The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is shaping the qualification pathway for flag football’s Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, and hopes are high that U.S. teams will receive automatic entry as hosts, federation president Pierre Trochet said Monday.
Speaking to Agence France-Presse (AFP) during an official visit three years ahead of the LA Olympics, Trochet said IFAF is in active discussions with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to finalize the qualifying process, which will include six men’s and six women’s teams.
“We will have the official version of the qualification program by the end of the year,” Trochet said. “We’re already considering a scenario where the world’s best might go through a first qualifying stage in 2026.”
He added that a second phase, likely in 2027, would involve top-performing continental teams, forming the final group of qualifiers.
“We have a clear and precise idea of what we’ll propose,” he said.
The emerging Olympic sport – a fast-paced, noncontact version of traditional American football – gained momentum after the NFL approved participation by its players in the Games.
Trochet said the federation remains optimistic that U.S. squads, given their status as hosts and pioneers of flag football, will be granted direct entry into the tournament.
“Our board has made this proposal, and we hope it will be favorably received by those who need to approve our qualification pathway,” he said.
Trochet said the federation has also been working to finalize flag football’s place in the Olympic schedule, noting they had secured a prime-time slot with the men’s final set for Friday, July 21 – a date he said “links culturally to the tradition of university games on Friday nights.”
“The women’s final will have its own moment on Saturday evening at the heart of an important day, all at the end of the first week of the Games,” Trochet added.
Elsewhere, the federation is focusing on the global growth of the sport.
“A few weeks ago, we concluded the first African Championship in Cairo, Egypt,” he said. “Throughout the summer, we will transition to the European Championships in Paris, the Americas Championship in Panama, and then the Asia-Oceania Championships in China in October.”
Trochet said efforts to bolster the sport in the United States are somewhat different. Alongside the NFL, the federation is working to support youth flag football, train coaches, and certify officials.
“In the United States, flag football is experiencing phenomenal growth,” he said, adding that the federation is also working with the NFL to have flag football recognized as a competitive collegiate sport in the U.S.
“Our ambition is to move faster than the 10 years usually required for this process,” he said.
Content Source: www.dailysabah.com