39-632: The Bayou Bowl is an annual high school football all-star bowl game in which the best graduated seniors from Texas and Louisiana play against each other. It has been played at Stallworth Stadium in Baytown, Texas , since it began in 2003. The game was conceived as a join collaboration between leaders in the Baytown-Houston area, including the Baytown/West Chambers County, TX Economic Development Foundation,
78-651: A down . In flag football, contact is limited between players. The sport has a strong amateur following with several national and international competitions each year sponsored by various associations but is most popularly played in America where it was invented. The international governing body for the sport is the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) with the International Woman's Flag Football Association (IWFFA) governing
117-626: A biannual IFAF Flag Football World Championship . In July 2022, the National Football League (NFL) and the IFAF partnered on a bid for flag football to be included as an optional event during the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. The NFL had sponsored the inclusion of flag football as an invitational event during that month's 2022 World Games —a multi-sport event featuring sports and disciplines not currently contested at
156-572: A female under-18 division. In 2017, with the introduction of the Under-16 Regional Flag Challenge, the championship shifted to an under-18 format with male and female divisions. Flag football competition in the United Kingdom is, mostly, 5-a-side. There are two main organizations: The adult-only Outlaw Flag League, which run Tournaments from March to October, culminating in playoff and championships. Secondly,
195-605: A few years, including some who only played at the high school level. An NFL-funded study reported that high school football players suffered 11.2 concussions per 10,000 games or practices, nearly twice as many as college football players. According to 2017 study on brains of deceased gridiron football players, 99% of tested brains of NFL players, 88% of CFL players, 64% of semi-professional players, 91% of college football players, and 21% of high school football players had various stages of CTE. Other common injuries include injuries of legs, arms, and lower back. Below are
234-508: A recognized sports organization of the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Its non-profit mission includes designing and delivering premier educational, development, and competitive programs for American football, including tackle and flag football. USA Football is the only organization that selects and organizes the U.S. national team ( men's and women's ) in federation-sanctioned international competition. USA Flag currently operates
273-597: A retooling of the Pro Bowl —the NFL's all-star event—into a series of skills competitions, culminating with three flag football games as the final events. In 2023 and 2024, NFL Flag also hosted its world championships as part of the Pro Bowl festivities. The American Flag Football League (AFFL) is a flag football organization that offers youth and women's competition, and in 2023, a men's professional division. In May 2020,
312-412: A third that size. An important distinction is whether linemen are allowed to catch passes ("Eligible Linemen") or, as in the NFL / CFL, are not allowed to do so ("Ineligible Linemen"). Flag (and touch ) football may also be divided into "contact" or "non-contact", depending on whether or not blocking is allowed; if allowed, blocking is usually restricted to the chest . The ability or inability of
351-399: Is at greater risk in shear when the brain is young. Myelination is completed at about 15 years of age. Children also have larger heads relative to their body size and weaker necks. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is caused by repeated brain trauma, such as concussions and blows to the head that do not produce concussions. It has been found in football players who had played for only
390-581: Is determined by the league being played. The clock only stops for injuries, half-time and timeouts. Chiefly, because there is no dominant sanctioning organization for the sport, the game has mutated into many variations: 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and 4 players on each side; coed or single-gender; with kicking and punting and with point-after conversions (including some with 1, 2, and 3 point tries) or without; and field sizes that vary from full Canadian Football League (CFL) size, National Football League (NFL) size (120 yards long by 53 1 ⁄ 3 yards wide), to fields
429-500: The NCAA , although the NCAA has made five major modifications. Through the 2018 season, each possession started from the 25-yard line. Since 2021, this remains in force through the first two overtime procedures. In double overtime, teams must attempt a two-point conversion after a touchdown. Secondly, triple overtime & thereafter are two-point conversion attempts instead of possessions from
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#1732780041176468-602: The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), in partnership with the NFL , announced the addition of flag football as a varsity sport for female student-athletes. The NAIA became the first collegiate governing body to sanction the sport at the varsity level. NAIA women's flag football began during the 2020–21 season as an emerging sport with at least 15 teams, and the NAIA and NFL also expected an upgrade of
507-539: The National Touch Football League , was formed in the 1960s in St. Louis, Missouri . Since 1971, the league has had a national championship game. Arizona teachers Porter Wilson and Norman Adams invented flag-a-tag belts and flags which are the template for the flags used in the game today. The specific rules of flag football vary widely by league, though all share in common their replication of
