Quick answer
CardSpicy indexes the Champions Festival (SM231) — released November 18, 2016, illustrated by Naoki Saito — as the #113 Japanese promo card by recorded PSA 10 value. It carries a recorded PSA 10 value of $1,075.00, against a PSA 10 population of 34 of 276 graded copies. It is one of 195 cards CardSpicy tracks individually in this index.
Worlds, events and city launch · No. 113 of 195 by PSA 10 value
Champions Festival is card SM231, from the SM series of Japanese promo cards, released on November 18, 2016. It sits at No. 113 of the 195 celebration, collaboration and event cards in our index, and is catalogued as an event, championship or city release. The card face credits Naoki Saito as the illustrator.
Card facts
| Card | Champions Festival |
|---|---|
| Card number | SM231 |
| Series | SM-series Japanese promo |
| Official set | Pokémon Promo |
| Released | November 18, 2016 |
| Category | Worlds, events and city launch |
| Illustrator | Naoki Saito |
| PSA 10 population | 34 copies |
| PSA graded in total | 276 copies |
| PSA 10 value | $1,075 |
| Rank in this index | No. 113 of 195 |
What the market says
PSA 10 copies are valued at $1,075. An ungraded copy sits at $220, so the top grade carries a 4.9× premium. A PSA 9 is at $312, so the PSA 10 is 3.4× the PSA 9. 100 individual sales are on record for this card, from $26.00 to $3,000, with a median of $220.
Over the 65 months of monthly market values we hold, the PSA 10 figure has moved from $3,000 (May 2021) to $1,075 — -64.2%, including +26.5% over the last twelve months and +76.7% over the last twenty-four.
What each grade is worth
| Ungraded | $220 |
|---|---|
| Grade 2 | $18.00 |
| Grade 3 | $20.00 |
| Grade 4 | $23.00 |
| Grade 5 | $27.00 |
| Grade 6 | $34.00 |
| Grade 7 | $42.14 |
| Grade 8 | $188 |
| Grade 9 | $312 |
| Grade 9.5 | $344 |
| PSA 10 | $1,075 |
| BGS 10 | $1,398 |
| CGC 10 | $262 |
| SGC 10 | $645 |
Recent recorded sales
| Date | Sale price |
|---|---|
| 2026-02-10 | $259 |
| 2026-01-22 | $169 |
| 2026-01-03 | $235 |
| 2026-01-03 | $260 |
| 2025-08-09 | $165 |
| 2025-04-28 | $200 |
| 2024-12-26 | $39.99 |
| 2024-08-08 | $134 |
The eight most recent sales of any grade in our record. 100 sales in total.
How many are graded
PSA has graded 276 copies of Champions Festival, and 34 of them came back a PSA 10 — 12.3% of everything PSA has graded. A PSA 9 accounts for 145 of them.
| Grade | PSA | CGC | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 | 1 | – | 1 |
| Grade 2 | – | – | – |
| Grade 3 | 1 | – | 1 |
| Grade 4 | 1 | – | 1 |
| Grade 5 | – | – | – |
| Grade 6 | 2 | – | 2 |
| Grade 7 | 21 | – | 21 |
| Grade 8 | 71 | – | 71 |
| Grade 9 | 145 | – | 145 |
| Grade 10 | 34 | – | 34 |
| Total | 276 | – | 276 |
A population count is every copy the grading company has ever seen, not the number available for sale, and is republished monthly. Half grades are counted in the grade below, so an 8.5 is included in Grade 8.
About the artist
Naoki Saito
Illustrator of Champions Festival · SM231
Simplified Chinese index: 12 cards · top $51.00
Graduated from Tama Art University and worked at Konami before turning to illustration. His cards — vivid, high-contrast and slightly surreal — have been a fixture of the TCG since the HeartGold & SoulSilver era.
In our illustrator index: Naoki Saito — every credited Simplified Chinese card we hold for this artist, in price order.
Other cards by Naoki Saito in this index
- Pikachu 20th Anniversary Festa · 279/XY-P$22,983
- Champion’s Festival · XY-P$5,102
- Pikachu · XY-P$4,800
- Pikachu · 61/SM-P$3,887
Showing the four highest-value of the 27 cards by this illustrator in our 195-card index; the rest are on the card index.
Across those 27 cards PSA has graded 10,107 copies, of which 6,073 are PSA 10.
Artist credit as printed on the card face (Illus.). The official Pokémon card database lists no entry for this card, so the card face itself is the source for the credit.
Where this card came from
Champions Festival was released on November 18, 2016, as part of World Championship promo. It carries the card number SM231, from the SM-series Japanese promo line.
Promo cards are not sold in booster boxes. They reach collectors through a specific campaign — a store, a museum, a film, an anniversary or a championship — which is why the printed number is the only reliable identifier: the same Pokémon can appear on dozens of promo cards across the same era, and the number is what separates them.
That is also why this card appears in our celebration, collaboration and event index rather than in a set list: nothing here came out of a booster box.
Frequently asked questions
How much is Champions Festival worth?
PSA 10 copies are valued at $1,075, against $220 for an ungraded copy and $312 for a PSA 9. That is our most recent recorded market value, not an asking price.
How many Champions Festival cards are there in a PSA 10?
PSA has graded 276 copies of Champions Festival and 34 of them carry a PSA 10 grade, which is 12.3% of everything PSA has graded. A PSA 9 accounts for 145 copies.
Who illustrated Champions Festival?
The card face credits Naoki Saito. We hold 26 other cards by this illustrator in the same index. Every illustrator we can verify is listed on our illustrator page, card by card.
When was Champions Festival released?
Champions Festival was released on November 18, 2016. It carries the card number SM231, from the SM-series Japanese promo line.
Has Champions Festival gone up in value?
Over the last twelve months the recorded PSA 10 value moved +26.5%, from $850 to $1,075. Over twenty-four months it moved +76.7%.
How often does Champions Festival come up for sale?
100 individual sales are on record for this card, from $26.00 to $3,000, with a median of $220. Thinly traded cards can go a long time between sales.
How much does the grade change the price of Champions Festival?
An ungraded copy is at $220, a PSA 9 at $312 and a PSA 10 at $1,075. The PSA 10 figure is 4.9 times the ungraded figure.
Sources
Sources and further reading
- Pokémon Card Game official card database — card name, printed card number, series and illustrator credit for SM231. This is the source for every identity detail above.
- CardSpicy — every illustrator, card by card, for the artist entry and the count of cards we hold for that illustrator.
- Recorded secondary-market sales for SM231 — the value, grade ladder and sale list on this page. Figures are documented results at the dates shown, updated as new sales are recorded.
- Published population report for SM231 — PSA and CGC graded counts by grade, republished monthly. This is the source for the population table and chart above.
- CardSpicy — card grading: how it works, for the grade scale used in the table above.
Related reading
- Celebration, collaboration and event cards — the full ranked index
- Every illustrator behind the cards we track, card by card
- Card grading: how to read a PSA, BGS or CGC label
- Why we only sell PSA 10
- The most expensive Pokémon cards, with sale dates and venues
- Pokémon set codes, decoded
Shop cards and protection
- All PSA 10 graded cards
- PSA 10 — Simplified Chinese exclusive — our highest-premium line
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- Toploader 3" x 4" rigid card holder
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