FIRST Robotics Competition Blog

Three (maybe?) final updates before next week’s FIRST^® Championship presented by BAE Systems.

Division Assignments

We expect to release division assignments later this week, which will be posted on the FRC-Events webpage. We will add late registering teams to divisions as they are confirmed. We will announce when divisions are posted via the FIRST^® Robotics Competition Facebook and FIRST Robotics Competition X pages.

Pit assignments will not be completed until next week and pit maps will be posted on the FIRST Robotics Competition Championship Information webpage once they are final.

Streaming

In addition to dedicated streams for each of the eight divisions, FIRST Champs Live will be back this season for combined coverage and analysis of the entire event! You can find links to all the streams on the FIRST Championship website.

Concessions Stand Payments

The George R. Brown Convention Center is now cashless, a change from last year’s event. (The FIRST Store will still accept cash.) To accommodate FIRST teams, Convention Center Staff will be setup on the first floor (near Main Registration) and third Floor (near the Grand Ballroom lobby) at kiosks that will have the ability to accept cash (in US dollars) and turn it into a GiveX card (a gift card that can be used at concession stands) that can be used throughout the week.

The activation fee will be waived for these cards. Money that is still left on the card at the end of the event can be refunded at those same kiosks, or you can keep the card with the money still loaded to use next year. 

Signage will be scattered on the first and third floors and at the start of every concession stand line letting people know before waiting in line.

This information has also been added to the Championship Information webpage and the Event Guide Addendum for FIRST Robotics Competition.