University & researchSmall Size League (SSL)
Teams of fast wheeled robots play with an orange golf ball under a shared overhead camera, showcasing high-speed multi-agent coordination.
Organized & hosted in Canada by CNRSRoboCup Canada Open
The international scientific initiative to advance robotics and AI
RoboCup Canada Open 2026 Fall 2026 · date to be announced Vancouver, British Columbia
1997
Founded
5
Research domains
2050
Moonshot goal
3000+
Competitors at worlds
Overview
Founded in 1997, RoboCup is famous for fully autonomous robot soccer, plus rescue, @home service, industrial and junior leagues. CNRS organizes the Canadian Open and supports Team Canada to the world championship.
RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots. What began as autonomous robot soccer now spans five research domains, from disaster rescue to domestic service robots, drawing thousands of university and research teams worldwide each year.
Its famous moonshot: “By the middle of the 21st century, a team of fully autonomous humanoid robot soccer players shall win a soccer game, complying with the official rules of FIFA, against the winner of the most recent World Cup.” The next world championship, RoboCup 2026, is in Incheon, South Korea.
CNRS hosts it in Canada
RoboCup Canada Open 2026
- Fall 2026 · date to be announced
- Vancouver, British Columbia
We organize and run the Canadian edition — here's when and where.
Spotlight
The 2050 Goal
By the middle of the 21st century, a team of fully autonomous humanoid robots shall beat the human FIFA World Cup champions — the moonshot that drives every RoboCup league.
Leagues & Domains
RoboCup is organized into five major domains, each with its own leagues. Soccer, Rescue, @Home and Industrial are university/research competitions; RoboCupJunior is for school students up to age 19.
RoboCupSoccer
University & research
University & researchMiddle Size League (MSL)
Five fully autonomous robots per side play with a regular FIFA ball using only onboard sensing — mechatronics meets multi-agent cooperation.
University & researchSimulation League (2D & 3D)
Software agents play soccer on a virtual pitch with no hardware — pure focus on AI, learning and team strategy in 2D and 3D.
University & researchHumanoid Soccer League (HSL)
New for 2026: unifying the Humanoid and Standard Platform leagues. Bipedal robots play autonomously — vision, balance, locomotion and teamwork.
University & researchHumanoid League
Robots with a human-like body and senses play soccer — dynamic bipedal locomotion, visual perception and self-localization (folding into HSL for 2026).
University & researchStandard Platform League (SPL)
Every team uses identical robots, so the contest is purely about algorithms — autonomous play plus technical challenges (folding into HSL for 2026).
RoboCupRescue
University & researchRescue Robot League
Robots demonstrate mobility, mapping and victim detection in unstructured disaster environments, with objective evaluation of search-and-rescue performance.
University & researchRescue Simulation League
Simulators emulate realistic disaster phenomena while intelligent agents coordinate the response — infrastructure and AI developed hand in hand.
RoboCup@Home
University & research@Home Open Platform
Teams bring any custom service robot to tackle everyday domestic tasks — the largest annual competition for autonomous service robots.
University & researchDomestic Standard Platform (DSPL)
A standardized home-service contest on Toyota’s Human Support Robot — identical hardware, so it’s all about household-assistance software.
University & researchSocial Standard Platform (SSPL)
Built around SoftBank’s Pepper humanoid, this league centres on social human-robot interaction in the domestic setting.
RoboCupIndustrial
University, research & industryRoboCup@Work
Robots tackle work-related industrial and service tasks, applying RoboCup methods to challenges with direct relevance to industry.
University, research & industryLogistics League (RCLL)
Robots run a simulated smart factory, focusing on task-level planning, scheduling and multi-robot integration of a production workflow.
University, research & industrySmart Manufacturing League (SML)
New for 2026: a fully integrated factory — production planning, on-demand manufacturing, warehousing and recycling, open to all platforms including humanoids.
RoboCupJunior
School students up to 19RoboCupJunior Soccer
Two autonomous robots per team chase a special light-emitting ball on an enclosed field — a fast, accessible entry into autonomous robotics.
School students up to 19RoboCupJunior OnStage
Robots perform a choreographed routine with music and costumes — a creative league blending programming, engineering and stagecraft.
School students up to 19RoboCupJunior Rescue
Robots identify victims in re-created disaster scenes — from line-following on flat ground to navigating obstacles on uneven terrain (Line, Maze & Simulation).
School students up to 19RoboCupJunior CoSpace
A simulation-based rescue league (Rescue Simulation) where teams program robots across real and virtual worlds to collect objects against an opponent.
Who Competes
University & research
Major Leagues
Soccer, Rescue, @Home and Industrial draw university teams and research labs pushing the state of the art in autonomy.
School students up to 19
RoboCupJunior
Soccer, OnStage, Rescue and CoSpace give primary and secondary students an accessible path into robotics.
How it works
1
Pick a league
Choose the domain and league that fits your team’s level and interests.
2
Build autonomy
Design and program robots that perceive, decide and act fully autonomously.
3
Qualify at the Open
Compete at the CNRS Canada Open to test your system and qualify.
4
Go to the world cup
Top teams represent Canada at the RoboCup world championship.
Why compete
Fully autonomous
No remote control — robots sense, think and act on their own across every major league.
A scientific initiative
RoboCup advances published research in AI and robotics, not just competition results.
A junior pathway
RoboCupJunior lets school students grow into the senior research leagues.
CNRS hosts it in Canada
RoboCup Canada Open 2026
Fall 2026 · date to be announced · Vancouver, British Columbia
Hall of Fame
Canada Open 2024 (sample)#1UBC ThunderbotsVancouver, BC
#2Waterloo RoboHawksWaterloo, ON
#3McGill AutonomyMontréal, QC
From the Arena
Frequently asked questions
Do robots have to be autonomous?
Yes — across the major leagues robots are fully autonomous, with no human control during play.
Is there a category for younger students?
Yes — RoboCupJunior (Soccer, OnStage, Rescue, CoSpace) is for school students up to age 19.
Where is the next world championship?
RoboCup 2026 takes place in Incheon, South Korea — the first time the event is held there.
Compete in Canada
Register your interest and our team will guide you to the next edition.