FIRST® LEGO® League Florida State Championship 2026
Date
February 20-21, 2026
Location
Shorecrest Preparatory School
Teams
55 Teams
The Florida Central & West Region proudly hosts the 2025-2026 Florida State Championship for FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge teams. Join us for a full day of innovation, competition, and celebration as Florida's top teams showcase their robots and projects!
FIRST® LEGO® League (FLL) introduces STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) to children ages 9-14 through fun, exciting hands-on learning. Participants gain real-world problem-solving experiences through a guided, global robotics program using LEGO® technology.
The FLL competition evaluates teams in four key areas:
Core Values, Innovation Project, Robot Design, and Robot Performance.These areas are weighted equally during the tournament which helps determine the overall ranking of the teams.
The UNEARTHED theme for the 2025-2026 season of FIRST® LEGO® League invites teams to explore the past, uncover hidden stories, and use STEM to envision a brighter future. Teams will build and code autonomous LEGO Education robots to complete a series of archaeology-themed missions, simulating real-world challenges faced by archaeologists. Additionally, teams invent solutions to real-world problems faced by archeologists. The theme encourages teams to think critically about how the past can inform our future and to develop innovative solutions for the future.
Lots of 3d printed Co-oper-chickens will be seen around the State Championship. It's a great way to highlight the secret sauce of FIRST. We dig it when teams show their cooperative and competitive spirits intertwined at events. Iron sharpens iron. We do our best, while helping others shine. Our goal is to give Co-operchickens to team members who are showcasing their gracious professionalism. Additional Co-operchickens will be used in the afternoon Scavenger Hunt.
Dig Into Co-opertition at the Florida State Championship!
$225 per team
Includes tournament entry, team pit space, outdoor "tent-gating" space, practice table access, and team gifts. Optional costs: T-shirts (See the TIP) and pre-order boxed lunches ($10 each- See the TIP).
Coaches' Meeting - 2/12/2026 at 7:30PM. The Coaches' Meeting recording is here and also here.This meeting replaces the on-site meeting that normally takes place on Saturday morning.
Team Information Packet (TIP) - Most Up to Date Championship Information - Check Frequently
Email #1 - Sent on 1/22/2026 - Welcome email with hotel links. 1 correction: Dates are February 20th and 21st.
Email #2- Sent on 1/30/2026 - Congratulatory email with the Team Information Packet link (TIP), the Signup Form link, Payment Link, Invoice PDF, Team roster Upload link, Team Photo Upload Link, and more.
Email #3- Sent on 2/5/2026 - Email reminding coaches that the TIP is an ever-evolving document, Dig Site Sign Link is in the TIP, and the Coaches' Meeting on February 12th is in lieu of an in person meeting at the Championship. The Coaches' Meeting Link is in Email #3 and in the TIP.
Email #4- Sent on 2/10/2026 - Email reminding coaches that Lunches are pre-ordered. You are welcome to bring your own lunches. TIP is an ever-evolving document, Dig Site Sign Link is in the TIP, and the Coaches' Meeting on February 12th is in lieu of an in person meeting at the Championship. The Coaches' Meeting Link is in Email #3 and in the TIP.
Email #5- Sent on 2/12/2026 - Reminder of Coaches Meeting.
Plan your championship weekend with our daily schedule. Please remember this is a draft schedule. It could change.
Friday, February 20th - Setup and Scope out the Venue
4:00 PM - Help setup the venue and get a chance to set up your Pit
6:30 PM - Join the St Petersburg Festivities at Vinoy Park and the Glazer Family Playground until 10:00 PM
Saturday, February 21st - FLL Challenge State Championship
6:30 - 7:30 AM - Volunteers Arrive
7:15 AM - Team Registration & Pits Open
8:00 AM - Opening Ceremony and Team Parade
8:30 AM - Judging Begins
9:00 AM - Robot Games Begin
11:00 AM - Lunch pre-order Pick Up
12 noon - Lunch for volunteers
1:00 PM - Robot Games Begin and Judging Resumes
2:00 PM - Dig Site Extravanganza - Teams play games while judges deliberate
5:00 PM - Closing Ceremony
Shorecrest Preparatory School
5101 1st St NE
St. Petersburg, FL 33703
On-campus parking is available for all attendees. Parking attendants will direct you to designated areas upon arrival.
