Flag football is a variant of
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end a
down. The sport has a strong amateur following and several national and international competitions each year sponsored by various associations.
In flag football, contact is limited between players. The international governing body for the sport is the
International Federation of American Football
The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is the international governing body of gridiron associations. The IFAF oversees the IFAF World Championship of American Football, which is held every four years. The IFAF became a prov ...
(IFAF). In 2022, flag football was shortlisted as a proposed discretionary event for the
2028 Summer Olympics
The 2028 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, also known as Los Angeles 2028 or LA28) is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028, in and around Los Angeles, Cali ...
in Los Angeles.
History
The creation of the game of Flag Football can be attributed to
Porter Wilson, who was the man who invented flag-a-tag belts & flags used as equipment to play the sport.
The best available records to date point to the early 1940s during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
as the sport's starting point. The game began as a recreational sport created for American military personnel to help them stay fit but was designed in a way that would help prevent them from becoming injured during wartime. At the time it was called "Touch and Tail football", which then became "flag football" after the war ended.
The first known
recorded history
Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world hist ...
of flag football can be traced to
Fort Meade, Maryland, USA, which is now generally accepted as the sport's birthplace. The first national flag football organization, the
National Touch Football League
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
, was formed in the 1960's in
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...
. Since 1971, the league has had a national championship game.
Basic rules
The specific rules of flag football vary widely by league, though all share in common their replication of the rules of traditional
US-American football with tackling replaced by flag-pulling.
Traditional American football rules are often eliminated or modified to reflect the more recreational nature of the game, the desire to avoid physical contact and injury, and the generally smaller number of participating players per side.
Variations
![Japanese team on Beach Flag Football XOKA5210bs (15749928216)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Japanese_team_on_Beach_Flag_Football_XOKA5210bs_%2815749928216%29.jpg)
Chiefly, because there is no dominant sanctioning organization for the sport, the game has mutated into many variations: 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and 4 players on each side;
coed
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...
or single-gender; with kicking and punting and with point-after conversions (including some with 1, 2, and 3 point tries) or without; and field sizes that vary from full
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
(CFL) size,
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) size (120 yards long by 53 yards wide), to fields a third that size.
An important distinction is whether
linemen
Lineman or linesman may refer to:
In personal roles:
*Lineworker, one who installs and maintains electrical power, telephone, or telegraph lines
*Lineman (gridiron football), a position in American football
*Head linesman, the American football of ...
are allowed to catch passes ("Eligible Linemen") or, as in the NFL / CFL, are not allowed to do so ("Ineligible Linemen"). Flag (and
touch
In physiology, the somatosensory system is the network of neural structures in the brain and body that produce the perception of touch ( haptic perception), as well as temperature ( thermoception), body position (proprioception), and pain. It ...
) football may also be divided into "contact" or "non-contact", depending on whether or not
blocking is allowed; if allowed, blocking is usually restricted to the
chest
The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the crea ...
.
The ability or inability for the quarterback to advance the ball past the line of scrimmage (LOS) by running is another rule subject to variation by league.
The sport is also played on surfaces other than a traditional grass
football field, including on sand beaches; beach flag football has previously featured as a discipline at the
Asian Beach Games
The Asian Beach Games, also known as ABG, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games have been organized by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The Games are described as the second or third largest A ...
.
IFAF Flag Football World Championship
The
IFAF Flag Football World Championship
IFAF Flag Football World Championship is the international championship in flag football, organized by International Federation of American Football. The men's and women's competitions are usually held in the same venue. The tournament starts with ...
is normally conducted every two years.
IFAF Flag Football World Championship 2021
The
International Federation of American Football
The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is the international governing body of gridiron associations. The IFAF oversees the IFAF World Championship of American Football, which is held every four years. The IFAF became a prov ...
