FIRST Tech Challenge DECODE Season Guide

15 FIRSTChampionship (C)

At the 2025-26 FIRST® Championship, teams are split into 6 divisions. Each division plays a standard tournament as described in section 13.6 Qualification MATCHES and section 13.7 Playoff MATCHES to produce the Division Winning ALLIANCES. Those 6 Division Winning ALLIANCES proceed to the Championship Playoffs, on the FIRST® Championship FIELD(s), to determine the 2025-26 FIRST® Tech Challenge Championship Winners, per 15.5 FIRST Championship.

15.1 Awards Modifications

The Judging process will be modified for the FIRST® Championship to accommodate for venue limitations and the large number of teams at the event. The process and awards modifications are described below.

Awards from section 6 Awards (A) are all awarded in each division only, except for as shown in Table 15‑1. All teams attending the FIRST® Championship are eligible for any team judged award they meet the criteria for regardless of awards won at prior events.

Table 15‑1: FIRST Championship Awards

15.1.1 Championship Portfolio Submissions

As outlined in A201 and A202, teams have the opportunity submit a team PORTFOLIO to be used as part of the judging process. For the FIRST® Championship, teams will be required to submit their PORTFOLIOS online ahead of the event. PORTFOLIO submission instructions can be found in the FTC Scoring – Team and Coach Guide. PORTFOLIOS can be uploaded between March 27th and April 6th at 11:59 PM CDT. For any issues with PORTFOLIO submissions please email customerservice@firstinspires.org.

15.1.2 Championship Interview Process

At the FIRST® Championship, instead of a structured interview, teams will be judged in pit-based interviews. Teams must attend the initial pit interview to be considered for any judged awards at the FIRST® Championship.

During the initial pit interview, teams will have up to 10 minutes to talk to the JUDGES. There are no restrictions on the number of people or restrictions on recordings of audio or video, or photos besides restrictions outlined in E117 during the pit-based interviews.

Initial interviews consist of the following:

A. In addition to submitting their PORTFOLIOS as outlined in Section 15.1.1, teams are encouraged to have an electronic or physical copy of their PORTFOLIO or other supporting materials available to reference during this interview.

B. Teams have the opportunity to give a prepared 5-minute uninterrupted presentation

C. Teams will be asked the same baseline questions:

a. Did your team have to make any compromises in your ROBOT design?

b. How did your team set your goals and strategies for the season?

D. If time allows, teams may be asked additional questions by the JUDGES on

a. Machine, Creativity, and Innovation (MCI) topics

b. Team Attributes (TA) topics

Teams should inform the JUDGES at the start of the interview if they have a presentation or want to proceed directly into the Q&A session.

Teams should be conscious of the time allocated for their interview. Although a team may opt to give a presentation, it is not required, and teams will not be given additional questions and answer time to accommodate this presentation. The interview will conclude after approximately 10 minutes with the JUDGES.

After this initial interview is conducted, JUDGES will continue the judging process using information they gather from the PORTFOLIO (if submitted) and additional interviews outlined in section 6.1.3 Pit Interview(s).

Teams are encouraged to have one representative present in their pit during active judging windows as noted in the Event Public Schedule to help coordinate a meeting with the JUDGES.

JUDGES will make every effort to interview teams in their pit, while respecting MATCH and lunch schedules. When necessary, interviews may take place elsewhere in the pit area, such as in the practice FIELD line.

15.1.3 Championship Compass Award Submissions

Videos for Compass Award at the FIRST® Championship can be submitted by Lead Coach 1 or 2 using the submission form by April 8th.

15.2 Game Modification

Game modifications for the FIRST® Championship are outlined below.

15.2.1 FIELDS

All division FIELDS will be placed on risers which are elevated approximately 24 in. (60.95 cm) from the floor. All DRIVE TEAM members and FIELD STAFF will be at floor level. Approximately 50% of the practice FIELDS will also be elevated for teams to use. To see examples of how the elevated FIELD looks, please watch the field tour video from Kickoff.

FIELDS at the FIRST® Championship will include the following changes which are aesthetic in nature and will not affect the performance of the FIELD or impact ROBOT designs:

- Metal FIELD components (including the RAMP brackets and extrusions) will be black anodized.

- All AprilTags will be printed in a matte material which is more glare resistant.

- The two side faces of the OBELISK will be partially obstructed, and teams should not rely on these “side” AprilTags to determine the randomized MOTIF selected in each MATCH. The face of the OBELISK facing the FIELD will not be obstructed.

- Several of the screw and nut fasteners used to attach metal brackets to the GOAL will be replaced with aluminum pop-rivets.

- There will be decorative signs attached to the outside of the clear panels of the rear FIELD wall, facing the FIELD. These will be white plastic panels with logos and divisional information.

