João Pessoa will host the Robotics World Cup 2014

João Pessoa, the capital of Paraíba, was chosen to host the Robotics World Cup 2014 (RoboCup 2014), which will be held in July, right after the Football World Cup. “It will be the first time that Brazil will host the event, one of the biggest in technology in the world, particularly known for the Robot Football platform – which is the reason for its strong link with the Cup”, said Alexandre da Silva Simões, professor of robotics at the University State of São Paulo (Unesp).
 
Fundraising for the event was made possible by a partnership between robotics researchers from several Brazilian universities, such as Unesp, FEI, UFRN, UFES, UFSJ, UFCG and Uneb, in addition to the Dean of Unesp and the contribution of more than 60 researchers from the Brazilian Society of (SBA) and Brazilian Computer Society (SBC). The Robotics Cup has the support of the Ministry of Sport, the government of Paraíba, the city hall of the capital and the Convention Bureau of the city.
 
João Pessoa competed with several candidates, such as Fortaleza and other Asian cities. It is estimated that RoboCup 2014 will receive approximately four thousand visitors.