CNN
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When Tatiana Dos Santos started acting flag footballshe did it on a dirt field at Panama. By the time she left high school, she had played NFL Pro Bowlheld to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
It’s a remarkable rise for someone playing at the elite level today, but Dos Santos’ story is also a mirror of the progress the sport is making. Olympic debut in 2028, constituted a whole.
“All these things keep getting better.” Dos Santoswho last year helped the Ottawa Braves win their fourth straight game NAIA Finals Titletold CNN Sport’s Coy Wire. “I started playing in the dirt. And I came all this way to play on these big fields, universities and also stadiums – we play our national championships in the (Atlanta) Falcons stadium, the Mercedes-Benz (Stadium).
In many ways, it’s no surprise that athletes like Dos Santos compete on some of the NFL’s most iconic stages. Played by over 20 million people in more than 100 countries, flag football should exceeding worldwide in terms of organized participation opportunities over the coming years, according to the International Federation of American Football (IFAF).
The growth of the sport in the United States, where flag football is now played by the NFL’s biggest stars as part of the Pro Bowl, has been equally striking.
“I started in 2018 and the sport has skyrocketed,” said Izell Reese, executive director of NFL FLAG. “When I started with NFL FLAG…the players had about 200,000 participants. The number of participants increased to 800,000.”
At the high school level, 42,955 girls participated in the 2023-24 season, an increase of 105% from the previous year.
The game is doing just as well at the college level. In December, State of Alabama announced Jennifer Constuble as the first-ever women’s flag football coach in Division I athletics.
This growth has enabled – and been spurred by – international scholarship opportunities allowing young athletes like Dos Santos to study at universities and colleges like the University of Ottawa.
“It’s just crazy,” the Braves catcher said. “Thinking about the fact that I came from a small town in western Panama, all the way to Kansas, where I won national championships and was able to get a scholarship, it’s a very proud moment.”
Flag football has been greatly aided by the support of the financial giant that is the NFL.
“They have the full scope of the NFL using their marketing muscle,” Reese said. “For example, they televised the FLAG Championships in Canton, Ohio, on ESPN. They have also used a Super Bowl commercial in recent years.
Individual NFL teams have also played their part in the development of the game.
“Having NFL teams involved, having players involved, both active and former – you really see the scope of the NFL and they view that as a priority,” Reese added.
Rockford Park District Youth Sports Director Lamont Jones has seen first-hand the impact it can have, whether through teams investing in parks and recreation programs, donating turf for practice facilities or sending NFL players to connect with the district’s young athletes.
“We wouldn’t be where we are right now in the state of Illinois without the Chicago Bears,” he said. “When the Chicago Bears contacted us about high school girls flag football, it was just a no-brainer.”
The effect of all this investment has resulted in the kind of growth that could begin to allow the sport to stand on its own. The American Flag Football League (AFFL), previously an amateur tournament, is expected to launch a professional league in the spring of 2025 with players earning $1,000 per week. Its first franchises, the Boston Brigade and the Las Vegas Lucky 7s, were purchased from the league for $3 million each in 2022.
Equally important to the growth of the sport is the nearly 30% increase in equipment sales, as reported by the Sport and Fitness Industry Association.
“You start thinking about all those jerseys, all those flag belts, all those soccer balls, all those participants, all those tournaments and events. Youth sports tourism is big business,” Reese emphasized. “This multi-billion dollar industry of youth sports – the flag is a boom for that and one of the fastest growing sectors.
“You’re just starting to see the industry start to get involved. You’re starting to see Nike, Adidas, all these clothing companies now wanting their brands to be donned and worn in middle schools, high schools and youth.
Players and coaches at all levels of the game have enjoyed the benefits of improved equipment.
“In first grade, we used repurposed football jerseys,” said Lainey Thatcher, a student at Dunwoody High School in the Atlanta area. “And (now) we have our own flags with our names on them. Before, we just had yellow flags with nothing on them. Now we have our own personalized flags and it’s really cool.
Kevin Fraser, head flag football coach at Pope High School, also just north of Atlanta, has seen a similar development.
“We use wristbands now that we didn’t use them our first year to play, so the girls can see. I have a software system where I can basically draw games and put them on a little board. The first year, I drew maps on note cards and laminated them, and it was time to play! » he said. “Now they have 24 draws on their bracelet.
“Without that now, I would say to myself: “I’m missing!” » »
Success breeds success, and the growth of flag football has helped the sport secure a spot in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“When would you think that a sport like flag football would be part of the Olympics! » smiles Dos Santos. “You would never think that!”
With current NFL players interested in competition, there is hope that flag football might see something akin to the so-called “Dream Team”, the 1992 United States men’s Olympic basketball team, consisting of Michael Jordan , Magic Johnson and Charles Barkley.
If NFL teams allowed their players to join the Olympic effort, a star-studded roster would undoubtedly experience another financial boom for the sport.
But even if they don’t, one thing is certain: Flag football won’t be returning to the field anytime soon.