15.2.2 Scoring and Timing

At FIRST® Championship, the transition between AUTO and TELEOP is 15 seconds, instead of the 8-second transition mentioned in Section 10.1, Section 10.4, Table 9-1, and Section 16 in the definition of MATCH.

15.3 3-ROBOT ALLIANCES

ALLIANCES at the FIRST® Championship will be made up of 3 ROBOTS. Before each division playoff tournament, ALLIANCES are selected per the process as described in section 13.7.1 ALLIANCE Selection Process; however, the process continues with a 2nd round of selection as follows:

Round 2: The same method is used for each ALLIANCE lead’s second choice except the selection order is reversed, with ALLIANCE 8 picking first and ALLIANCE 1 picking last. This process results in 8 ALLIANCES of 3 teams each.

ALLIANCES may start each of their MATCHES with any 2 of the 3 ROBOTS on their ALLIANCE during Division and Championship Playoff MATCHES. ALLIANCES do not need to inform FIELD STAFF of which 2 ROBOTS will play ahead of the MATCH but must not delay the start of the MATCH per G301 by making a late decision.

For example, an ALLIANCE deciding a different set of 2 ROBOTS will be playing in the MATCH after 2 ROBOTS have left queuing is likely a delay of MATCH.
C301       *Replays use the same ROBOTS. If a Playoff MATCH must be replayed, the 2 ROBOTS used in the replay must be the same as in the original MATCH. The sole exception is: if, in the opinion of the Head REFEREE, the ARENA FAULT rendered a ROBOT inoperable, in which case the ROBOTS can be changed. If an additional MATCH is played due to a tie, any 2 of the 3 ROBOTS may be played in the additional MATCH.
FIRST® Tech Challenge teams play significantly more matches at the FIRST® Championship than they do at most events, and there are significantly more teams at the event. Drafting a 3rd ROBOT provides each ALLIANCE with a built-in backup ROBOT and flexibility to draft for different MATCH strategies in mind.

15.4 FIRST® Championship Pit Crews

Each team on an ALLIANCE playing in the FIRST® Championship Playoffs may have an additional 3 pit crew team members inside the ARENA to assist with pre-MATCH strategy, ROBOT repair and maintenance, and other team support functions per T704. Additional pit crew members must stay in the pit areas of the ARENA.

The additional team members may be adults or STUDENTS.

15.5 FIRST® Championship Playoffs

Each division will play in an 8-ALLIANCE double elimination playoff tournament, as outlined in Section 13.7.6 8-ALLIANCE Bracket and Typical Timing. The ALLIANCE that wins their division playoff bracket is the Division Champion.

15.5.1 da Vinci Tournament MATCH Bracket

The 6 Division Champions play a round-robin style tournament. In this format, each Division Champion plays 1 MATCH against each of the other Division Champions. The order of MATCHES is shown in Table 15-2.

Table 15-2 da Vinci playoff schedule

15.5.2        da Vinci Round-Robin Tournament Ranking

In the FIRST® Championship da Vinci round-robin tournament, ALLIANCES do not earn any Ranking Points; they earn Championship Points. Championship Points are units credited to an ALLIANCE based on their performance in each MATCH and are awarded at the completion of each da Vinci round-robin tournament round.

· The winning ALLIANCE receives 2 Championship Points.

· The losing ALLIANCE receives 0 Championship Points.

· In the event of a tied score, each ALLIANCE receives 1 Championship Point.

C501 da Vinci round-robin DISQUALIFICATIONS are handled differently. A team and/or ALLIANCE that is DISQUALIFIED from a da Vinci round-robin MATCH, as determined by the Head REFEREE, causes their ALLIANCE to receive 0 Championship Points and 0 for all other round-robin ranking criteria for the MATCH.

The total number of Championship Points earned by an ALLIANCE throughout the da Vinci round-robin MATCHES divided by the number of da Vinci round-robin MATCHES in which they have been scheduled is their Championship Score (CS).

All ALLIANCES participating in da Vinci round-robin MATCHES are ranked as shown in Table 15-3.

Table 15-3: da Vinci Round-Robin Tournament Ranking Criteria

15.5.3 FIRST® Championship da Vinci Finals

The 2 ALLIANCES with the highest rank at the conclusion of the da Vinci round-robin tournament advance to the da Vinci Finals with rank 1 as the red ALLIANCE and rank 2 as the blue ALLIANCE. In the da Vinci Finals, ALLIANCES do not earn Ranking Points or Championship Points.

The first ALLIANCE to win 2 MATCHES in da Vinci Finals is declared the 2026 FIRST® Tech Challenge Champions.

During the da Vinci Finals, if the MATCH score of each ALLIANCE is equal (i.e., the MATCH resulted in a tie), an additional MATCH will be played.