FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions

We have brought together all the key information about the evolution of FIRST® LEGO® League, the end of the partnership between FIRST and LEGO Education, the Future Edition, and LEGO League starting with the 2027/28 season on our Transition & Future page. There you will also find an overview of the timeline and what the changes mean for teams, coaches, and educational institutions.

Learn more about the transition and the future

Our FIRST LEGO League programs are designed for children and young people aged 5 to 16. Teams and groups from schools, after-school programs, clubs, educational institutions, or private initiatives can participate. Which program is the best fit depends on the participants’ ages, the group size, and the technical equipment available.

No prior knowledge or experience is required. Throughout the season, participants learn step by step how to develop their own ideas, build, program, conduct research, and work together as a team.

No. Coaches do not need to be programming experts. Their main role is to guide the team, ask questions, support the learning process, and create a positive environment for the team to work in. The solutions should be developed by the children and young people themselves.

Coaches support their team throughout the season, both organizationally and educationally. They help with planning, provide structure for teamwork, and offer guidance when needed. When developing ideas, building, programming, and solving the challenges, however, team members should work as independently as possible.

No. You can complete the season without participating in an official event and organize your own season finale, for example at your school or educational institution.

Whether participation in an event is already included in your registration or needs to be booked separately depends on the program you choose:

Explore and Challenge teams: Event participation is generally included in the registration. If you would like to complete the season without attending an official event, select the event region “At Home” when registering.

Explore and Challenge classes: Event participation is not automatically included but can be booked separately.

Future Edition 5+ and 8+: You first register your group for the program and then decide whether you would also like to participate in an event and which team or teams from your group will take part.

An official event is a special highlight of the season: Children and young people have the opportunity to present their work, meet other teams, receive feedback, and celebrate together what they have achieved throughout the season.

Yes. Teams can register for and participate in events in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, regardless of which country they come from.

However, advancement to the next competition level, which currently applies to Challenge and Future Edition 8+, is only possible for teams from the country in which the event takes place.

For example, if a German team participates in a regional event in Austria, it can take part in the event as usual but cannot qualify for the next competition level.

Events are generally held in the official language of the country in which they take place. This applies in particular to presentations, jury sessions, event moderation, and judging. If you have specific questions or special circumstances, please contact the organizers of the respective event in advance.

All official season materials, documents, and videos can be found in our 2026/27 Season section and on the resource pages for the respective programs.

Go to the 2026/27 Season

Official changes or additions during the season are published in our Season Updates.

Go the Season Updates

If LEGO® elements or bags are missing from your Season Set, please contact LEGO® Customer Service. If you have questions about deliveries, registrations, or other aspects of your participation, please contact HANDS on TECHNOLOGY directly.

Go to LEGO Customer Service

Contact HANDS on TECHNOLOGY

The Future Edition 5+ is designed for children aged 5 to 7 and offers a playful introduction to building, programming, research, and collaborative problem-solving.

Both programs are designed for younger children and combine playful, hands-on learning with a seasonal theme. However, the Future Edition 5+ is based on the new LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI learning platform and already reflects the future program model. You can find more information about how the programs are evolving on our Transition & Future page.

Learn more about the transition and the future

For the Future Edition 5+, you will need two LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI 5+ sets per 4 kids. Registered groups will also receive the materials for the respective season. An overview of all required materials can be found on the Future Edition 5+ program page..

Learn more about Future Edition 5+

For the Future Edition 5+, groups of up to 24 children can be registered. Within the group, the children work in small teams of four. For example, a group of 24 children consists of six teams that can work on the Future Edition 5+ challenges in parallel.

Yes. The program is specifically designed for use in both school and extracurricular learning environments.

Yes. Events where children can present their work and celebrate the end of their season together are generally planned for Future Edition 5+.

However, as the program will not launch until October 2026, there are expected to be only a few, or possibly no, official Future Edition 5+ events during the 2026/27 season.

Regardless of this, we recommend concluding the project with your own celebration at your school or educational institution. This gives the children an opportunity to present their work and celebrate together what they have developed and learned as a team.

You can find current events and participation opportunities at our event locations.

View event locations

Future Edition 8+ is designed for children and young people aged 8 and above and is particularly suitable for students in Grades 4 to 10.

Participants explore a common seasonal theme, combining programming, building, research, and teamwork. The program includes game challenges, a project based on a real-world problem, and the development and presentation of their own solutions.

Challenge is based on SPIKE™ and previous-generation products. Future Edition 8+ uses the new LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI 8+ or 11+ learning platform and features an evolved approach to gameplay and learning. This includes new team roles, interactive mission models, and some cooperative gameplay elements. You can find more information about the transition on our Transition & Future page.