(IFAF) had selected Israel to host the Flag Football World Championships for 2021
IFAF Flag Football World Championship
IFAF Flag Football World Championship is the international championship in flag football, organized by International Federation of American Football. The men's and women's competitions are usually held in the same venue. The tournament starts with ...
with
World Games
The World Games are an international multi-sport event comprising sports and sporting disciplines that are not contested in the Olympic Games. They are usually held every four years, one year after a Summer Olympic Games, over the course of 11 d ...
places up for grabs. The Kraft Family Sports Campus in Jerusalem, was originally scheduled to stage the men's and women's events, however, due to expected high winds the games were played at
Teddy Stadium
Teddy Stadium ( he, אצטדיון טדי) is a sports stadium in the Malha neighborhood of Jerusalem. Three football teams currently use the stadium: Beitar Jerusalem, Hapoel Jerusalem, and the Israel national football team for select home mat ...
.
An IFAF event record of 39 men's and women's teams combined, spanning 22 countries, competed at the tournament in Israel. Normally conducted every two years, Denmark was scheduled to host the 2020 edition only for it to be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The United States retained their men's and women's titles at the International Federation of American Football (IFAF)
World Flag Football Championships in Jerusalem. The US fought back in both finals, against Mexico to successfully defend their world crowns.
Women's gold
Against Mexico in the women's gold-medal match, the Americans scored 12 unanswered points in the second period to seal a 31-21 victory. In the semi-finals the US beat Austria 33-6, and Mexico beat Brazil 47-6 to reach the final.
Men's gold
The US Mens team too rallied from behind against Mexico to a 44-41 victory and retain their world title. A 35-6 win over Panama sent the US through to the final, and Mexico beat Italy 36-35 to join them in the tournament's showpiece contest.
Other nations
Austria defeated Brazil 26-13 to win the women's bronze medal.
Panama edged out Italy 45-40 in the men's third-place playoff.
Medal table
Olympics
In July 2022, the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) and the IFAF partnered on a bid for flag football to be included as an optional event during the
2028 Summer Olympics
The 2028 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, also known as Los Angeles 2028 or LA28) is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028, in and around Los Angeles, Cali ...
in Los Angeles. Executive VP of football operations
Troy Vincent
Troy Darnell Vincent (born June 8, 1970) is a former American football cornerback for the Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Dolphins as the 7th ...
stated that the sport was "the future of American football", as it was inclusive and had fewer barriers to access. The NFL had sponsored the inclusion of flag football as an
invitational event during that month's
2022 World Games—a multi-sport event featuring sports and disciplines not currently contested at the Olympics—in Birmingham, Alabama. The men's tournament was won by the United States, and the women's tournament by Mexico.
In August 2022, flag football was shortlisted as one of nine sports advancing to the next phase of the bid process.
North America
NFL Pro Bowl Flag
For the 2023 Pro Bowl, the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
will showcase its premier Pro Bowl players and the best of NFL Flag teams from around the country with their skills in a week-long celebration, "The Pro Bowl Games", featuring a new format spotlighting Flag Football.
NFL Flag
The
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
and its teams have promoted and sponsored flag football leagues in the United States as a youth sport under the branding NFL Flag; in 2020,
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...
quarterback
Russell Wilson became a chairman and co-owner of NFL Flag, as part of efforts by the NFL to expand its promotion of the sport into other territories. The program has also placed a particular focus on expanding women's flag football, due to gridiron football having predominantly been played by men.
American Flag Football League
On June 28, 2017, the inaugural game for the newly formed
American Flag Football League
The American Flag Football League is a semi-professional flag football league started in 2017. The league was founded by Jeff Lewis in May 2017. Lewis spent nine months building the league, getting investors, setting the rules, and finding player ...
was played.
The league plans to launch eight league-owned teams for 2018.
Canadian Flag Football League
The
Canadian Flag Football League (CFFL) was established in 2019 and runs Canada's
CFFL National Championship. The league is affiliated with
Football Canada
Football Canada is the governing body for amateur gridiron football in Canada headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. Football Canada focuses primarily its own Canadian form of the sport, and is currently the world's only national governing body for ...
