Students are required to design and program two robots to compete against an opposing pair of robots by kicking an orange ball into their designated goal.

Each team has the choice to use two attacking robots or an attacker teamed with a goalie. The field is almost the same size of a table-tennis table. The field is painted in white, shades of green and black to aid the robot in navigation by using light sensors. Although the LEGO Mindstorms kit can be very competitive when reaching a high degree of complexity, other students select more advanced alternative platforms and even build their own microprocessor robots from basic electronic components. A wide range of sensors can be attached to all of the robotic platforms including electronic compasses, sonar, modified light sensors, motor rotation sensors and many other components.