Learn more about the transition and future

For Future Edition 8+, you can register groups of 8, 16, or 24 children and young people. Within each group, participants work in teams of 4 to 8.

A team must have at least four participants, as there are four different roles to be filled during the game.

If you would like to participate in an official event, you can form one or more competition teams from your registered group and register them separately for an event:

Group of 8 participants: up to 1 competition team
Group of 16 participants: up to 2 competition teams
Group of 24 participants: up to 3 competition teams

A competition team also consists of 4 to 8 participants. All members of the competition team must be part of the registered group.

If more than 24 children and young people would like to participate, you can register additional groups.

When you register, you enroll your group in Future Edition 8+. The costs consist of the program fee, the Season Set, and a logistics fee. The Season Set will be shipped to you by HANDS on TECHNOLOGY or one of our logistics partners.

The digital season materials are available online.

The required LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI sets and any additional hardware required are not included. These must already be available or be purchased separately.

Participation in an official event is also not automatically included in the group registration. If you would like one or more teams to participate in an event, you can register them separately. You can find the current fees and costs on our Future Edition 8+ program page.

Go to the Future Edition 8+ program page

For Future Edition 8+, you will need LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI sets. You can use either Computer Science & AI 8+ or Computer Science & AI 11+. Each team of up to eight participants requires two sets.

This means you will need the following number of sets for each group size:
Group of 8 participants: 2 sets
Group of 16 participants: 4 sets
Group of 24 participants: 6 sets

If you use Computer Science & AI 8+, **additional hardware is required for Future Edition 8+.

More information about the additional hardware

If you use Computer Science & AI 11+, the required hardware is already included.

The LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI sets and any additional hardware required are not included in the participation fee. They must already be available or be purchased separately from a LEGO® Education reseller.

No. Future Edition 8+ is technically based on LEGO® Education Computer Science & AI.

However, existing LEGO® bricks and LEGO® Technic elements can be used for your own constructions and team models, provided that the respective rules allow this.

Teams program using the LEGO® Education Coding Canvas, which provides an easy introduction to block-based programming. Depending on age, experience, and prior knowledge, additional programming options, such as Python, can also be used.

Yes. Future Edition was designed with a particular focus on more flexible use in the classroom and with larger groups of learners. It can also be used in after-school programs, clubs, and other extracurricular settings.

Future Edition 8+ also includes a game-based competition component with missions on a playing field. However, the setup and game mechanics differ from Challenge. These include new roles within the team, interactive models, and some cooperative gameplay elements.

Yes. Teams explore a real-world problem related to the season theme, conduct research, and develop their own solution.

A Future Edition 8+ event follows a similar format to a Challenge competition and usually takes place over a full day. The day begins with a joint opening ceremony and ends with an awards ceremony.

Each team takes part in three game rounds and one jury session. During the jury session, the team presents its project, technical design, and how it has put the Core Values into practice, following a defined sequence. The jury asks questions about each area and provides feedback to the team.

Some events also offer an additional program for participants and visitors, as well as opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with other teams.

The exact format and content of the jury session may vary from season to season. You can find the current information for the 2026/27 season in the Future Edition 8+ Season Resources.

Go to the Future Edition 8+ Season Resources

After the registration deadline, HANDS on TECHNOLOGY determines how many teams from each regional event can qualify for the Final. The number of qualification spots depends on the number of registered teams.

For the 2026/27 season: The registration deadline for event participation is 31 October 2026. This season, there is no additional qualification stage for Future Edition 8+. Teams qualify directly for the Final at their regional event.

Yes, it is generally possible to participate in both programs. However, Challenge and Future Edition 8+ are separate programs with different materials and challenges.

If the same children would like to participate in both programs, we recommend attending the respective events on different days.

We do not recommend participating in Challenge and Future Edition 8+ on the same event day. Event organizers cannot guarantee that game rounds, jury sessions, and other scheduled activities will not overlap. In addition, taking part in two competitions on the same day can be very demanding for children and young people.

FIRST® LEGO® League Explore is designed for primary school children aged 6 to 9 and provides a playful introduction to STEM, research, building, and teamwork.

An Explore team consists of up to six children.

Teams explore the season theme, investigate a real-world problem, and work together to create a team model using LEGO® elements. They bring their model to life using motors and sensors and program it themselves. Along the way, children are introduced to basic technical and programming concepts, develop creative solutions, and learn to work together as a team.

The team model is the team’s collaborative build based on the season theme. It represents the children’s ideas and discoveries and, depending on the season, includes both predefined elements and components developed by the team itself.

The research topic is based on the respective season theme. Children explore a specific question, gather information, and develop their own ideas. The focus is not on finding a scientifically perfect solution, but on the shared process of learning and discovery.

