DEXERTOThe Sunshine Cup is back in the Pokemon Go Battle League with a Great League edition, so we’ve put together the best Pokemon you can use to climb the ranks in the current season.
Competitive players looking for a fresh challenge outside of the traditional Great, Ultra, and Master Leagues should give the Sunshine Cup a try.
This limited-time tournament features a unique ruleset where only Normal, Fire, Grass, and Ground-type Pokemon are allowed to compete. Plus, all creatures must be at or below 1500 CP.
While the choices seem limited, there are still plenty of strong Pokemon in Niantic’s game to build an unstoppable team this season. Here are the top-performing creatures you can use.
Best team for the Pokemon Go Sunshine Cup: Great League Edition
Currently, the best team that trainers can use in the Sunshine Cup includes Cradily, Gligar, and Swampert, as these are three of the strongest fighters, and they all offer good coverage against most of the major opponents being featured in the cup.
DEXERTO| POKEMON | FAST MOVE | CHARGED MOVES | TYPE | RESISTANCES | WEAKNESSES | ALTERNATIVES |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Cradily | Acid | Rock Tomb & Grass Knot | Rock/Grass | Normal and Electric | Bug, Fighting, Ice, and Steel | Lileep / Magcargo |
 Gligar | Fury Cutter | Aerial Ace & Dig | Ground/Flying | Ground, Poison, Fighting, Electric, and Bug | Ice and Water | Gliscor / Jumpluff |
 Swampert | Mud Shot | Hydro Cannon & Sludge | Water/Ground | Steel, Rock, Poison, Fire, and Electric | Grass | Quagsire / Whiscash |
The surprise star of this cup is Cradily, which has never really had any viability in the Pokemon Go Battle League before but is currently ranking at number one on PvPoke. This is most likely thanks to a very strong moveset and bulkiness.
While Bullet Seed and Infestation have fast energy generation, Acid is pretty decent and can help Cradily mainly against Grass-type opponents. Meanwhile, Rock Tomb is effective against Fire types and decreases the target’s Attack stat by 20%, and Grass Knot can take care of Ground enemies. Plus, both benefit from STAB.
Even though the small Gligar seems harmless, it is one of the best options for the Sunshine Cup as it is very dynamic and can work perfectly as a lead, switch, charger, and even closer.
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Its Fast Move, Wing Attack, used to be its preferred attack. However, it got nerfed during the Max Out season, leaving Fury Cutter as the main choice. As for the Charged Moves, both are relatively cheap and benefit from STAB. Aerial Ace is a more general attack, while Dig is super useful and deals a great amount of damage.
Swampert is an excellent dual Water/Ground-type with only one weakness, solid stats, and a versatile and strong move pool. Plus, it can resist the Fire-type creatures that dominate the Sunshine Cup.
Mud Shot is the best Fast Move for energy generation, so choose that to access your most powerful moves faster. As for those, Swampert excels with Hydro Cannon as it baits shields, while Sludge can expand Swampert’s coverage.
If you don’t have access to either of those three Pokemon or you come across an opponent that targets your team’s weaknesses, we have a long list of other powerful creatures that can help you dominate the Great League.
Best Pokemon for the Pokemon Go Sunshine Cup: Great League Edition
Skeledirge
Niantic / The Pokemon Go- Fast Move: Incinerate
- Charged Moves: Torch Song and Shadow Ball
- Type: Fire/Ghost
- Resistances: Bug, Fighting, Normal, Fairy, Fire, Grass, Ice, Poison, and Steel
- Weaknesses: Dark, Ghost, Ground, Rock, and Water
Skeledirge is one of the strongest Fire-type creatures trainers can take into this tournament. Plus, its secondary Ghost typing only helps it further.
Incinerate is a very good Fast Move that provides good damage and energy generation. Pair it with Torch Song, a cheap move with decent DPE that increases the user’s Attack stat by 25%, and Shadow Ball, which offers great coverage and damage.
Furret
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Sucker Punch
- Charged Moves: Swift and Brick Break
- Type: Normal
- Resistances: Ghost
- Weaknesses: Fighting
The tiny Furret from Gen 2 might not seem like a threat to any League opponent. However, its very high Stamina stat and single weakness can help it survive a very long time, serving as a good switcher.
For this tiny fella, you can go with Sucker Punch as your Fast Move to benefit from its very high damage and reduce the enemy’s HP. Then, set Swift as your main Charged Move, as it is incredibly spammy and cheap. Use Brick Break as your secondary Charged Move to decrease the target’s Defense stat by 20%, expand your coverage, and sweep every opponent.
Quagsire (Shadow)
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Mud Shot
- Charged Moves: Aqua Tail and Stone Edge
- Type: Water/Ground
- Resistances: Electric, Poison, Rock, Steel, and Fire
- Weaknesses: Grass
Quagsire climbed the ranks once again and sits at the top 10 of the Sunshine Cup thanks to its good Attack and Defense stats, as well as a solid Stamina that can keep this dual Water/Ground-type Pokemon in the battle for a while.
The best use players can give Quagsire is as a lead or charger, thanks to two factors: it reaches its Charged Moves fast due to Mud Shot, and can hit Fire and Grass opponents.
