Gracious Professionalism(TM)???

[DonRotolo]

(TM) is an official trademark, simply not a registered trademark. I agree registration carries additional protections, but using the (TM) symbol conveys significant protections - but only if the user enforced their rights. If you stop using (TM), you have given up your trademark.

The user does have the right to license others to use their trademark. This license does not have to include payments. You just have to follow the trademark owner's "rules".

Which is exactly what FIRST is doing.

As a point of argument: What do you think FIRST's lawyers would do if I were to start my OWN robotics competition, using the FIRST logo and Name, and use their GP and Coopertition trademarks to describe it?

That's called enforcing one's rights. Since they DO it, their trademarks are protected.