It was a privilege to celebrate the first Pokémon GO event in Latin America at the Safari Zone in Porto Alegre, Brazil. While all events are special to us here at Niantic, this one will go down as one of the most memorable event experiences I’ve had to date (and I’ve had my fair share!), especially given the journey we took to get there.

With over 33 countries, 650 million very diverse and fun people, and multiple cultures and languages, Latin America is a hugely important region for us at Niantic. We were moved by the #HolaNiantic social media campaign that began early last year, and rallied our various teams at Niantic in an attempt to improve how we support our diverse and growing Latin American communities.

At first, we started by meeting Trainers in parks all throughout the region, surprising them with posters and other goodies during Pokémon GO Community Days. We loved visiting with Trainers in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Ciudad de México, Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires, Monterrey, and more than 15 additional cities throughout Latin America, but we knew we wanted to do even more to further delight those excited groups. It was clear, from the strong reactions that we received both in person and on social media, that the Latin American community was craving an even bigger event.

It was around this time that we were privileged to be invited by the Mayor of Port Alegre, Brazil to discuss bringing an event to his city, and we knew instantly that this was an ideal match. After months of work by the city of Porto Alegre and many departments here at Niantic, we were able to pull off this unforgettable experience. If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to read through the recap recently posted to the Pokémon GO blog for even more details and some spectacular photos.

This has been an amazing journey, and none of it would have been possible without Trainers all throughout Latin America sharing their passion with us. Thank you, Trainers, for taking action and sharing your constructive ideas (even if critical, at times) with us. We still have a long way to go and many more adventures with to come!

Additionally, I’d like to thank the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil and their mayor, Nelson Marchezan Jr., for doing everything they could to help make this a successful event. At Niantic, we strive to bring people together to explore the world around them, and we truly appreciate you helping make this a reality for your residents and those who visited your beautiful city.

#VamosNianticLATAM

—Omar Téllez, VP of Growth