Can You Change Your Uniform In Pokemon Sword And Shield?

Can you change your uniform in Pokemon Sword and Shield? Olivia Richman Published 25/01/2021

Pokemon fans have a love-hate relationship with Pokemon Sword and Shield. Despite being one of the best-selling games in the world, a plethora of strange limitations have had the Pokemon community complaining. One of those controversies surrounds the trainer’s uniform. 

Pokemon trainers are given a new uniform each time they beat a gym leader but many players have struggled with figuring out if they can use those uniforms in the story mode instead of the overworld. Unfortunately, the player doesn’t get to customize their appearance in cutscenes.

Can you change your uniform for gym battles in Pokemon Sword and Shield? 

Game Freak has a lot of explaining to do. While trainers can wear the snazzy new uniforms outside of the stadium, players can only wear their white default uniform during battles. Once a player speaks to an event organizer at a gym, their avatar will automatically change into the white uniform. 

This is quite a strange limitation, seeing as gym battles are often the most intense part of the game and many gym leaders have whacky outfits. Trainers have to settle for changing the name and number on the back of the plain white uniform during battles. 

While registering for the Gym Challenge in Motostoke, trainers will be given their very own plain white uniform. From there, players can pick the jersey number they want to be displayed on the back of it. Trainers must take some time to really think about this since they will never be able to change it again.  

Pokemon fans have continuously complained about this strange limitation. Most players dislike the basic white uniform and are frustrated that they can’t pick other uniforms for gym battles. The plain design has many fans feeling like they are a background character. It’s even more frustrating because trainers pay for cooler uniforms, only to not be able to use them in battle. This has led many to call out Game Freak for having unnecessary customization restrictions. 

The rationale for the move is that the player’s character wears the same outfit as all the young trainers looking to complete the Gym Challenge. While fans love Marnie’s pink-and-black aesthetic and see Hop wearing his gaudy denim bomber jacket, all of them ultimately enter gyms and tournaments wearing the same white uniform the player does.

Where can you wear alternate gym uniforms in Pokemon Sword and Shield? 

Even though players can’t sport a flashy uniform during gym battles, it’s possible to change into these snazzy rewards elsewhere throughout the game. Simply head to a clothing shop and make your way to the changing rooms. The gym uniforms players have won throughout their journey will come as separate items of clothing, meaning players must equip all of them to wear the full set. 

Olivia Richman About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

View full profile

Read Also

News Gambling operators must adapt to paid partnership changes on X Khizar Mundia Paid partnerships on X have had great potential value for gambling operators in their marketing and advertising efforts, but the platform's new changes will require betting operators to adjust their approach to remain in compliance. News has been circulating that social media giant X has made substantial changes to its paid partnerships requirements, notably targeting gambling ads in the process. These ads are a great way for gambling marketers to ... News New Jersey gambling, gaming revenue starts 2026 with a bang Khizar Mundia The US state of New Jersey set its highest annual gaming revenue mark in 2025, and the state is showing no signs of slowing down as gambling revenue numbers begin to come in for the new year of 2026. Online casinos finished strong in 2025, overtaking New Jersey land-based casinos for the first time in a state with a long-established history of physical gambling play. This trend has continued in ... News Hawaii may be the next US state for legal online sports betting Olivia Richman Hawaii is looking to become the next US state to bring on legal online sports betting after the state's House Committee on Economic Development & Technology advanced House Bill 2570. Here's what it means for the state's residents, and what to expect next. HB 2570, which won with a divided 5-2 vote, wants to introduce a regulated online sports betting market in Hawaii, but there remains some opposition ahead before ... News Could South Dakota get a vote on legalizing online sports betting? Olivia Richman The US state of South Dakota is looking to potentially expand its sports betting offerings after the South Dakota State Senate approved a proposal that would let its residents vote on allowing sports betting online throughout the state. Earlier in February, the South Dakota Senate voted 23-10 in favor of a resolution - namely, Senate Joint Resolution 504 - that would pull 90% of tax revenue from mobile sports betting ... News DraftKings makes clear its focus on prediction markets expansion Khizar Mundia DraftKings stock saw a steep decline despite posting strong numbers in Q4 2025 as the operator doubles down on prediction markets. Here's what the company is saying, and why it's having such an impact on its near-term numbers. US-based operator DraftKings is a key player in the country’s rapidly growing and evolving gambling scene, especially when it comes to sports betting. DraftKings has no shortage of players wagering, but the ... News Rivalry Corp sparks shutdown talk with live betting pause Khizar Mundia Canada-based online gambling operator Rivalry Corp has paused betting operations, and the shutdown has sparked discussion around the operator soon either selling or shutting down outright. Rivalry Corp entered the market with esports betting at the fore before expanding into iGaming and more traditional sports betting. The operator focused its efforts entirely on digital betting and relied on tech-savvy players as online betting continued to proliferate, with no in-person presence. ... News Ireland set to offer new licenses to betting operators, what’s next Khizar Mundia Ireland is finally creating a unified regulatory framework for gambling by authorizing the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) to offer licenses to betting operators, setting the stage for modernizing online betting in the country. Ireland has had in-person and online betting platforms for quite some time, but the country was facing an outdated framework that didn’t mesh properly with most modern platforms. This was especially evident in modern mobile ...