Free parking for all participants and spectators
Shorecrest Preparatory School is conveniently located just off I-275 in St. Petersburg, approximately 5 miles from downtown and easily accessible from all major Tampa Bay area highways.
We've secured special rates at hotels near Shorecrest Prep. All hotels are within 5 miles of the venue.
Note: Most hotels are clustered around the 54th Avenue North exit from I-275. Additional downtown St. Petersburg hotels are available within 5 miles. Book early as rooms fill quickly!
Deadline: February 12, 2026
Boxed lunch options available for pre-order. Each lunch is $10 and includes:a 6" sandwich, chips, banana, cookie, and a drink.
Students may bring refillable water bottles. Water bottle filling stations will be available throughout the venue.
Food and beverages are NOT permitted in the Pit, or in competition areas such as gyms and judging rooms. Food and beverages can be in the cafeteria, the tent-gating DIG Site. Thank you for helping us follow the rules.
Concession stands will be available during the event offering snacks and beverages. Families are welcome to eat in the cafeteria, outdoors, and at the Dig Site.
Cash and card accepted
Dress for all teams is casual. We encourage your team to adopt a fun and unique team identity that showcases your team spirit, engineering experience, or project theme.
Think smart marketing and HAVE FUN!
Saturday, February 21: 7:15 AM - 7:45 AM
Only one coach needs to check in. Spectators and parents can set up tents, tables, and chairs outdoors in the Team Tent-gating Area unless they are registered event volunteers. After the coach has checked in, team members should go directly to the team pit.
Team Roster Due: Wednesday, February 12, 2026 by Noon
The tournament director will communicate with coaches who have been pre-identified by Program Delivery Partners (PDPs). Coaches will receive an email from SuncoastFLL@gmail.com. Coaches should add this email address to their safe senders email list. A google form link will be sent to coaches to complete the following information:
Friday, February 20: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Teams can check help set up on Friday afternoon. And then they can set up their Pits on Friday evening to get ready for the big day! Get an early start on touring Shorecrest and finding the judging rooms, robot arena, and Dig Site. Feel free to visit St. Pete Pier, Vinoy Park, beaches and other attractions in the area. All judging and robot games take place on Saturday.
The Pit is your team's home base indoors when working on the robot and coding during the competition. The Pit is for coaches and team members only. The Pit cannot contain food or drinks. The Pit is not the space for teams to congregate all day long. The Dig Site with outdoor tents is for teams to have down time during the tournament. Parents and guardians can set up tents, tables, and chairs outdoors. Create interactive displays at the team's outdoor designated area in the Dig Site and encourage team members to engage outdoors.
The Pit Area will have charging stations. There is no need for teams to bring extension cords or surge protectors. There will also be an area for Practice Tables. Teams are not allowed to bring Tables, Chairs, Field Kits, Mission Mats or Models in the Pit. Each Pit space will have:
Decorate your Tent-gating Outdoor Area to showcase your team identity! Bring:
Make your Tent-gating area memorable!
Celebrating excellence in robotics and innovation
Top Florida teams advance to prestigious international competitions
Help make this championship possible!
Every team must provide at least one adult volunteer (18+) to volunteer at the State Championship. Teams that meet this requirement will receive their registration packet and schedule by Wednesday prior to the event.
Volunteers help keep the event moving on schedule:
Tuesday, February 17: 6:00 PM
Location: Volunteer Room
There was an online meeting for general volunteers and then separate meetings for volunteers associated with judging and volounteers assocated with the Robot Arena. All volunteers have been assigned at this point. If you have not received your volunteer role / assignment, please email us and let us know. If you need to access the recording, please let us know.
Register your volunteer on your FIRST Dashboard at www.firstinspires.org
Questions? Email suncoastfll@gmail.com
The Robot Game competition area is FREE and open to the public!
Spectators are encouraged to:
Please respect team-only areas:
Only registered team members, coaches, and volunteers allowed in restricted areas
Bleacher seating is available at the venue. We encourage families to also: