'We Will Return to the Origins of Happy Meals': McDonald's Issues Apology in Bad News for Pokémon Fans

On Aug. 8 (JST), McDonald's introduced exclusive Pokémon trading cards and toys to Happy Meals in a new nationwide campaign in Japan. However, after facing a sudden influx of card scalpers, the fast-food chain has issued a formal apology while discontinuing card distribution at all stores.

McDonald's ongoing Happy Meal event features cards from the Pokémon Trading Card game in addition to cute toys inspired by classic Pokémon starters and other popular monsters. Notably, included among the cards was brand-new Pokémon TCG artwork depicting Pikachureaching for a McDonald's hamburger. After the campaign launched, card scalpers flooded into McDonald's Japan locations and started making bulk Happy Meal orders. Per Oricon, McDonald's Japan's website published a lengthy apology statement: "In connection with the Pokémon card campaign, there were cases of large-scale purchases for the purpose of reselling, which resulted in store congestion and food being left behind or discarded. We deeply apologize for the inconvenience caused to our customers who regularly use McDonald's, as well as to the staff working at our stores..."

Pokémon Happy Meal Toys Get Even Rarer as McDonald's Terminates Scalping Accounts

The site staffers continued: "We will return to the origins of Happy Meals, which is to 'help families spend time smiling by contributing to the healthy growth and development of the minds and bodies of children who represent the future' and will review our various measures. As one countermeasure, McDonald's Japan has stated that "it may impose stricter quantity restrictions" on Happy Meals, including orders purchased through their popular mobile app. "At the same time, we will request more effective measures from each flea market app operator to curb malicious hoarding and resale activities by certain customers as much as possible," McDonald's Japan stated. While the chain has stopped distributing Pokémon cards, the Summer 2025 campaign continues through the distribution of Pokémon Happy Meal toys at select locations.

The latest releases of the Pokémon TCG have always been a notorious target for scalpers. In recent years, the problem has become so severe that many major retailers have been forced to implement preventive countermeasures. In February 2025, GameStop announced that it would no longer accept pre-orders for Pokémon TCG sets -- a controversial decision that was criticized by many concerned Pokémon fans. Moving forward, McDonald's Japan stressed that it will not tolerate behavior in violation of its anti-scalper measures. "During this period, we will refuse purchases from customers who do not abide by the rules and etiquette, such as attempting to purchase in excess of the limit, repeatedly lining up at the counter, or behaving in an intimidating manner towards staff." The company also stated that any customers "with a known history" of scalping activity will have their accounts terminated from the official app.

2025 is gearing up to be a stand-out year for the Pokémon franchise. On Sept. 26, The Pokémon Trading Card Game will introduce its "Mega Evolution" expansion -- a set that will include over a dozen Mega Evolution Ex cards to help trainers beef up their decks. Mega Evolutions will also be taking the spotlight in the upcoming video game, Pokémon Legends Z-A, which will be released for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 on Oct 16. In the meantime, many seasons of the Pokémon anime are available to stream on Netflix and Prime Video.