No. The season can also be completed without participating in an Explore Exhibition and can, for example, conclude with your own celebration at your school or educational institution.

However, an Explore Exhibition is a special highlight of the season: children present their team model and research findings, meet and exchange ideas with other teams, and receive positive and encouraging feedback on their work.

For information on how event participation is handled during registration, see the General section: “Does My Group or Team Have to Participate in an Event?”

An Explore Exhibition is usually a half-day event and begins with a joint opening ceremony. Teams display their team models and posters and present their work. Each team has the opportunity to show the reviewers what they have built, researched, and learned throughout the season. Depending on the event location, the review session may take place in a separate room or directly at the team’s stand in the exhibition area.

There is also time to discover the work of other teams and exchange ideas.

Some exhibitions offer an additional program for participants and visitors.

At the end of the event, all teams come together again. The children’s achievements and development are recognized, and teams receive awards celebrating their individual strengths.

The focus is on recognition, exchange, and a positive shared conclusion to the season.

Explore is not a traditional competition. The focus is on the experiences children gain throughout the season, their work together, and what they achieve as a team. At an Explore Exhibition, teams present their work and receive an award recognizing a particular strength of their team. This ensures that every team’s achievements are recognized individually.

FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge is designed for children and young people aged 9 to 16.

Challenge combines several areas: the Robot Game, the Innovation Project, the Robot Design process, as well as the Core Values and teamwork.

No. The season can also be completed without participating in a Challenge tournament and can, for example, conclude with your own event at your school or educational institution.

However, the tournament is an important highlight of the season and gives teams the opportunity to present their work, compete in Robot Game matches, and receive feedback from the jury.

For information on how event participation is handled during registration, see the General section: “Does My Group or Team Have to Participate in an Event?”

Yes. Participating is generally worthwhile, even for new teams. The goal is not to achieve perfect results in your first year. The tournament is part of the learning experience and gives the team valuable feedback and many new experiences.

Teams should have shared their results with others before the tournament, for example with classmates, parents, experts, or another appropriate audience.

The specific requirements for each season can be found in the current season materials.

Go to the Challenge Ressources Page

No. What matters is that the team engages with the challenge, conducts research, develops its own solution, and presents it in a clear and understandable way.

At a Challenge tournament, you have 5 minutes of presentation time to present your Innovation Project to the jury. The time needed to set up your presentation does not count toward these five minutes. How you present your results is up to you. You can choose the format that best suits your project and your team.

Challenge teams should participate in all judging categories at the tournament. If a team does not present an Innovation Project, it will not be evaluated in that category and cannot become Challenge Champion.

The same applies if a team does not participate in the judging of another required category.

The team should develop its own solutions. A basic robot design or other examples can be used for learning and inspiration.

However, when evaluating the Robot Design process, the focus is on how the team itself designed, programmed, tested, and improved its solution.

In the preliminary rounds: If two teams have the same score in their best match after the three preliminary rounds, their second-best match is compared first. If the scores are still tied, the third-best match is used. If both teams have identical scores in all three preliminary rounds, an additional tiebreaker match is played.

In the final rounds: If there is a tie in the quarterfinals, semifinals, or final, a tiebreaker match is also played. The result determines which team advances to the next round or, in the final, which team wins.

You can find the current dimensions and specifications in our instructions for building a competition table.

The table walls are 8 cm high and 4 cm wide. Some tournaments still use older tables with walls that are 10 cm high and 5 cm wide. We therefore recommend checking with your regional partner before the tournament to find out which table dimensions will be used at your event.

Our tip: Design and test your robot so that it can perform reliably even with small variations between competition tables.

Go to the competition table building instructions

The parts and materials permitted in the Robot Game are specified in the current Robot Game Rules. Be sure to check these rules before building your competition robot, as not all LEGO® elements and technical components are allowed.

Go to the current Robot Game Rules

As a general rule, a team can receive only one award in the judged categories: Champion, Robot Design, Core Values, or Innovation Project. If a team wins an award in one of these categories, it cannot receive an additional award in any of the other three.

The Robot Game and Coaching Awards are exceptions and can be awarded in addition. This means that a team can win a maximum of three awards at a tournament.

After the registration deadline, HANDS on TECHNOLOGY determines the qualification structure for the entire DACH region. This defines how many teams advance from Regional Tournaments to Qualification Tournaments and from there to the Final.

The number of teams advancing from a Regional Tournament depends on the number of teams registered for that tournament. Depending on the size of the Regional Tournament, one to four teams can qualify for the next competition level.

For the 2026/27 season: The registration deadline for Challenge teams is 31 October 2026. After the deadline, the qualification structure for the season will be determined and published.