Women’s flag football is expanding through pro leagues, more youth participation and new competitions as it heads toward the 2028 LA Games.
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Women’s flag football is gaining new pathways for players as the sport prepares for its Olympic debut at the 2028 LA Games, following the approval of flag football for inclusion in the Summer Olympics in October 2023.
USA Football says its analysis of Physical Activity Council study data showed that in 2025, more than 1.8 million girls and boys ages 6 to 17 participated in flag football—an increase of 32% over a 10-year period from 2015 to 2024.
The sport’s reach has also expanded in school systems, with women’s flag football sanctioned as a varsity high school sport in more than 20 states.
On the college level, USA Football says there were about 45 schools in 2025-26 across all three divisions with commitments to flag football programs, while the number currently hovers around 139 and is projected to exceed 170 varsity programs next year.
In January, the NCAA will vote on whether to elevate the women’s sport’s championship status, which could allow national title games as soon as spring 2028.
The expanding opportunities have helped some athletes shift toward full-time pursuits. Izzy Geraci, 26, recently left a job at her family’s jewelry store to pursue Olympic gold, and she has been sponsored by Red Bull and Under Armour while playing for USA Football’s national team.
Geraci said, “The opportunities that are available in flag football right, it’s the highest it’s ever been,” adding, “It’s just going to continue to keep growing.”
Other players continue to balance football with work. Laneah Bryan is co-owner of MountainStar Solar and G.O.A.T. Roofing and Construction in El Paso, Texas, while Deliah Autry-Jones works as a pediatric physical therapist in Tampa, Florida, and Kennedy Foster works as the football development and marketing coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Aaron Rodgers, speaking recently in Paris about the need for more funding for the U.S. women’s flag football team, said, “Olympic athletes in general, it’s a hard run for them, because most of them have full-time jobs,” and added, “I think that there should be some better pay for some of these individuals.”
With the sport’s growing profile, new competitions are being introduced. The Grand Slam of Flag is set to debut in Los Angeles before the Super Bowl and will feature a $500,000 prize pool, with a slate of six women’s national teams: Canada, the U.S., China, Great Britain, Mexico and Spain.
Sam Rapoport, commissioner of Grand Slam of Flag, said, “The Olympics was the inflection point for the sport, no question, and it will go down in history as that, as it continues to be played,” and added, “That really established the sport and moved it from what some people thought was a backyard sport into a legit competitive sport that deserves access at the highest levels.”
USA Football also announced a Nations Cup showcase scheduled for Dec. 10-12 at the Dallas Cowboys’ world headquarters, featuring men’s and women’s national teams from China, Mexico, Japan and the U.S. for medals.
Canada’s Caroline Moquin-Joubert said she is still working while competing, noting she is an accountant in Montreal while completing her CPA designation. She said she helped Canada clinch an invitation to the LA Games by taking gold at the world championships in Germany over the summer, and described the game as getting faster and more advanced for each country.
Moquin-Joubert said, “Every single country has stepped up their level. … The plays are better, the individual athletes are better, it’s faster. As a spectator watching flag football now, it’s such a beautiful sport.”
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