, the national governing body for football in Canada and its variants. The winners of the CFFL National Championship also gain the opportunity to represent Canada in international competition.
The league's major objective is to help integrate existing adult flag leagues on a nationwide basis. Depending on the region, teams compete in their Regional Championships, either Eastern, Western, or Central. The top two teams from each division will advance to the national championship.
There are three divisions for the CFFL: male, female, and mixed.
Varsity sport
America
In May 2020, the
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...
(NAIA), in partnership with the
NFL, announced the addition of flag football as a varsity sport for female student-athletes. The NAIA became the first collegiate governing body to sanction the sport at the varsity level.
Women's flag began during the 2020–21 season as an emerging sport with at least 15 teams, and the NAIA and NFL also expected an upgrade of the sport to an invitational level sport by 2022 with at least 25 teams.
International
International Woman's Flag Football Association
The
International Woman's Flag Football Association, otherwise known as the IWFFA, hosts 8 on 8 flag football tournaments and flag football trainings across the world with participants from the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
, Iceland, Scotland and several other nations. The organization is the largest organization for women and girls in the sport of flag football. The most active tournament is held each February in
Key West, Florida
Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Isla ...
, called the Kelly McGillis Classic where over 90 women and girls teams participate in 8 on 8, semi - blocking contact flag football. There are no restrictions to for girls and women to play.
International Federation of American Football
The
International Federation of American Football
The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is the international governing body of gridiron associations. The IFAF oversees the IFAF World Championship of American Football, which is held every four years. The IFAF became a prov ...
(IFAF) organizes the
IFAF Flag Football World Championship
IFAF Flag Football World Championship is the international championship in flag football, organized by International Federation of American Football. The men's and women's competitions are usually held in the same venue. The tournament starts with ...
every two years since 2002.
International Flag Football Festival
The
International Flag Football Festival
International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations".
International may also refer to:
Music Albums
* ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011
* ''International'' (New Order album), 2002
* ''International'' (The T ...
(IFFF) organizes the
World Cup of Flag Football featuring teams from the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
and several other nations.
United Kingdom
Flag football competition in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
is 5-a-side and organized by The
British American Football Association
The British American Football Association (BAFA) is the national governing body for the sport of American football and non-contact Flag Football in the United Kingdom since 1985. It is affiliated to the International Federation of American ...
(BAFA). At a senior level as of 2021, there are fifty eight teams divided into six divisions, Highland (North Division), Northern (West Division), Southern (East Division), Northern (East Division), Southern (Wales Division), and Southern (West Division) with the top teams qualifying for playoffs at the end of the season. As of 2021 the league will also run The Youth Flag Football League (YFFL) and organize teams competing at under 17, under 14, and non-competitive under 11. Flag matches in the UK are played with five players on each side with no contact, and are officiated according to the IFAF flag football rules with a few minor variations. The U17s and U14s compete in the National Youth Flag Football League, which runs from April to August, with teams battling it out to qualify for National Finals Day and ultimately be crowned National Champions.
The U11s take part in various regional festivals throughout the year.
BAFA National Flag finals
See also
*
Touch football (American)
Touch football is an amateur variant of American football and Canadian football in which the basic rules are similar to those of the mainstream game (called "tackle football" for contrast), but instead of tackling players to the ground, the perso ...
*
American football strategy
Strategy forms a major part of American football. Both teams plan many aspects of their plays (offense) and response to plays (defense), such as what formations they take, who they put on the field, and the roles and instructions each player are ...
*
Rugby football
Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league.
Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...
*
Tag rugby
Tag-rugby belt
Tag rugby, or flag rugby, is a non-contact team game in which each player wears a belt that has two velcro tags attached to it, or shorts with velcro patches. The mode of play is based on rugby league with many similarities to to ...
References
External links
United States Flag & Touch Football League
{{Team sports
Sports originating in the United States
Variations of American football