Section 12.1

12.1 Regional Events

Regional teams are ranked throughout the season based on the points they earn at the first 2 Regional events they attend. Points are awarded to teams as follows:

Table 12‑1 Regional Point Assignment

Category	Points
Qualification Round Performance	Normal distribution of points from 22 to 3 across the highest ranked team to the lowest based on an equation. See section 11.1.1 Qualification Round Performance for details.
ALLIANCE CAPTAINS	Equal to 17 minus the ALLIANCE CAPTAIN number (e.g. 14 points for ALLIANCE #3 Captain.) See section 11.1.2 ALLIANCE Selection Results for details.
Draft Order Acceptance	Equal to 17 minus the Draft Order Acceptance Number (e.g. 12 points for the team that accepts the fifth draft position, regardless of whether it was delayed per T605.)
Playoff Advancement	Points awarded based on team participation in individual playoff rounds, and whether or not the ALLIANCE advances. See section 11.1.3 Playoff Performance for details.
Team Judged Awards	45 points for FIRST Impact Award 28 points for Engineering Inspiration Award 8 points for Rookie All Star Award 5 points each for all other team judged awards See section 12.1.1 Team Judged Awards for full details.
Team Age	10 points for 2026 rookie teams 5 points for 2025 rookie teams See section 12.1.2 Team Age for full details.

If there is a tie in the event point total between teams, the higher ranked team will be determined using the following additional sorting criteria:

Table 12‑2 Regional team sort criteria

Order Sort	Criteria
1^st	Best Playoff Points at a single event
2^nd	Highest Qualification Round Seed or Draft Order Acceptance (i.e. Highest ALLIANCE Selection points at a single event)
3^rd	Best Qualification Round Performance Points
4^th	Highest Individual MATCH Score, regardless of whether that score occurred in a Qualification or Playoff MATCH
5^th	Second highest Individual MATCH Score, regardless of whether that score occurred in a Qualification or Playoff MATCH
6^th	Third highest Individual MATCH Score, regardless of whether that score occurred in a Qualification or Playoff MATCH
7^th	Random Selection

12.1.1 Team Judged Awards

This attribute measures team performance with respect to team awards judged at the event.

Much of what is stated in section 11.1.4 Team Judged Awards is also relevant to Regional events. Points are assigned to awards to recognize that FIRST continues to be “More than Robots^®” and to elevate award-winning teams above non-award-winning teams in the ranking system. These points are not intended to capture the true value of these awards as that value is truly immeasurable.

Point values for some culture awards (FIRST Impact Award, Engineering Inspiration) are higher for Regional events than District events because Districts reward those teams with slots at an intermediate level of competition: their District Championship. Regional teams do not have an intermediate competition level and FIRST wants those teams to have an opportunity to share their stories and celebrate their success outside of their regional event.

12.1.2 Team Age

This attribute recognizes the difficulty in being a rookie or relatively new team.

Much of what is stated in section 11.1.5 Team Age is also relevant to Regional events. Points are awarded to 2025 and 2026 rookie teams. Unlike in the District events where these points are awarded once per season, for Regional events these points are awarded at each event they attend. Awarding these points at every event will assist rookies with earning one of the three per-event qualification slots starting in 2026. Rookie year is calculated based on the year in which FIRST recognizes the team as a rookie.