• Over 28,000 high-school-aged young people
• 1,133 teams
• Over 15,000 mentors
• and 3,000 other volunteers
• Over 2,000 sponsoring companies
• One Identical Kit of Parts
• 6 weeks
• 36 Regional Events
• Hardest Fun Ever

FIRST - For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology

A unique varsity sport of the mind designed to help high-school-aged young people discover how interesting and rewarding the life of engineers and researchers can be.

It is a sport where the participants play with the pros and learn from them. Designing and building a robot is a fascinating real-world experience. Competing in an arena brings participants as much excitement and adrenaline rush as conventional varsity tournaments. The game rules are a surprise every year.

The FIRST Robotics Competitions stage short games played by remote-controlled robots. The robots are designed and built in 6 weeks (out of a common set of basic parts) by a team of high-school-aged young people and mentors. The students pilot the robots on the field.

Each school year, teams are formed in the fall. Competitions take place in March and April. The FIRST Robotics Competition Regional events are typically held in university or city arenas. They involve 40 to 70 teams, cheered on by thousands of fans over two and a half days. A championship event caps the season. Referees oversee the competition. Judges present awards to teams for design, technology, sportsmanship and commitment to FIRST. The Chairman's Award is FIRST's highest honor.