The Mushroom Cup is a tournament cup in Mario franchise spin-offs, most notably appearing as the first and easiest cup in the Mario Kart series (later alongside the Shell Cup). It is represented by a Super Mushroom.
The tracks in this cup are the least challenging in the game and often begins with a circuit other than Mario Circuit. They have few hazards and gimmicks, few turns, and are the shortest in every game. In addition, most games usually include a beach-themed course.
Winning the Mushroom Cup in the Mario Kart series can award the player with various bonuses, depending on the game. Additional cups unlocked are excluded from this list.
In addition, the Gold Standard body can be unlocked by getting a 1 star rank or higher on all non-DLC cups (including the Mushroom Cup) on any one engine class, and the 150cc Mirror class can be unlocked by winning all 150cc cups.
The Mushroom Cup also makes an appearance in Mario Tennis Open as the first tournament of the World Open. It is played on the Mushroom Valley court, and the CPU difficulty is the easiest in the World Open. The cup is the only one to be unlocked from the start, and matches for this tournament have one set each for the starting round and semifinals, and three sets for the finals.
The Mushroom Cup reappears as the first cup in the COM Tournament mode of Mario Tennis Aces.
"Long-time Mario Kart fans may experience déjà vu when checking out the first two tracks of the Mushroom Cup. Luigi Circuit looks a lot like Luigi's tracks from other Mario Kart games and Moo Moo Meadows harkens back to Moo Moo Farm. But rest assured, the layouts are new."
Through all of the games, Mushroom Cup has never had a snow or ice-themed course.
All of the Mushroom Cup courses from Mario Kart 7 have reappeared as Retro Courses in Mario Kart Tour, and have been available since the game's launch.
All of the Mushroom Cup courses from Mario Kart 64 have reappeared as Retro Courses exclusively in handheld Mario Kart games: one in Mario Kart DS, and the remaining three in Mario Kart 7.
* - Indicates downloadable content in Mario Kart 8 • ** - Indicates content available in version 1.6.0 of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe • - Indicates exclusivity to Mario Kart 8 • - Indicates exclusivity to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe