RoboCup 2025 robot competition in Brazil kicks off with live streams

According to the organizers, the world's largest robot and AI competition, RoboCup, will begin on Thursday. The competitions in four different categories will be streamed live on YouTube and Twitch. 250 teams from around the world will take part in the robot challenge.

From July 17 to 21, 250 teams, including 112 research teams and 123 student teams, will demonstrate what robots and artificial intelligence (AI) can do in four different categories. The number of participating teams has thus reached an all-time high since the first RoboCup in 1997.

This time, the RoboCup will take place in Salvador, Brazil. Around 1,500 participants from 37 different countries around the world are expected to attend. Some countries are sending more than 14 teams to compete, including Germany, Japan, China, Mexico, and the USA.

Competitions in four categories

The teams compete in four categories: soccer, rescue, home, and industry. Soccer is the traditional category, in which two robot teams play soccer autonomously in five leagues. A distinction is made between humanoid robots, wheeled robots, and simulated robots, which then compete against each other within their platform categories. The long-term goal is for the soccer competitions to result in humanoid robots that can beat the reigning human soccer world champions by 2050. However, the robots are still a long way from achieving this.

In the rescue category, robots are tasked with carrying out rescue missions in disaster scenarios under real conditions, for example, locating people independently and bringing them to safety. In the home category, robots must prove themselves in realistic household situations in unstructured environments. The industrial category includes scenarios in which robots compete in the automation of industrial environments.

In the RoboCup Junior Leagues, which are reserved for students up to the age of 19, robot teams compete exclusively in the categories of soccer, rescue, and stage performance.

Live streams of individual events will be available on Twitch and YouTube after the start of RoboCup 2025. Please note that the time in Brazil is five hours behind. An overview of the competitions can be found on the RoboCup event website. The organizers expect up to 150,000 spectators on site.

(olb)