Exclusive-Football-IFAF expands flag championships to Africa ahead of LA28

NEW YORK :IFAF will hold its first African Flag Football Championships in June, executives have told Reuters, expanding the continental championships at a critical moment ahead of the sport's Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The competition from June 20-21 in Cairo, Egypt, joins existing events in the Americas, Europe and Asia Oceania, as the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and the NFL look to build the sport's reputation as a global phenomenon.

The competition will operate as a pathway to qualification for the 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championships.

"As a sport, you can't say you are a global sport and you exclude Africa. It's impossible," said NFL Africa Lead Osi Umenyiora, a British Nigerian former defensive end who won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants.

"That's what, in conjunction with IFAF, we're really trying to build here: A truly global sport."

IFAF President Pierre Trochet said the championships would create opportunities for new players as the sport is determined not to become a "one-and-done" Olympic entrant.

"LA is the beginning of the story for us and a commitment that is shared with IFAF and the entire team of the NFL to look for a future edition - '32 and beyond - and it's just as a result that those continental competitions are growing so fast," said Trochet.

"It's a consequence of our common goal to stay in the Olympic programme on the long term."

CLEARER PATHWAY

The NFL has ramped up its promotion of flag football since the sport was announced as part of the Los Angeles 2028 programme, with the non-contact format that emphasises speed and agility offering a clearer pathway for women to compete.

Played without the expensive helmets and pads used in gridiron football,