Tournament Overview¶
Do you enjoy programming, artificial intelligence, robotics, or soccer? Join Macquarie University's first humanoid robot soccer simulation tournament!
In this semester-long competition, teams of students will develop their own software agents to play simulated robot soccer. You'll start with working starter code and build on it throughout the semester, experimenting with everything from soccer strategy and decision-making to AI algorithms and robot control.
The tournament is inspired by RoboCup, an international robotics research and education initiative. We'll simulate a RoboCup Humanoid Soccer League competition using a Booster Robotics K1 humanoid robot in Booster Studio.
You don't need to build a physical robot. Instead, you'll develop the software that tells a simulated robot how to perceive the game, make decisions, and play soccer. Starter code is available on GitHub, so you can begin with a functioning agent and customise it to suit your ideas.
You don't need to be an experienced programmer or robotics researcher to take part. Perhaps you're interested in AI, software engineering, mathematical optimisation, logic, or system design. Maybe you'd rather focus on testing ideas, tuning algorithms, or working out how your agent should play the game. There are plenty of ways to contribute, and teams benefit from bringing together people with different skills and interests.
The tournament will run in Semester 1, 2027. Teams of 2-4 Macquarie University students will develop their agents throughout the semester and compete in a final tournament after exams.
Students and staff can join the mailing list by completing the mailing list sign-up form. This does not register you for the tournament.
Students can get involved via the student sign-up form and staff can get involved via the staff expression of interest form.
You are welcome to reach out to the tournament organiser at ysobel.sims@mq.edu.au.
What will you build?¶
Each team will develop a Python software agent that controls a simulated Booster Robotics K1 humanoid robot playing soccer. The simulation runs in Booster Studio, which handles the underlying robot and game environment. Your agent interacts with this environment through the information and commands made available to it.
You can start with the provided agent and build on it in whatever way suits your approach. You might tune existing behaviours, develop new decision-making algorithms, design a team strategy, or rewrite parts of the agent from scratch. You can also explore AI techniques, mathematical models, and tools for testing and analysing your robot's performance.
The competition is open to different approaches. You don't need to develop a completely new AI system to make a valuable contribution, and you don't need to work on every part of the agent yourself.
Timeline¶
The following is the planned schedule. Specific dates, times, and locations will be announced closer to the start of the tournament.
| When | What's happening |
|---|---|
| Beginning of semester | Introduction session |
| Weeks 2-7 | Workshops |
| Mid-semester break | Test tournament |
| Weeks 8-12 | Repeat workshops |
| Beginning of July | Final tournament and awards |
| Winter break | Team showcase |
We are investigating the use of a computer lab in building 4RPD for workshops and the installation of Booster Studio. Further details will be announced when arrangements are confirmed.
Introduction session¶
The introduction session will explain how the tournament works, introduce the simulation environment, and outline the development process.
We encourage at least one member of each team to attend. This is a good opportunity to meet other participants, ask questions, and plan your team's approach.
No preparation is required prior to the introduction session, however it is a good idea to fill in the sign up form if you haven't already done so.
Workshops¶
Workshops will run throughout the semester, covering different parts of the system and the skills needed to develop a competitive agent. The first workshop will focus on setting up the development environment and getting started with Booster Studio.
Workshops will cover different system layers, giving participants opportunities to explore areas such as robot behaviour, decision-making, AI, and soccer strategy. The workshops will run in the first half of semester and be repeated in the second half, allowing teams to revisit topics as their projects develop.
Workshops will also provide opportunities to discuss your agent, troubleshoot problems, and get guidance from tournament staff.
Test tournament¶
A test tournament is planned for the mid-semester break.
This will give teams an opportunity to test their agents in a tournament setting, check that their code runs correctly, and see how their solutions perform against other teams. You'll be able to use what you learn to identify areas for improvement before the final competition.
Final tournament¶
The final tournament will take place after exams, around the beginning of July. This timing is intended to avoid disrupting classes and the main study period.
