The owners of the 32 teams of the NFL voted on Tuesday at the Spring League Meeting in Eagan/Minnesota to allow NFL players to participate in the Flag football tournament in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
With this decision, the league can now design guidelines together with the NFLPA playing union, the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and the responsible Olympic authorities to regulate the participation of the NFL players in the 2028 games.
“It is an incredible honor for every athlete to represent his country at the Olympic Games, the climax of global sport,” said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. “I know first-hand that the inclusion of Flag football in the Olympic Games at NFL players who are interested in getting the chance to compete for their country on the world stage has triggered enormous enthusiasm. We are thrilled that they are now being given this opportunity.”
In the end, if you actually take part in the 2028 Olympics, you will ultimately decide the national Olympic committee and specifically the coach of the Flag football team. It is unclear what influence the NFL can and will take on it.
Flag football: six teams fight for gold
“I warmly welcome the result of this coordination, which will give the promising debut of Flag Football a further dimension at the Olympic Games,” said IFAF President Pierre Trochet. “The National Football League is home to the greatest stars of the American football, which come from more and more countries and now have the opportunity to shine on the largest stage in the world sport and to show everything that makes Flag football a real worldwide phenomenon. Flag football in the Olympic movement.
The Flag football tournament in Los Angeles will consist of six teams each at tournaments for men and women. The squads consist of ten players each and players and it is played in five VS five format.
The decision of the NFL stipulates that players initially take part in a trial training or a kind of qualification before they can be nominated. It is also clear that only one player per NFL team can participate. An IPP player of a team could also be there.
“Players have given us the great wish to have the honor of starting at the Olympic Games, and we are pleased that our members can represent their country on the highest international stage,” said Lloyd Howell Jr., Executive Director of the NFL Players Association. “We look forward to working with the league, the IFAF and the Olympic authorities on the conditions of their participation to ensure that the players who compete do so under the protection of their health, security and work.”