"Whether or not flag football becomes as ubiquitous as the iPhone, one of the country's fastest-growing sports was front and center during Super Bowl week in the Bay Area. The only tackle football played last week took place Sunday at Levi's Stadium. From the NFL's official Pro Bowl to a glow-in-the-dark game refereed by Eli Manning, the week's almost one dozen flag football events practically dwarfed the big game itself."
""I think for us," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said to kick off the week, "it's meeting the demand of people who want to play this game." It's also no coincidence that the flag football blitz is coming two years out from the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, where men and women will compete for medals in 5-on-5 flag football for the first time."
Flag football dominated Super Bowl week in the Bay Area with almost a dozen events including the NFL's Pro Bowl and a glow-in-the-dark game refereed by Eli Manning. An announcer declared the events the "future of football" at a convention center used for Apple product unveilings. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the sport meets demand from people who want to play. The flag football surge coincides with its debut as a 5-on-5 Olympic sport at the 2028 Los Angeles Games. California sanctioned flag football as an official high school girls' sport in 2023, growing to nearly 20,000 participants in 2024-25, an 84% increase.
Read at The Mercury News
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