546-741: The United States , Mexico and several other nations. The Kelly McGillis Classic is a women's tournament organised by the IWFFA held each February in Key West, Florida where over 90 women and girls teams participate in 8-on-8, semi-blocking contact flag football. USA Football is the governing body of American football in the United States, the sole US member of the International Federation of American Football, and
585-651: The 2010s, participation in high school football decreased in most states across the United States. Wisconsin saw the largest decrease, dropping by nearly a quarter from 2009 to 2019; only seven states saw an increased number of players. Robert Cantu, a Professor of Neurology and Neurosurgery and Co-Founder of the CTE Center at the Boston University School of Medicine, believes that children under 14 should not play tackle football. Their brains are not fully developed, and myelin (nerve cell insulation)
624-513: The 2018 season, Massachusetts also based its rules on those of the NCAA, but it adopted NFHS rules in 2019. With their common ancestry, the NFHS rules of high school American football are largely similar to the college game, though with some important differences: At least one unique high school rule has been adopted by college football. In 1996, the overtime rules originally utilized by Kansas high school teams beginning in 1971 were adopted by
663-425: The 25-yard line, and successful attempts are scored as conversions instead of touchdowns. Thirty-four states have a mercy rule that comes into play during one-sided games after a prescribed scoring margin is surpassed at halftime or any point thereafter. The type of mercy rule varies from state to state, with many using a "continuous clock" after the scoring margin is reached (wherein, except for specific situations,
702-595: The NFFL, The National Flag Football League, organized by The British American Football Association (BAFA). At a senior level, there are sixty teams divided into two leagues. NFL Division One: Highlands, North A, North B, Midlands, South East, and South West and The Premiership: Highlands, North, South East, and South West, with the top teams qualifying for playoffs at the end of the season. BAFA also runs The Youth Flag Football League (YFFL) and organizes teams competing at under 17, under 14, and under 11. Flag football games in
741-470: The Olympics—in Birmingham, Alabama. The men's tournament was won by the United States, and the women's tournament by Mexico. The NFL's executive VP of football operations Troy Vincent stated that the sport was "the future of American football", as it was inclusive and had fewer barriers to access. In August 2022, flag football was shortlisted as one of nine sports advancing to the next phase of
780-909: The President of the Baytown Chamber of Commerce, the incoming chair of the Greater Houston Football Coaches Association and a banker from Amegy Bank in Baytown. After the initial success in 2003, leaders of the Bayou Bowl decided to donate proceeds to the Shriner's Hospitals for Children in Galveston and Houston . In 2007, the Bayou Bowl raised $ 33,000 for the Shriner's Hospitals. Most of
819-430: The United States as a youth sport under the branding NFL Flag ; in 2020, Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson became a chairman and co-owner of NFL Flag, as part of efforts by the NFL to expand its promotion of the sport into other territories. The program has also placed a particular focus on expanding women's flag football, due to gridiron football having predominantly been played by men. In 2023 , as part of
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#1732780041176858-620: The bid process. On October 9, 2023, the LA organizing committee officially proposed the inclusion of flag football as an event. On October 16, 2023, flag football and the organizing committee's other proposals for temporary events were approved at the 141st IOC Session . The 2022 World Games marked the 40th anniversary of the event, which took place from July 7–17, 2022. Hosted at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama , Flag Football featured eight men's teams and eight women's teams from around
897-458: The championship has undergone several changes. In 2011, in response to the growth of flag football and the development of Football Canada's Long-Term Athlete Development (LTAD) model, the under-15 co-ed division was replaced by separate boys and girls under-16 divisions. These divisions supplemented the pre-existing under-18 divisions that were added in 2010. By 2013, the championship featured three divisions: male and female under-16 divisions and
936-423: The clock keeps running on plays where the clock would normally stop). Other states end the game once the margin is reached or passed. For example, Texas uses a 45-point mercy rule (to stop the game) only in six-man football; for 11-man football there is no automatic stoppage but the coaches may mutually agree to use a continuous clock. High school football in the United States is played almost entirely by boys. Over
975-467: The largest National Championships flag football tournament in the United States, along with a club World Championships every January in Florida that eclipsed over 980 teams this past January 2023, the largest single weekend flag football tournament ever recorded. The USA Flag has grown exponentially each year. The National Football League and its teams have promoted and sponsored flag football leagues in
1014-414: The largest high school American football stadiums by capacity. Stadiums with a capacity of at least 10,000 are included. Flag football Flag football is a variant of gridiron football ( American football or Canadian football depending on location) where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end
