1. Invic, Wuhan University, China 2. Hamburg Bit-Bots, Universität Hamburg, Germany 3. GeoHBots, School of Artificial Intelligence, China University of Geosciences, China
Middle Division
1. B-Human, Universität Bremen and German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), Germany 2. HTWK Robots, Leipzig University of Applied Sciences, Germany 3. Rhoban, University of Bordeaux, France
Large Division
1. Tsinghua Hephaestus, Tsinghua University, China 2. CAU Mountain&Sea, China Agricultural University, China 3. Water, Beijing Information Science & Technology University, China
League-Wide Awards
Best Customized Humanoid Award: HERoEHS (ALICE 4th version)
Best Humanoid Software Award: B-Human (Game Controller)
Open Research Challenge: Ruhrbot Devils (AI Camera Platform for Embedded 2D/3D Game Analysis in RoboCup HSL)
Best Innovtion Award: Bahia Robotics Team (best poster)
Best Referee Award: Anastasia Prisacaru (Berlin United)
The Humanoid Soccer League (HSL) makes its debut in 2026 as a merger of the Standard Platform League (SPL) and Humanoid League (HL). Because of this, we don’t have prior results to seed teams. We are also limited in how many matches can be played. So, the Technical Committee voted that a Swiss-style competition structure would be the best way to seed teams into a knockout round.
Seeding Rounds: The seeding rounds consist of consecutive Swiss rounds (5 rounds for Small and Middle and 4 rounds for Large). 3 match points will be awarded for a win, 1 match point for a draw, and no match points for a loss. Due to schedule restraints, Round 2 matchups will be determined by pairing teams with the same results (win, tie, loss) – roughly based on what time the teams competed in Round 1 (e.g., the teams that played earliest will match up first).
For remaining Swiss tournament matchups and final standings, teams will be ranked by match points. Tie-breakers will be (in order):
Buchholtz Number (BHN)
Fine Buchholtz Number (fBHN)
Goal differential
Swiss pairings will be made based primarily on match points. Pairings may also be adjusted where necessary to avoid a repeat matchup. Final Swiss standings after Round 4/5 will determine qualification and seeding for the knockout rounds. Seeds #1-4 gets a bye into the quarterfinals. Seeds #5-12 advance to a play-in. In Small and Middle divisions, the remaining teams enter a Consolation Cup to accomodate more official matches and determine final results.
Knockout rounds: Seeds #5-12 participate in a play-in (e.g., #5 vs #12 and #6 vs. #11). The play-in winners advance to the quarter-finals, where the they face seeds #1-4 (e.g. #1 vs #8/9, #2 vs #7/#10). The four winners of the quarter-finals advance to Finals Day, where the teams will match off in the semi-finals, third-place, and finals matches.