Humanoid Robots Play Football Match, Spectacle Felt Straight Out of a Movie
In a first-of-its-kind event, a historic football match took place in Beijing where the players were not humans but fully autonomous humanoid robots. Teams from Tsinghua University, China Agricultural University, and Beijing Information Science & Technology University competed in a 3v3 football tournament as part of the “Robo League.”
The match was entirely autonomous, with no human control during gameplay. According to a report by China Global, all the robots were equipped with advanced visual sensors capable of identifying the football from a distance of up to 65 feet with 90% accuracy. They could also stand up on their own after falling. However, in some cases, robots had to be carried off the field on stretchers, adding to the realism of the match.
In the main final, Tsinghua University’s team, ‘THU Robotics,’ defeated ‘Mountain Sea’ from China Agricultural University with a score of 5–3. The match was played in two 10-minute halves. The robots demonstrated impressive skills such as strategic passing, accurate shooting, and even celebratory gestures like raising their hands after a goal.
Dou Jing, the tournament organiser and executive of Shangyicheng (Beijing) Technology Group, stated that the event highlighted the growing convergence between robotics and industrial applications. Cheng Hao, founder of Booster Robotics, said the match offered an ideal scenario to test robotic capabilities in dynamic, competitive, and collaborative settings, especially in terms of strength and safety.
This match also served as a preview for the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games 2025, scheduled to take place in Beijing from August 15 to 17.