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There has been plenty of big news coming out of the 2026 Winter Olympics, from controversy in curling to the magical repeat of the Miracle on Ice in the Men’s Gold Medal Hockey Final. However, something you may have missed in all the excitement is the second ad for Pokémon that has aired in the past few weeks. As Pokémon pushes more into the mainstream, The Pokémon Company seems to see sports fans as an untapped market.

Earlier in February, Pokémon asked a group of celebrities – including Lady Gaga and Trevor Noah – what their favorite Pokémon was in an ad that ran during the Super Bowl. A few weeks later, as the USA and Canada faced off in the always-popular Men’s Ice Hockey Final, the iconic Pokémon logo, complete with Pikachu’s face, showed up during the first Intermission Report for the match.

For both gaming and anime fans, it can seem like nobody could possibly be unaware of the Pokémon brand, but the company clearly sees sports fans as at least a partially untapped market. Perhaps the goal of this recent marketing push is aimed at converting people who have heard of Pokémon into active fans who buy cards, games, and the overwhelming amount of merchandise available from the brand. Between the new Pokémon Lego sets and hotel rooms themed around the series, The Pokémon Company is giving fans plenty of opportunities to spend money on their favorite fighting monsters.

What sports event will Pokémon show up at next? Maybe 2026 has another surprise for fans.

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