1053-540: The money was raised by the Bayou Bowl Celebrity Golf Tournament. Associated with the Bayou Bowl is the Bayou Bowl Celebrity Golf Tournament, which provides a major portion of the fundraising given to the Shriner's Hospitals. Past celebrities include: High school football High school football , also known as prep football , is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada . It ranks among
1092-403: The most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, partly due to risk of injury, particularly concussions . According to The Washington Post , between 2009 and 2019, participation in high school football declined by 9.1%. It is the basic level or step of tackle football . The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) establishes
1131-543: The national championship. There are three divisions for the CFFL: male, female, and mixed. The Canadian Flag Football National Championships (FFNC) was established in 2007 to provide athletes with the opportunity to develop their skills and compete in national team competitions and eventually the Canadian Flag Football League (CFFL) which was established in 2019. Since its inception, the format of
1170-583: The national governing body for football in Canada and its variants. The winners of the CFFL National Championship also gain the opportunity to represent Canada in international competition. The league's major objective is to help integrate existing adult flag leagues on a nationwide basis. Depending on the region, teams compete in their Regional Championships, either Eastern, Western, or Central. The top two teams from each division advance to
1209-763: The past decade, girls have made up less than half a percent of the players of American high school football. Eight states have high schools that sanction the non-contact alternative of flag football , but none sanction tackle football for girls, and a 2021 lawsuit in Utah that claimed the state violated Title IX laws by not sanctioning the sport was struck down. According to the New York Times , in 2006, 70% of high school football players were white and 20% were black. By 2018, those figures were 30% white and 40% black. As of 2016 , black youth are nearly three times more likely than white youth to play tackle football. In
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1248-471: The quarterback to advance the ball past the line of scrimmage (LOS) by running is another rule subject to variation by the league. The sport is also played on surfaces other than a traditional grass football field , including on sand beaches; beach flag football has previously featured as a discipline at the Asian Beach Games . The International Federation of American Footbal (IFAF) organise
1287-523: The rules of high school American football in the United States. In Canada, high school is governed by Football Canada and most schools use Canadian football rules adapted for the high school game except in British Columbia , which uses the NFHS rules. Since the 2019 high school season, Texas is the only state that does not base its football rules on the NFHS rule set, instead using NCAA rules with certain exceptions shown below. Through
1326-411: The rules of traditional American football with tackling replaced by flag-pulling. Traditional American football rules are often eliminated or modified to reflect the more recreational nature of the game, the desire to avoid physical contact and injury, and the generally smaller number of participating players per side. In a standard game of flag football, the match is played in two halves. Time length
1365-593: The sport to an invitational level sport by 2022 with at least 25 teams. In May 2022, the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) announced that it would sponsor flag football as an emerging women's sport, starting in 2023. In June 2023, the Atlantic East Conference of NCAA Division III announced five of its seven member institutions would independently sponsor women's flag football in
1404-487: The spring of 2025, with support from the NFL and the Philadelphia Eagles . In July 2024, Conference Carolinas of NCAA Division II announced that six of its 16 member schools would sponsor women's flag football, starting in the spring of 2026. The Canadian Flag Football League (CFFL) was established in 2019 and runs Canada's CFFL National Championship . The league is affiliated with Football Canada ,
1443-420: The women's game. Flag football will be a discretionary event for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the first time any gridiron football code has been a full part of an Olympic programme. The best available records to date point to the early 1940s during World War II as the sport's starting point. The game began as a recreational sport created for American military personnel to help them stay fit but
1482-525: The world. In 2021 the World Games uploaded a beginner's guide to World Games Flag Football. As the reigning world champions, the United States men's and women's teams both pre-qualified for the 2022 World Games. The remaining seven teams were selected through the IFAF qualifying process The International Flag Football Festival (IFFF) organizes the World Cup of Flag Football featuring teams from
1521-403: Was designed in a way that would help prevent them from becoming injured during wartime. At the time it was called "Touch and Tail football", which then became "flag football" after the war ended. The first known recorded history of flag football can be traced to Fort Meade, Maryland , USA, which is now generally accepted as the sport's birthplace. The first national flag football organization,
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