 Trainer in CGC 9.5 at $93,940 in May 2026 and a 2024 Full Art No. 2 Trainer in TAG 10 at $92,720 in August 2026. Even a complete 2014 No. 1 to No. 4 set in CGC 10 brought $384,400 in February 2026.

So a single 2004 card beat a full 2014 placement set by more than $100,000, and a second-place card topped every No. 1 Trainer Goldin has sold. It also drew 113 bids, against 42 for the 2014 No. 1 Trainer.

Grade matters as much as year. That same 2014 No. 1 Trainer went for $80,530 in CGC 8 on June 28, 2026 and $292,800 in CGC 9 on October 5, so a Pristine 10 on a card this scarce is its own market.

Where It Sits Against Japan's Trophy Pikachus

The Japanese tournament family still owns the top end. A 1997 Gold 1st Place Trophy Pikachu in PSA 8 sold for $3,080,500 at Goldin on October 25, 2026, the auction our Trophy Pikachu report previewed, and a 1998 Bronze 3rd Place Trophy Pikachu in PSA 10 brought $1,769,000 there on May 17, 2026.

Below those, the 2004 card now outranks most Japanese Trophy Pikachus in Goldin's records. That includes a 1998 Silver 2nd Place in PSA 10 at $444,000 in September 2023 and a 1997 Bronze 3rd Place in PSA 8 at $402,601 on June 28, 2026.

What We Know and What We Don't

• Confirmed: price, bids, grade, cert number 6252999002 and close time, all on Goldin's lot page
• Not shown: the buyer and the seller. Goldin does not publish payment status, so this is a closed lot with no confirmed payment
• Not found: an earlier public sale of any 2004 Worlds trophy card. We searched Goldin's records and found none, but we did not sweep every auction house, so a private or older sale elsewhere is possible
• No press coverage yet: we found no news report of the sale as of November 2, 2026, so every figure here comes from Goldin

Our take: Goldin's best No. 1 Trainer result, from any year, is $292,800. Paying $488,000 for a No. 2 Trainer says bidders now price the first Worlds as its own tier. Goldin describes this as one of just three versions, so sales will be rare. Treat this as one data point instead of a price guide. For the bigger picture, our most valuable Pikachu cards list ranks the biggest public Pikachu sales, from the Illustrator down, and our CGC vs PSA guide explains the two grading scales behind these slabs.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much did the 2004 Worlds No. 2 Trainer Trophy Pikachu sell for?

$488,000 at Goldin, including a 22% buyer's premium on a $400,000 winning bid, after 113 bids. The lot closed at 2:44 a.m. ET on November 2, 2026.

What is a Trophy Pikachu card?

A Pikachu card awarded to top finishers at official Pokémon tournaments instead of being sold in packs. This one was handed out at the 2004 World Championships, the first official Worlds, held in Orlando, Florida.

How many 2004 No. 2 Trainer Trophy Pikachu cards exist?

Goldin's lot description says just three versions were produced, and fan reference Poképédia lists the card as the second place prize in each age division.

Is $488,000 the record for a World Championships trophy card?

It is the highest Goldin sale we found for any World Championships trophy card, as of November 2, 2026. We did not sweep every auction house, so we do not call it an all-time record.

Where to Go From Here

Nobody opens their way to a trophy card. If you would rather collect cards you can actually open, the Polkastarter marketplace starts you off with a free mystery pack at signup, and every Lootbox lists its contents, values, and chances before you open.

Details checked November 2, 2026. Prices are past sale results and include buyer's premium. Goldin dates are US Eastern. Nothing here is financial advice. Polkastarter is not affiliated with The Pokémon Company, Nintendo, Goldin, CGC or the other companies named.

Sources

• Goldin: 2004 Pokémon World Championships Holo No. 2 Trainer Trophy Pikachu, CGC Pristine 10, sold November 2, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 2014 Pokémon World Championships No. 1 Trainer Pikachu Trophy Card, CGC 9, sold October 5, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 2014 Pokémon World Championships No. 1 to No. 4 Trainer Pikachu Trophy cards collection, CGC 10, sold February 15, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 2018 Pokémon World Championships No. 1 Trainer Pikachu Trophy Card, CGC 9.5, sold May 17, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 2024 Pokémon World Championships Full Art No. 2 Trainer Pikachu, TAG 10, sold August 9, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 1998 Pokémon Japanese Silver 2nd Place Trophy Pikachu, PSA 10, sold September 6, 2023, accessed November 2, 2026
• Wikipedia: Pokémon World Championships, checked November 2, 2026
• Poképédia: No.2 Trainer (World Championships 2004), checked November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 1997 Pokémon Japanese Gold 1st Place 1st Tournament Trophy Pikachu, PSA 8, sold October 25, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 1998 Pokémon Japanese Bronze 3rd Place Trophy Pikachu, PSA 10, sold May 17, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026
• Goldin: 1997 Pokémon Japanese Bronze 3rd Place Trophy Pikachu, PSA 8, sold June 28, 2026, accessed November 2, 2026