Introduction
There are many ways to implement an event, and your RECF Regional Support Manager (RSM) is the best resource for helping match an event format to your available venue, volunteers, and resources.
No two events look exactly the same. While the Robotics Education & Competition Foundation (RECF) prioritizes a consistent experience that aligns with the game manual and judging processes, event implementation can be tailored to local needs and available resources.
This flexibility helps promote sustainable events while maintaining a positive experience for students, volunteers, and Event Partners (EPs).
Event Formats
RECF robotics and drone competition events are held throughout the year at local, regional, national, and international levels, culminating in the the RECF STEM World Championship.
- Aerial Drone Competition: Elementary School / Middle School / High School
- Aerial Drone Competition Pro: High School / Post-Secondary
- RECF Engage Robotics Competition: Elementary School / Middle School
- RECF Achieve Robotics Competition: Middle School / High School
- RECF Inspire Robotics Competition: Post-Secondary
- JROTC: High School programs that are affiliated with JROTC
Open Tournaments
- Open Tournaments are open to any registered team.
- Include qualification and elimination matches for Achieve, Inspire, ADC, and ADC Pro.
- Include qualification and finals matches for Engage.
- Judging may or may not be included with RSM approval.
School-Based Tournaments
- School-Based Tournaments began with the 2025–2026 season.
- Only school-based organizations (public, private, and charter), as indicated in RECFevents.org are eligible to register for these events.
- May include qualification matches and/or be Solo Match Only events.
- Judging may or may not be included with RSM approval.
- Specific criteria outlined in the Local Event Requirements section must be met in order to host a School-Based Tournament.
Conference Tournaments
- Conference Tournaments are part of the new Conference Model piloted in the 2025-2026 season.
- Participation in a Conference Tournament is limited to teams from the hosting Conference.
- Qualify teams to the corresponding Conference Championship event.
- Conferences may run an unlimited number of Conference Tournaments.
- Leagues within a Conference can qualify to a Conference Championship.
Invitational Tournaments
- Invitational Tournaments are events in which the Event Partner selects the participating teams.
- Specific criteria outlined in the Local Event Requirements section must be met in order to host an Invitational Tournament.
Leagues
- Leagues are events that are scheduled over multiple sessions spread across several weeks.
- Consist of Ranking Sessions during which teams play qualifying matches, followed by a League Finals Session to determine the League Champions.
- Ranking Sessions may be scheduled over multiple days and at different venues, and can include different teams participating in each of those venues.
- Judging may or may not be included with RSM approval.
- Solo match scores are calculated based on each Ranking Session.
- Leagues must have a minimum of one (1) week between Ranking Sessions.
- A single ranking session may be split over multiple days within the same week, but it will still be considered one (1) ranking session.
Solo Match Only Events
- Solo Match Only Events are categorized as Open, School-Based, or Conference Tournaments and do not include qualifying matches, elimination matches, or finals matches.
- To be considered a qualifying event, a Solo Match Only event must be held in-person. An RSM will determine if a Solo Match Only Event qualifies teams to an Event Region Championship.
- Solo Match Only events can not be run as Leagues or Invitational Tournaments.
- Live Remote Skills (LRS) events are permitted only by special arrangement with the RSM, and only as an accommodation for teams who, due to geographical or other extenuating circumstances, are unable to reasonably travel to an in-person event.
- LRS events are subject to additional requirements and conditions that will be provided to the Event Partner by the RSM during the event planning process.
- The deadline to host a Solo Match Only Event is January 30, 2027.
Scrimmages
- Scrimmages do not qualify for an Event Region Championship and do not upload results to RECFevents.org.
- Scrimmages may follow the standard tournament format or be customized to best serve the needs of the local community.
- A Solo Match Only Event that is conducted remotely (Live Remote Solo Match) is considered a Scrimmage unless an arrangement was made with an RECF manager.
- If an event does not meet the criteria for a Tournament or a League, it will be considered a Scrimmage.
Workshops
- Workshops provide in-person or virtual opportunities for the RECF robotics and drone community to build skills, promote STEM, and inspire students.
- EPs can customize and host workshops year-round.
- Examples of Workshops include camps, virtual or in-person training, or other STEM-related activities.
- Some workshops are designed specifically for EPs or volunteers, while others are designed for student participants.
Event Class Types
This section outlines the different types of RECF robotics and drone events within the competition structure, from local events through the RECF STEM World Championship.
Local Qualifying Event
Local qualifying events take place all over the world at locations ranging from schools to private facilities to museums.
Open, School-Based, Conference, and Invitational Tournaments are considered Local Qualifying Events. These events give teams the opportunity to compete and to qualify for higher-level events.
RECF strives to give all teams the opportunity to participate in as many qualifying events as possible per season.
Conference Championship
The RECF piloted a new Conference system in the 2025-2026 season. Approved Conferences will qualify teams directly to the RECF STEM World Championship from a Conference Championship event. A Conference will be considered a subset of an existing Event Region. A team may compete in both a Conference Championship and an Event Region Championship if they qualify for both.
When an Event Region is awarded spots to the RECF STEM World Championship, those will be split between the Conference Championship and the Event Region Championship. Visit the RECF Library for more information on the Conference model.
RECF Signature Event
RECF Signature Events provide students a unique tournament experience with higher levels of technical expertise, production value, and overall event quality that is above and beyond that of a standard tournament.
The goal of these events is to provide more teams the opportunity to experience competition at a level similar to Event Region Championships or the RECF STEM World Championship. RECF Signature Events that meet the necessary requirements can qualify teams directly to the RECF STEM World Championship.
These events rely on the dedicated Event Partners to provide these special experiences for teams. RECF Signature Events do not have any pre-qualification, prior experience, or performance requirements for teams wishing to participate.
Event Region Championship
Teams can qualify from Local Qualifying Events to their Event Region Championship. This event may also be referred to as a State, Regional, Provincial, or National Championship depending on the Event Region.
Teams from across the Event Region compete for a chance to qualify for the RECF STEM World Championship.
RECF STEM World Championship
The RECF STEM World Championship is the final event of the competition season. Qualified teams compete against teams from around the world.
Student-centered teams ranging from elementary to university level showcase their strategy, teamwork, and skills at this global championship event in hopes of being crowned world champions.