IOC Executive Board Signs Off On Pathway For Flag Football Qualification

The International Olympic Committee Executive Board has approved flag football’s official qualification pathway for the Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2028.

It moves the discipline a step closer to making its Olympic debut at LA28, with the IOC Executive Board working closely with the International Federation of American Football (IFAF).

The systems, which have been developed in line with the qualification system principles approved by the IOC Executive Board last March, would ensure that the United States (as host nation) would be guaranteed automatic qualification for both the men’s and women’s competitions for 2028.

Meanwhile, the five remaining places in both of the inaugural men’s and women’s Olympic flag football tournaments will be determined across a two-year qualifying window.

The 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championships, taking place from August 13–16 in Düsseldorf, Germany, will be the first major stepping stone for national teams to progress on their route towards Olympic qualification. There, the two highest-ranked teams in both the men’s and women’s competitions, apart from the United States as automatic qualifiers, will qualify directly for the Olympic tournament.

After that, the 2027 IFAF Continental Championships will give men’s and women’s teams another opportunity to progress to a final qualifying event. The two highest-ranked men’s and women’s teams in the Championships from each continent (which have not already qualified) will move on to a “last-chance” qualification tournament that features 10 men’s and t10 women’s teams – known as the Olympic Qualifier Series.

The three highest-placed teams in both the men’s and women’s events at that series will claim the final remaining spots at the LA28 flag football tournament. The multisport event is expected to take place between the spring and summer of 2028, with full details due to be announced later this year.

A Milestone for Flag Football

IFAF President Pierre Trochet said that the news “underscores that the momentum towards flag football’s next chapter on the world’s biggest sporting stage is building with real force.”

“It’s thrilling to present this first Olympic Qualification System for Flag Football, which reflects both the competitiveness and the global reach of our fastest-growing and most widely played discipline,” said Fabio Tortosa, IFAF board director in charge of competitions.

As well as flag football, LA28 will also feature the Olympic debut for squash and the return of baseball/softball, cricket and lacrosse (in a Sixes format). There will be 36 sports in total, while specific mixed-gender events for archery, athletics, gymnastics, rowing, golf and table tennis will also feature at an Olympic Games for the first time.

All approved qualification systems for LA28 can be found at this link.