Best team for the Love Cup in Pokemon Go (February 2023)
Niantic / The Pokemon CompanyThe Love Cup is returning to the Pokemon Go Battle League, so we’ve put together our best team recommendations to help you charm your way to victory.
Aside from the regular Great League, Ultra League, and Master League competitions, Niantic regularly introduces new and remixed Cups to the Pokemon Go Battle League to switch things up and give Trainers a fresh challenge.
As part of the current Season of Mythical Wishes, the Love Cup is returning once again. This limited-time cup only allows pink and red-colored Pokemon to compete, forcing Trainers to really think twice about the team they’re using.
If you’re struggling to figure out which Pokemon to take into battle for the Love Cup, we’ve put together our best team recommendations below to help you out, as well as details about the rules and restrictions.
Contents
- Best team for the Love Cup
- Best Pokemon for the Love Cup
- Love Cup rules & restrictions explained
- Love Cup start & end date
Best team for the Love Cup in Pokemon Go
One of the best teams you can take into the Love Cup is Charizard, Medicham, and Alomomola, as these are three of the strongest Pokemon that should give you coverage against most common opponents.
As with any league or cup, it’s impossible to say what a true ‘best’ team looks like in the Love Cup as it really depends on the Pokemon your opponent sends out – and you won’t know that until the battle begins.
Still, there are a few Pokemon that can perform well in most situations, which we’ve listed below alongside their optimal movesets and weaknesses.
Best Pokemon for the Love Cup
Charizard
- Fast Move: Wing Attack
- Charged Moves: Dragon Claw and Blast Burn
- Resistances: Bug, Fairy, Fighting, Fire, Grass, Ground, and Steel
- Weaknesses: Electric, Rock, and Water
Charizard flies straight to the top of the Love Cup with a solid moveset and the ability to defeat key players like Scrafty, Medicham, and Wigglytuff. Most longtime Pokemon Go players will have a Charizard by now and it doesn’t need XL Candy to be viable, which also makes it a pretty accessible option.
The Community Day-exclusive Fast Move Wing Attack is your best option here, as it’s the best for energy generation. Then you’ll have easy access to those excellent Charged Moves: Dragon Claw for baiting shields and Blast Burn for some impressive damage.
Talonflame
- Fast Move: Incinerate
- Charged Moves: Flame Charge and Brave Bird
- Resistances: Electric, Fighting, Grass, Ground, Normal, and Water
- Weaknesses: Dark, Fire, Flying, Ghost, Ice
If you’re lacking a Charizard, another Fire-type Pokemon that would be a great addition to your team in the Love Cup is Talonflame, with key wins over the likes of Wigglytuff, Scrafty, and Aromatisse. It’s also very cheap to unlock a second move and doesn’t require XL Candy.
Incinerate is the best Fast Move here, so you’ll need a Community Day-exclusive Talonflame or an Elite TM to learn it. As for Charged Moves, go with the low-cost Flame Charge to bait shields then follow it up with Brave Bird for huge damage.
Alomomola
- Fast Move: Waterfall
- Charged Moves: Psychic and Hydro Pump
- Resistances: Fire, Ice, Steel, and Water
- Weaknesses: Electric and Grass
The love heart-inspired fish Alomomola finally gets a chance to shine in the Love Cup. It’s a threat to most of the big players, has some impressive bulk, and there aren’t many eligible Pokemon that can counter it (although you’ll need to watch out for Vileplume).
Choose Waterfall as Alomomola’s Fast Move, as it inflicts decent damage and benefits from STAB. When it comes to Charged Moves, prioritize the low-cost Psychic for extra coverage and shield-baiting, with Hydro Pump as a secondary option for more STAB-assisted damage.
Lickitung (XL)
- Fast Move: Lick
- Charged Move: Body Slam and Power Whip
- Resistances: Ghost
- Weaknesses: Fighting
Lickitung can be quite a threat in the Great League, so it’s no surprise to see it here in the Love Cup. You’ll need XL Candy and a Legacy Move (or an Elite Charged TM) to make it viable, but if you have access to both of those, it’s almost unstoppable.
Lick is the only Fast Move that’s worth using here, so make sure you have it. Body Slam is the Legacy Charged Move we mentioned before, offering decent damage for a low cost. Follow that up with Power Whip for coverage against Water and Ground-types.
Medicham (XL)
- Fast Move: Counter
- Charged Move: Power-Up Punch and Psychic
- Resistances: Fighting and Rock
- Weaknesses: Fairy, Flying, and Ghost
Medicham is another Pokemon that needs XL Candy to be viable in the Love Cup, but it sits firmly in the big leagues with impressive wins over Alomomola, Milotic, Scrafty, and Magcargo. Just keep it away from Fairy-types.
Counter remains one of the best Fast Moves in Pokemon Go, offering solid STAB damage and good energy generation. This can then be followed by the Charged Moves Power-Up Punch and Psychic for some great coverage options.
Wigglytuff
- Fast Move: Charm
- Charged Move: Play Rough and Ice Beam
- Resistances: Bug, Dark, Dragon, and Ghost
- Weaknesses: Poison and Steel
The iconic charmer Wigglytuff has slowly fallen out of favor in the Great League over the years, but it returns to the top of the charts in the Love Cup thanks to its solid bulk and the ability to resist (and defeat) Lickitung, where other charmers fail.
As always, you’ll want the deadly Charm as Wigglytuff’s Fast Move. While it doesn’t have great energy generation, so you might not get to use Charged Moves often, you’ll still want Play Rought for STAB and Ice Beam for extra coverage.
Aromatisse
- Fast Move: Charm
- Charged Move: Psychic and Thunderbolt
- Resistances: Bug, Dark, Dragon, and Fighting
- Weaknesses: Poison and Steel
Another great charmer this season is Aromatisse, which performs very well in the Love Cup thanks to its decent bulk and varied moveset that gives it good coverage. It has key wins against Medicham, Druddigon, Scrafty, and more.
You’ll need Charm as a Fast Move to make Aromatisse viable here. As for Charged Moves, Psychic will help Aromatisse deal with Poison-types like Slowbro and Ariados, while Thunderbolt is a good secondary option to take out Water-types.
Pokemon Go Love Cup rules & restrictions explained
The Love Cup is one of the most unique challenges in the Pokemon Go Battle League, as only red or pink Pokemon are allowed to enter. They must also be below the 1,500 CP limit to qualify.
While the rules state only red or pink Pokemon can take part in the Love Cup, this rule is a little bit flexible – for example, Charizard can take part despite only the flame on its tail being the color red.
Pokemon Go Love Cup start and end date
The Love Cup begins on Thursday, February 9, 2023, at 1PM PT / 4PM ET / 9PM GMT and runs until Thursday, February 16, 2023, at 1PM PT.
Running alongside the Love Cup is the traditional Ultra League – and we’ve got a best team guide for the Ultra League right here.
That’s everything you need to know about the Love Cup! While you’re here, check out some of our other Pokemon Go guides below:
Best Pokemon in Pokemon Go | Pokemon Go type chart | How to catch Ditto | Best Eeveelutions | Current Field research rewards and tasks | Promo Codes | How to get Pinap Berries | Spotlight Hour schedule | Current Raid Bosses | How to beat Giovanni | How to get free Remote Raid Passes | Best moves to learn with Elite Fast TM | Best moves to learn with Elite Charged TM
