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Bloomberg

With the Olympics concluding this weekend in Paris, the countdown has begun for flag football to make its Olympic debut in Los Angeles in 2028.
And the NFL can barely wait.
The league has been helping to build the sport for years as a way to get more people interested in American football – and ultimately the NFL. That has included investing in leagues for girls and overseas expansion.
Now the NFL is betting the Olympics will take flag football to the next level while increasing the league’s international fan base.

Flag football, according to the International Olympic Committee, is “a no-contact sport with ‘tackles’ made by removing one of three fabric ‘flags’ attached to the ball-carrier’s waist – one on each side and another at the back”.
“There’s so much that the Olympics offer for growing football and flag football,” said Stephanie Kwok, whom the NFL hired in May as its first head of flag football. The sport “is a significant way for the NFL to introduce international countries to football”.
Kwok, a former executive at FanDuel, has a mandate to keep growing flag football and predicts that the interest generated by the Olympics will help get a pro league for women off the ground. That is a prospect NFL owners have already been talking about, according to people familiar with the discussions..
Amid the growth in girls playing flag football, the NFL and USA Football – the sport’s governing body in America – are trying to make the game a sanctioned high school and collegiate sport. And there is progress with about a dozen states and a few college conferences adopting flag football.


A women’s pro league is the “natural next step”, said Scott Hallenbeck, chief executive officer and executive director of USA Football. “It helps complete the ecosystem, and there’s enough interest from the business side.”
Viewers who tune in to flag football, which started as a recreational activity for US soldiers during World War II, will see a pared-down version of the game. Teams use five players – the NFL has 11 – and at 50 yards (45.7 metres) the field is half the size of the traditional game.
The NFL partnered with the International Federation of American Football on a programme to boost the sport’s popularity that includes starting youth camps. The IFAF, which has 75 member countries spanning Panama to Japan, has been hosting world championships for tackle and flag football for two decades. Across the globe, an estimated 20 million people play flag football, according to the organisation.
On the men’s side, there’s the tantalising prospect of the NFL seeing its brightest stars lead the US flag football team to a gold medal. Call it an NFL Dream Team of sorts that would help international marketing.
Top players have already expressed interest, and it is hard to imagine NFL players not playing for Team USA, given professional athletes already compete in lots of sports, including basketball and tennis.

For the NFL’s stars, the opportunity to participate in the Olympics can provide a lot more exposure, especially since in flag football their faces will not be hidden by a helmet.
“If I can still move around then, I’m going to try to get out there and throw the football around maybe in LA,” Patrick Mahomes, who’s quarterbacked the Kansas City Chiefs to the past two Super Bowls, said last year.
Tyreek Hill, one of the league’s best wide receivers, said on his podcast that “you know how amazing it would be to assemble a super team to play in the Olympics?”.
But there are hurdles to NFL players becoming Olympians that include how it would affect contracts and insurance. The NFL Players Association said there have not been serious discussions about its union members playing at the 2028 Olympics. There are still things that need to get worked out, the NFL’s Kwok said.


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IOC (International Olympic Committee)

Los Angeles Olympics 2028: LA Games poised to be flag football’s ‘NFL Dream Team’ moment

Star NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes says he would be interested in playing flag football at the 2028 LA Olympics “if I can still move around then”. Photo: Instagram/ 

Flag football action between the NFC and the AFC during the 2023 NFL Pro Bowl Games in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo: AFP

Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill has also expressed interest in playing flag football for the US. Photo: AP

LA Olympics: organisers propose cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash to make debuts 2028 Games

Three sports have potential to debut at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics. Photo: Reuters

Squash, featured at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, could soon make an Olympic debut. Photo: AP

Hong Kong squash players still processing ‘unreal’ decision to include sport in 2028 LA Olympics

Tomato Ho takes on world No 1Nouran Gohar at the 2022 Hong Kong Squash Open. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong women’s squash team (from left) Lee Ka-yi, Tong Tsz-wing, Chan Sin-yuk and Tomato Ho won team silver at the Asian Games in Hangzhou. Photo: Jelly Tse

China urges US to ensure Olympic athletes treated fairly at future Games

Gene Sykes, president of the US Olympic and Paralympic committee, presents Salt Lake City’s bid to host the 2034 Winter Games during a meeting in Paris on July 24. Photo: AP

Chinese Olympic Committee chair Gao Zhidan has called for the US to ensure a “safe and smooth competition environment for all athletes, including those from China”. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong ready to fight for Olympic spot after lacrosse’s surprise inclusion in 2028 Los Angeles Games

Hong Kong’s lacrosse players celebrate reaching the main play-offs bracket at July’s World Championships. Photo: Handout 

Former captain Kelvin Mak Ho-chun is confident Hong Kong can challenge for Olympic qualification. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong’s lacrosse chief is confident the city’s women can also fight for an Olympic spot. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Sport

Other Sport

The NFL is betting that the non-contact variant of American football will be a hit at the next Games – and some stars will want in as well


The NFL is betting that the inclusion of the non-contact variant of American football will be a hit – and top stars will want to get in on the act as well.


NFL (National Football League)

Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games