The world’s largest educational robotics competition in 2015, the VEX Robotics World Championship was held from April 15 to 18 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville. 850+ teams from 29 countries attended the student achievements in such disciplines as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The Robotics Education & Competition Foundation (REC Foundation) was organized as an event with support from the Northrop Grumman Foundation. It featured five divisions: VEX IQ Challenge for elementary and middle school, VEX Robotics Competition for middle and high school and the VEX U division for university teams. The Parade of Nations opened the event and included qualification matches, alliance selections, and ended with finals and awards. It took place during the event a New Game Revea, and both live and recorded webcasts were available for those who were watching remotely. Top local sponsors included the University of Louisville, UPS, Toyota Manufacturing of Kentucky, even Nissan, MathWorks, HelmsBriscoe, Glowtouch, and General Electric.
Today VEX Worlds has grown and changed a lot, moving to new locations as it expanded. Not so long ago, in 2024 VEX Robotics World Championship took place in Dallas, Texas, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, was held from April 25 to May 3, 2024. The 9 - day event included competitions for high school, middle school, JROTC/VEX U, and VIQRC divisions. Viewers could watch the competitions live on VEX TV.
In the year 2025 VEX Robotics World Championship was also held in Dallas, from May 6 to 14, 2025. The multi-division format was saved, bringing together top VEX IQ, VEX V5, and VEX U teams from around the world.
For future events of 2026 and 2027, the REC Foundation chose St. Louis, Missouri, as the new host city. They will be held at the America’s Center Convention Complex. In 2026, VEX V5 High School events are set for April 21 to 24, VEX V5 Middle School and VEX U events for April 25 to 27, and VIQ/VIQ Middle School events for April 28 to 30. St. Louis is also scheduled to host the 2027 VEX Worlds.
The REC Foundation also announced changes for Signature Events in the 2025–2026 season. But the registration fee will increase to $10 because help cover travel costs and support larger events is needed.
All changes show the continued growth and global reach of the VEX Robotics World Championship. The event brings all student teams together from around the world for game-based engineering challenges and demonstrates the innovation students bring to STEM education.