Women’s flag football is on the path to becoming an NCAA championship sport.
The NCAA Committee on Access, Opportunity and Impact voted at its spring meeting on Tuesday to recommend flag football as a championship sport at Divisions I, II and III. Per, the NCAA, the vote puts the sport on a path for spring championship competition in 2028.
The vote marks a significant advancement in the continued growth of the sport. Flag football has been one of the nation’s fastest growing sports with increased participation at youth, high school and college intramural and varsity levels as part of the NCAA’s NCAA’s Emerging Sports for Women program.
The NFL has thrown its support behind growing the game, and flag football will make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles with women’s and men’s medal competition that’s drawing interest from NFL players.
Now the sport is on track to award NCAA championships in two years.
“Girls want to play,” committee chair Jacqie McWilliams Parker said upon Tuesday’s vote, per an NCAA statement. “Whenever you give access and opportunity to an easier way to play, the better the success and numbers in participation you see.
“The young women who are currently playing at our institutions, some never even thought about being able to play in college. Now they have their opportunity. As we hit the next steps to becoming an NCAA championship, I’m excited we’re providing access and opportunity.
Tuesday’s vote isn’t the final step in flag football becoming an NCAA championship sport. Per the NCAA, the following steps must be taken for the sport’s championship debut to take place in 2028:
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Each division is expected to review the recommendation and potentially sponsor a proposal by July 1.
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If proposals are sponsored, the divisions are expected to vote on them in January 2027. All three divisions must approve the legislation to establish a championship.
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The recommendation also includes establishing an NCAA Women’s Flag Football Committee, which would begin its work in January 2027.
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If adopted on that timeline, the first flag football championship would be in spring 2028.
The NCAA sounds confident that the sport won’t have any problems clearing those hurdles. In a statement, NCAA president Charlie Baker noted that “as many as 60 schools” have already sponsored varsity-level flag football, easily clearing the NCAA’s minimum of 40 schools to recommend a sport for championship status.
“The college-level growth in flag football has been significant — as many as 60 schools sponsoring it at the varsity level this spring — and this recommendation reflects that,” Baker said. “With the sport headed to the 2028 Olympics, the timing couldn’t be better for women who might not have had a path to compete at the college level before. That’s worth celebrating.”