NFL Greenlights Creation of a Professional Flag Football League

The NFL has taken a major step toward the future of the sport by officially approving an investment to develop and launch a new professional flag football league, a discipline experiencing rapid global growth and set to make its Olympic debut at Los Angeles 2028.

The vote took place during the December League Meeting, where all 32 clubs authorized 32 Equity, the league’s shared investment fund, to partner with an external operator and allocate up to 32 million dollars for the creation and operation of the new professional competition.

A Strategic Move for a Sport on the Rise

The NFL has supported flag football for years, but this decision marks its most ambitious commitment yet. The project aims not only to expand the sport's global footprint but also to build a professional structure where top-tier athletes can compete in a stable, high-caliber league with worldwide reach.

Troy Vincent Sr., NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations, emphasized that this is a decisive moment in establishing flag football as an elite discipline. The plan seeks to connect the entire development pipeline: youth programs, high school teams, collegiate competition, and now the professional stage.

A Growing Global Phenomenon

Flag football is one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet, with more than 20 million players worldwide and a strong presence across multiple regions. Its inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Games is widely seen as a key motivator behind the NFL’s acceleration toward professionalizing the sport.

Key indicators of its growth include:

• Flag football is now offered at the high school level in 38 U.S. states.

• Each year, more universities add the sport to their athletic programs.

• Female participation is soaring, as is the sport’s expansion across international communities.
  

A Vision for the Future

With this investment and the upcoming operational partnership, the NFL aims to establish the new league as the premier competitive platform for flag football, attracting global talent and delivering a top-level product both on the field and for fans.

Details regarding the league’s launch date, locations, and competition format will be announced soon, but the message is unmistakable: the NFL is ready to elevate flag football to the next level.