This week in Pokémon Go (20th to 26th July): Events galore

Welcome to the latest One More Catch weekly newsletter, offering you a guide to the days ahead in Pokémon Go.

It's another busy week, with multiple overlapping events - which include the return of Mega Rayquaza and Sunday's Go Fest raids - and a couple of new debuts in the form of an anticipated legendary shiny and, just when you thought we were done, yet another costumed Pikachu.

So here's a snapshot of everything coming to Pokémon Go in the days ahead, the biggest opportunities available, and a roundup of Pokémon news and site updates you may have missed.

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Events in Pokémon Go this week (20th to 26th July)

All times are at your local time, unless otherwise stated.

Date	New events and updates	Regular events and raids
Monday 20th	'Special Anniversary Pikachu Celebration' event ends (8pm) • Final change to get Pikachu in the wild and Field Research, and progress event Go Pass	Max Monday (Dynamax Trubbish focus)
Tuesday 21st	Willow's Birthday Research (today only, 10am to 8pm) • Professor Willow's assistant Pikachu debuts in Field Research, Timed Research, Snapshots • Will also appear in raids until Monday, 27th July ~ Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary Edition event (until Monday at 8pm) • Gen 1-3 Starter Pokémon in the wild, may have team-specific Special Backgrounds • 6x CatchXP bonus • The above changes on Thursday, Saturday • Go Pass with 10th Anniversary Tee, Golden Lure Module, 2x Catch Candy (increasing to 3x with Deluxe track) and more ~ Masterwork Research: Glimmers of Gratitude • £4.99 / $4.99 ticket for a shiny Shaymin encounter returns	Showcase Tuesday ~ Go Battle League refresh (9pm UK / 4pm EST / 1pm PST) • Great League • Ultra League • Master League
Wednesday 22nd	Wednesday raid refresh • Five-star: Solgaleo (shiny debut) • Mega Raids: Mega Salamence	Raid Hour (6pm to 7pm) • Five-star: Golgaleo (shiny debut)
Thursday 23rd	Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary Edition event update • Gen 4-6 Starter Pokémon in the wild, may have team-specific Special Backgrounds • 8x CatchXP bonus	Go Battle Thursday ~ Spotlight Hour (6pm to 7pm) • Eevee • 2x Catch Candy
Friday 24th	N/A	Friendship Friday
Saturday 25th	Ozone Ascent (10am to 8pm Sunday) • Free Timed Research with a Rayquaza encounter, Meteorite item • £4.99 / $4.99 Timed Research Ticket with a Rayquaza encounter, Rayquaza Mega Energy, Meteorite item ~ Ultra Unlock: 10th Anniversary Edition event update • Gen 7-9 Starter Pokémon in the wild, may have team-specific Special Backgrounds • 10x CatchXP bonus	N/A
Sunday 26th	Go Fest Global 2026 Makeup Raid Day (all regions, 10am to 7pm) • Repeat of Go Fest Global Sunday raids, including Mega Mewtwo Y • Bonuses also return - including free raid passes from Gyms, Special Backgrounds • No Remote Raid limit (1pm PDT Saturday to 12pm PDT Sunday)	Scenic Sunday

What to know about this week

Here's what jumps out to me this week:

There's two new debuts

For completionists, the highlights of the week are a new Pikachu (Professor Willow's assistant costume) and the debut of a new shiny (Gen 7 legendary Solgaleo).

The costumed Pikachu debuts as part of a Tuesday-only event in Field Research, Timed Research, and Snapshots - but if you miss out, it'll be in raids until Monday, 27th July.

Pikachu wearing Professor Willow's assistant costume in front of a polygonal shape and a textured background. — *Credit: One More Catch (via Scopely Explore / The Pokémon Company)*

Solgaleo, meanwhile, will debut during Wednesday's raid refresh and will stick around until the following Wednesday. If you fancy the shiny (and with the spectacular red shade, it's going to be hard to resist) then the Raid Hour Wednesday evening might be your best bet.

Solgaleo and shiny Solgaleo in front of a polygonal shape and a textured background. — *Credit: One More Catch (via Scopely Explore / The Pokémon Company)*

Mega Rayquaza is back

Saturday and Sunday's 'Ozone Ascent' features a free Rayquaza encounter and Meteorite item, helping you secure its powerful Mega Evolution. (A paid ticketed version offers both of these, plus some Mega Energy.)

How easy all this will be is currently unknown - my best guess is it'll require a grind, and / or a sizeable number of raid completions - but for those who have missed out on the Sky High Pokémon, and one of the game's strongest ever creatures, be sure to make the most of it.

Go Fest Global returns...

As part of a make up event that plagued the start of the day for some regions, Sunday will see a replay of Go Fest Global's Sunday raids - Mega Mewtwo Y, event bonuses and all. Originally announced for timezones up to the UTC+0, this has since been confirmed to appear for all players between 10am and 7pm local time, with up to 12 free raid passes up for grabs by spinning Gyms.

My original Go Fest Global raid schedule guide can offer a refresher on what to expect. As for myself, I won't be taking it nearly as seriously as the original weekend, but I plan to get a top up of extra Mega Mewtwo Y Energy while it's around.