Dear SPL Teams,

Code Release by October 15 This is a reminder that teams who participated in RoboCup 2024 need to publish and announce this at r*********o@lists.robocup.orgmailto:r*********o@lists.robocup.org by October 15, 2024. Teams who are developing fully open source also need to make the announcement. For reference, see the section A.7 from the rulebook.

Shared Autonomous Challenge Code Release Teams who participated in the Shared Autonomous Challenge must also release both the robot code and the interface code developed for the human-operated robot by October 15, 2024. For more information, see section 2.2.10 of the Technical Challenge rulebook.

Major rules change for Champion Cup 2025 The Technical Committee (TC) has reviewed feedback from team leaders and suggestions for rule changes. Based on these discussions, the following changes are planned for the 2025 competition:

* New Visual Referee Signal for Set Play: Referees will now give a visual signal to indicate which team is performing a Set Play. While the GameController will still send the type of Set Play, it will no longer reveal which team is executing it. * Red Gloves: The referee will no longer use red gloves or any mandatory visual clues to perform the visual signal. * Ready Signal Delay: The delay for the Ready signal from GameController will be 45 seconds, so an Initial Ready signal won't be sent. The Motion In Standby penalty will be updated. * Message Budget Count: Packet messages will now begin being counted from the Standby state. * Direct Kicks: Failing to execute a set play on time gives opposing team one direct kick chance to score. This change is meant to encourage teams to better detect in-game visual signals. * Game Flow Adjustments: Includes a drop ball rule, end of half when the ball comes to a full stop, and early penalty abort option for mistakes. * Glicko Rating Adjustments: The Glicko rating system will now take into account additional factors, such as participation in the Technical Challenges or forking a code base from another team.

Major rules change for Challenge Shield 2025 Teams participating in the Challenge Shield should expect to follow most of the rules from this year’s Champion Cup, with some adjustments based on lessons learned (e.g., updates to the Motion In Standby penalty) and minor changes from the 2025 Champions Cup. More details will be provided in the next newsletter.

Technical Challenges 2025

* Open Challenge: More information will be released soon. * Kicking a Rolling Ball: Teams are required to kick a ball that rolls down a ramp. * Additional Challenge: A third, inter-league connecting challenge may be introduced, pending further internal discussions.

New Skill Leaderboard Starting with this year, the TC will introduce a skill leaderboard, allowing teams to record and compare specific skills over time and across teams. Skills may include categories such as the fastest walk, the strongest kick, and more. Teams are welcome to submit suggestions for skills they would like to see evaluated.

Final notes Please reach out by email or on Discord for any questions or comments. These changes will be drafted in the following weeks and made available on SPL website.

Best regards,

RoboCup SPL TC