One of the longest careers in competitive Pokémon may have ended with a post on social media. Italian player Alessandro Cremascoli, known to the community as iCaterpie, announced on October 16 that he has been permanently banned from Play! Pokémon events. He is a two time national champion who says he dedicated 25 years of his life to the game, teaching players across Italy and building the community there.
By his account, the ban traces back to the 2026 World Championships in San Francisco, where he says a judge treated him unfairly. He complained about it publicly in a post that named the judge, then deleted the post six hours later. Fellow creator JenTCG added context on X, saying the complaint called out a specific judge by name and accused that judge of unfair treatment, and that the callout appears to be the reason for the sanction. Cremascoli also says people at The Pokémon Company International have targeted him for a decade, a claim that is his alone.
Ready to travel, then finished
The timing is part of why the story hit so hard. Cremascoli says he was ready to travel to the Nice Regional Championships in France, running October 17 and 18, when the ban landed. He was not coasting toward retirement either. Tournament database Limitless recorded a ninth place finish for him at the Frankfurt Regional Championships in September, deep into a season he was still actively contesting.
What is not confirmed
Here is the honest limit of what anyone outside the process knows. Cremascoli shared no disciplinary notice with his announcement, so the reason for the ban remains his account of it. The Pokémon Company had not publicly commented on the ban as of the latest reporting. Some players are calling for the permanent ban to be reduced to a temporary punishment, while others argue that grievances about judges do not belong on social media. Both reactions are live in the community right now, and neither changes the missing piece, which is an official explanation.
Why this one matters
Trust in judging is the floor the whole competitive scene stands on. If a veteran of 25 years can be removed without a public explanation, every player who has ever questioned a ruling will wonder where the line sits. If the ban stands on a named callout of a judge, the lesson cuts the other way, and it says public accusations carry career ending weight. Either way the next move belongs to Pokémon, and a clear statement would settle what a deleted post and a long farewell cannot.