The tournament format will depend on the number of registered teams. If there are many teams, an initial elimination stage may be used, followed by a modified Swiss-style tournament for qualifying teams. The format and rules will be confirmed once registration numbers are known.
Awards will be presented during the afternoon of the final tournament day.
Can't attend in person? We are exploring options for remote participation, likely through submitting your agent code ahead of the event. Details will be confirmed closer to the tournament.
Attending in person is recommended. It will give you more opportunities to observe games, discuss strategies, and make adjustments between matches, where the tournament rules and schedule permit.
Fair play and technical innovation¶
The aim of the tournament is to develop agents that play soccer effectively through good engineering, sound decision-making, and creative problem-solving.
We encourage experimentation with different algorithms, strategies, and agent designs. However, solutions should work within the intended simulation environment and use the information and interfaces available to a legitimate agent. Exploiting simulator behaviour, accessing hidden ground-truth information, or bypassing the intended interfaces is not an acceptable substitute for developing a capable soccer-playing agent.
We will establish technical rules and checks to help ensure fair competition. Further details will be provided before the tournament.
Team showcase¶
We highly encourage all participating teams to contribute to a showcase during the winter break.
The tournament is about more than winning matches. We want to recognise the ideas, science, engineering, and problem-solving that go into building a capable soccer-playing agent. The showcase will give teams an opportunity to explain their approaches, demonstrate interesting technical achievements, and share what they learned throughout the semester.
You might have developed a useful debugging tool, designed a soccer strategy inspired by human players, devised a mathematical approach to choosing the best kick, or found an effective way to coordinate decisions across your agent. You could demonstrate a novel algorithm, an elegant solution to a difficult problem, or a carefully designed experiment that helped you understand your robot's behaviour.
We are exploring a poster-session format for the showcase, held during the winter break. Additional awards may recognise particularly interesting technical contributions, independently of match results.
How to get involved¶
We welcome undergraduate and postgraduate students from across Macquarie University, including coursework and research students.
Eligibility:
- You must be a current Macquarie University student to compete.
- Teams must have 2-4 members. You don't need to have a team to register, as we can help match you with other participants.
Complete the student sign-up form to register. If you already have a team, each team member should complete the form and provide the same team details. If you're registering individually, we'll help you find teammates.
Macquarie University staff are also welcome to get involved. Please complete the staff expression of interest form if you are interested. While staff are not competing in the tournament, there are many ways to contribute.
Finding a team¶
Don't have a team yet? We can help connect you with other students. Fill in the sign up form and select 'No' for Question 1 'Do you have teammates?'.
Team matching will consider complementary skills and interests. Developing a soccer-playing agent involves several different areas, from software development and AI to strategy and testing, so you don't need to be an expert in everything.
Teams are encouraged to bring together people with different strengths. Solo participation may also be permitted in some circumstances.
Staff involvement¶
Macquarie University staff members who are interested in supporting or contributing to the tournament can fill in the staff form or contact the tournament organiser.
AI and computational requirements¶
AI tools can be useful for learning, exploring ideas, and understanding unfamiliar code. If you use AI to help write your agent, you are responsible for understanding how the code works, testing it, and being able to explain your approach. AI-generated code is not a substitute for understanding your solution.
The tournament is also an opportunity to experiment with AI techniques. Deep learning methods, including reinforcement learning, are welcome. You can explore different approaches and decide what works best for your agent.
However, your agent must be able to run within the computational resources available for the simulation. Robotics simulations can involve many agents and repeated games, so computational cost matters. Lightweight models and efficient algorithms are encouraged.
If you plan to use computationally intensive methods, please contact the tournament organiser well in advance. This will allow us to assess whether your approach can be supported by the simulation environment. Submissions that cannot run reliably within the available resources may not be accepted.
Accessibility and support¶
We welcome students of all backgrounds and abilities. We are happy to work with students and relevant support staff to discuss reasonable adjustments and help make participation as accessible as possible.
If you have questions about accessibility, participation, or the tournament more generally, contact the tournament organiser at ysobel.sims@mq.edu.au.