NCAA approves funding for women's flag football national championship
Women's flag football took another step forward this week as the NCAA approved funding to support a championship for the growing sport.
The NCAA approved funding for a national championship in women's flag football, signaling an increasing likelihood of the sport making its debut at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. On Thursday, August 6, the Board of Governors voted to allocate an NCAA-wide budget for women's flag football, moving oversight of the championship budget to Division I. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, chair of the board, expressed pride in supporting the sport's growth, stating that establishing funding for a National Collegiate Championship is a significant milestone.
In May, women's flag football received a recommendation to become a championship sport, with proposals to be voted on by member schools in January 2027. Flag football was added to the NCAA's Emerging Sports for Women program in January, which requires at least 40 schools to sponsor it at a varsity level and meet minimum competition and participant requirements.
Women's flag football has experienced rapid growth at the college level, with over 20 Division I programs, including Nebraska, announcing their intentions to launch varsity teams by 2028. The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Big South are set to host conference championships for the sport in the 2027-28 season.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
