The world's first "humanoid robot Olympics" kicked off in Beijing

The first World Humanoid Robot Games (RoboCup 2025), held in Beijing, China , kicked off with a colorful display of robots dancing, playing music, and demonstrating martial arts. The robots reenacted sports like football and boxing, while some performed somersaults and cheered.

In the tournament, which ends on Sunday, 280 teams and more than 500 robots from 16 countries, including the USA, Germany and Japan, will compete in branches such as football, running and boxing.

Some lost their balance and fell . Among the robots were some that scored goals, fell and got back up, and moved independently on the field, as well as some that performed fashion shows with human models on the runway. However, some lost their balance and had to be carried off stage.

Three middle school teams, along with leading Chinese higher education institutions such as Tsinghua University and Peking University, are participating in the competitions. China's official newspaper, the People's Daily, quoted a Beijing official as saying, "Every robot's participation is history."

Tickets for the event range from 180 yuan (about $25) to 580 yuan (about $80).