It's fast, furious, technical and races happen quickly – but how does the competition at the Drone Racing in The World Games actually work? Here's our 60-second guide to the rules of the game.

THE BASICS

The competition starts on Thursday 14 August and finishes on the evening of Saturday 16 August – so that is three full days of competition. There are 31 athletes competing in total – plus each athlete has a supporter.

Over the three days each athlete will fly their drone in multiple races as they progress through three different stages of the competition. 

Each race consists of four pilots racing against each other. The aim is to complete three laps of the race track (which is in the shape of a panda, did we mention?) in less than three minutes. The race track includes gates and a series of obstacles, which the pilots must use their skill to fly around.

The aim is to complete those three laps as cleanly and quickly as possible – and not to crash.

As former FAI Drone Racing Women's World Champion Luisa Rizzo from Italy said: "Think of it like Formula One racing in the air!"

QUALIFYING STAGE

All 31 athletes compete in the Qualifying Stage. They each fly five races. At the end of the Qualifying Stage the athletes are ranked based on the average of their three best lap times. 

This ranking then determines which group they will fly in during the all-important Elimination Stage.

The Qualifying Stage is a long one – it will take place over five sessions on Thursday 14 August, starting at 09:30 and finishing at 21:30.

ELIMINATION STAGE

All 31 athletes then progress through to the Elimination Stage. This works like a knockout tournament and starts with a round of eight races. 

At the end of each round the top two athletes go through to the Final Stage. The lower two are not knocked out however – they get to fly again and compete in a second tier series of races. This system, which is quite complex, helps even out any 'lucky chance' wins or losses.

Through a gradual process of elimination (hence the name), the competition arrives at the final four athletes. 

The Elimination Rounds take place on Friday 15 August (17:45-21:50) and Saturday 16 August ((17:30-19:42).

FINAL STAGE

The two best-placed athletes in the last main elimination round and the two best-placed in the last second-tier race go through to the Final.

The Final Stage consists of at least two races – but it can be more. The Final Stage is over as soon as one of the athletes has won two final races. The athlete who does that will be declared the winner of The World Games Drone Racing competition.

The Final Stage will take place on Saturday 16 August starting at 20:10 local time.

MEDALS

The results are calculated immediately as pilots progress through the race and the winners are clear. Within minutes of winning, the top three athletes will be wearing those highly coveted bronze, silver and gold medals.

• Want to know more? Dive deeper

Follow the competition

FAI provides extensive coverage of the competition, with regular updates on its website, Facebook, and Instagram.

• FAI Facebook
• FAI Instagram
• The World Games 2025 - Drone Racing event - Website
• Livestream - All stages of the race will be live-streamed
• Results & draws
• FAI Flickr (images)
• #TWG2025
• #airsports

About The World Games

The World Games: 7-17 August 2025
The World Games drone racing event: 13-16 August 2025

The World Games is a prestigious multi-sport event organised by the International World Games Association (IWGA) under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Held every four years, The World Games showcases the best athletes in non-Olympic sports, providing a global platform for emerging and innovative disciplines. Air Sports have been part of The World Games since 1997.

Photo credit: FAI/Marcus King