Both the women and the men from the home country of football win the tournaments of the sport, which will be an Olympic sport for the first time in Los Angeles in 2028.
The favorites have delivered again: Both the women and the men from the USA successfully defended their titles at the Flag Football World Championships. On Friday evening, the men won their final in Lahti, Finland, against Austria with 53:21, thus securing their fifth title in a row. A little later, the women also triumphed with a 31:18 win against Mexico – for the third time in a row.
The German teams had already had to throw in the towel in the round of 16 and thus clearly missed the medals they were aiming for. The women’s selection of the American Football Association of Germany (AFVD) had won the final game for ninth place against Panama with 26:24 on the morning of the final day, while the men had lost their placement game against Japan 26:39 and finished in twelfth place.
Flag football will be an Olympic sport for the first time in Los Angeles in 2028. The sport differs from the classic version in terms of toughness. It is played between the two end zones on a 50 by 25 yard field. The teams consist of five players who wear two bands (flags) on a waist belt. If one is torn off, this counts as a tackle.
Some stars from the elite league of the classic NFL variant, including superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, had already hinted that they might change the sport for the games in LA, at least temporarily. With their convincing win of the world championship title, the flag football players now have good arguments against such a project.
