How Canada's flag football teams can qualify for the Olympics

With flag football set to make its Olympic debut, Canada is among the countries looking to clinch the first available spots in the 2028 Los Angeles Games at this week's world championships in Germany.

Two berths are up for grabs in both the men's and women's Olympics tournaments, which will each be made up of only six teams. The host United States — a flag football powerhouse — receives an automatic entry, and the remaining three spots for each gender will be decided by a two-stage qualifier in June 2028 that opens in Montreal.

So, while these world championships are not do-or-die in terms of earning a ticket to the Olympics, it sure would be nice to lock one down and not have to sweat that last-chance qualifier for the next two years.

How the worlds work

Sixteen teams were invited to both the men's and women's tournaments in Germany and divided into groups of four for the preliminary round on Thursday and Friday. The top two in each group advance to the knockout stage, beginning Saturday. The medal games, which will decide the world champions and who gets the Olympics spots, are on Sunday.

The top two finishers in each tournament get a ticket to the Olympics — though a third-place result would be enough if the U.S. reaches the final, meaning we could get some dramatic bronze-medal games.

When Canada plays

The Canadian women kick off the group stage on Thursday at 2 a.m. ET against Panama before facing Brazil at 8:15 a.m. ET. They wrap up on Friday at 4:30 a.m. ET against Japan.

Canada's men open on Thursday at 5:45 a.m. ET against Austria, then play Japan on Friday at 2 a.m. ET. The Canadians were scheduled to conclude group play against Nigeria, but that country had to withdraw due to visa issues, so Canada gets a