For the Charged Moves, use Aqua Tail as your primary to bait shields and leave your opponent defenseless, and then hit them with Stone Edge, a powerful coverage nuke.
Clodsire
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Poison Sting
- Charged Moves: Earthquake and Stone Edge
- Type: Poison/Ground
- Resistances: Poison, Electric, Rock, Fighting, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ground, Ice, Psychic, and Water
Clodsire appeared out of nowhere and stole a high spot in our ranking basically because it is good at everything. This dual Poison/Ground creature works fine as a lead, switch, or closer thanks to its good Defense, but mostly its massive Stamina of 209.
The blob Clodsire might exert low Fast Move pressure with Poison Sting, but it still manages to reach its incredible Charged Moves. Earthquake is one of the best moves of all time, and Stone Edge is a coverage nuke that allows it to hit hard. Clodsire’s access to 5 different types of moves makes it very hard to target and take down.
Gliscor
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Fury Cutter
- Charged Moves: Earthquake and Aerial Ace
- Type: Ground/Flying
- Resistances: Ground, Poison, Fighting, Electric, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ice and Water
Gliscor is a very spammy creature with a pretty solid Defense stat that can excel in the Sunshine Cup mainly because its two weaknesses cannot compete.
Fury Cutter is a quick move that can take care of Grass-type opponents. Meanwhile, Aerial Ace is very cheap, and Earthquake is a nuke that can shatter any enemy. Plus, they both benefit from STAB, making them even stronger.
Diggersby
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Quick Attack
- Charged Moves: Fire Punch and Scorching Sands
- Type: Normal/Ground
- Resistances: Ghost, Electric, Rock, and Poison
- Weaknesses: Fighting, Grass, Ice, and Water
Even though Diggersby is not a great attacker, it is an extremely bulky Pokemon with a unique and useful type combination.
In Diggersby’s case, having access to Fire Punch helps this enormous rabbit fight Grass types, which is one of its main weaknesses in this tournament. As if it were not enough, Scorching Sands is a wonderful Ground-type move that deals very high damage for low energy.
Jumpluff (Shadow)
NIANTIC- Fast Move: Fairy Wind
- Charged Moves: Aerial Ace and Acrobatics
- Type: Grass/Flying
- Resistances: Ground, Grass, Water, and Fighting
- Weaknesses: Ice, Fire, Flying, Poison, and Rock
Even with its Shadow debuff, Jumpluff still boasts an impressive Defense stat, making it one bulky fellow to have on your team.
Unlike most Battle League choices, Jumpluff doesn’t spam moves to charge its Charged Move, but instead, it uses Fairy Wind’s high energy generation to reach Aerial Ace and Acrobatics.
Aerial Ace is pretty cheap and deals ok damage while covering Grass types. On the other hand, Acrobatics has a decent balance between cost and damage.
Talonflame
Niantic- Fast Move: Incinerate
- Charged Moves: Fly and Brave Bird
- Type: Fire/Flying
- Resistances: Grass, Bug, Steel, Ground, Fire, Fighting, and Fairy
- Weaknesses: Rock, Electric, and Water
Talonflame has earned its spot thanks to good stats (high Attack and decent Stamina) and moves, as well as a great type combination that gives it plenty of important resistances – three of which can participate in the Sunshine Cup.
Incinerate is a great Fast Move to use, as it benefits from STAB, dealing very heavy damage. As for the Charged Moves, Fly can deal double damage to Grass-type ‘mons, while Brave Bird hits incredibly hard. However, be wary of its self-debuff: it decreases the user’s Defense stat by 42.9%.
Magcargo
DEXERTO- Fast Move: Incinerate
- Charged Moves: Rock Tomb and Overheat
- Type: Fire/Rock
- Resistances: Fire, Poison, Normal, Ice, Flying, Fairy, and Bug
- Weaknesses: Ground, Water, Fighting, and Rock
Magcargo’s super high Defense stat makes it a very bulky Pokemon, which is key in building a winning team.
Out of all its Fast Moves, Incinerate has better energy generation, allowing it to access its Charged Moves faster, so go with it. As for the Charged Moves, Rock Tomb can be used to bait shields while decreasing the opponent’s Attack stat by 20%, while Overheat deals significant damage and benefits from STAB.
Pokemon Go Sunshine Cup rules & restrictions
The Sunshine Cup is one of the most unique tournaments in the Go Battle League, as you can only use Normal, Fire, Grass, and Ground-type Pokemon, which severely limits the team options. Moreover, all participants must be at or below 1500 CP.
There’s also one banned Pokemon that cannot take part in the Sunshine Cup, and that’s Charizard.
Sunshine Cup: Great League Edition start & end date
The latest Battle League season is underway, running from June 3, 2025, until September 2, 2025. For the rest of its run, the Sunshine Cup will appear on:
- June 3 – June 10 (along with the Great League)
- July 15 – July 22 (along with the Master League)
Those are the best Pokemon you can add to your Sunshine Cup: Great League Edition team during this Pokemon Go season. For more content, check our guide with the Battle League schedule and rewards, as well as all the best attackers, defenders, and PvP champions.
