Girls’ flag is now a high school varsity sport in Tennessee.
Three years after the National Football League‘s Tennessee Titans launched the sport in-and-around the Nashville-area, the Tennessee Secondary Schools Athletic Association unanimiously sanctioned it. That means, that starting with the 2024-25 sports year, girls’ flag football is officially recognized by the state’s governing body.
The approval means that ten states in America have sanctioned the fast growing sport that will make its debut in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“We are so grateful to TSSAA for today’s decision and their support of our girls flag football programs over the past several years,” said Burke Nihill, Titans President and CEO. “Girls flag football has emerged as one of the most competitive and exciting sports offered at the high school level, and has already impacted the lives of many young athletes with the rise of collegiate opportunities within the sport. We look forward to seeing its reach grow across the state as it becomes an officially-sanctioned sport.”
The TSSAA Legislative Council sanctioned girls flag as an “emerging sport,” meaning 15 percent of TSSAA members are either currently participating in the sport or committed to participation once sanctioned. The Titans will continue to work with TSSAA to expand girls flag football across the State of Tennessee. In Spring 2022, the Titans worked with the Williamson County Sports Conference to establish the state’s first-ever interscholastic girls flag football league in WCS’ nine public schools. The league has since launched in Metro Nashville Public Schools as part of the Titans’ ONE Community partnership with MNPS, and Clarksville-Montgomery Schools.
All Middle Tennessee leagues recently kicked off their current spring seasons. Details on the sport’s expansion into East Tennessee in partnership with the Titans is expected to be announced in coming days.
More: New Orleans Saints launch inaugural season of girls’ flag football
“Our goal is always to advance and promote the game of football, especially as it relates to offering young women a chance to directly engage with the sport,” said Josh Corey, Titans Senior Director of Cause Marketing. “When we launched girls flag football in 2022, we hoped this day would come. We are so excited for the opportunity this will offer for girls across the state for decades to come.”
More: Philadelphia Eagles expand girls’ flag in PA and South Jersey
TSSAA continues to advise the Titans and participating school districts in the area of game officials, championship planning, tournament format, rules interpretations, and any other areas that may be helpful in setting a framework for girls flag football to grow in Tennessee.
NFL FLAG, which has led efforts to expand women’s flag football across the U.S. at the youth, high school, and collegiate levels, will also partner with the program to provide training and guidance.
