Here Are A Few Things To Know About Flag Football: A New Addition To Olympics?

On 13 October, the executive board of the International Olympic Committee authorised flag football and squash for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, which would be these sports’ first appearances at the Olympics. Additionally, the approval was given to the return of some of the most well-liked sports in the world.

During World War II, American soldiers used flag football as a kind of amusement. After the war, they took the game home with them. The earliest flag football games are claimed to have taken place at Fort Meade in Maryland.

Before flag football was coined during the war, the game was known as “Touch and Tail football.”

Originally developed as a leisure activity to help American military troops keep in shape during times of war, the game was also intended to help them avoid getting hurt.

Flag football was originally documented in Fort Meade, Maryland, USA, and this location is today recognized as the birthplace of the game. The National Touch Football League, the nation’s first flag football league, was established in St. Louis, Missouri, during the 1960s. The league has hosted a national championship game every year since 1971.

Flag-a-tag belts and flags, created by Arizona educators Porter Wilson and Norman Adams, serve as the model for the flags currently used in the game.

In St. Louis, Missouri, the National Touch Football League was established in the 1960s.

Here Are A Few Things To Know About Flag Football: A New Addition To Olympics?

Flag football, a variation of gridiron or American football, has never been played at an Olympic Games before. During the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama, it was a demonstration sport. Mexico won the women’s final, while the United States earned the gold in the men’s division.

Tom Brady, the quarterback who has won seven Super Bowls, participated in flag football from elementary school through his freshman year of high school.

How Is The Game Played?

Three “flags”—more like cloth belts—affixed to the ball-carrier’s waist—one on each side and one at the back—are used as “tackles” in this no-contact sport.

The quarterback receives the ball from the center, who either hands it off to a running back or throws it forward in an attempt to locate a receiver. The play begins from the team’s own five-yard line.

When the ball-carrier runs out of bounds, the play is declared over, or a forward pass touches the ground.

Every team gets four chances, or downs, to cross the halfway point. They have four more downs to go to the end zone and score a touchdown if they are successful.

If the defense fails on either count, they receive the ball and begin on their own five-yard line.

Interceptions—when a defender snatches a pass meant for a receiver—and fumbles—when the ball-carrier loses the ball and a defender recovers—also result in turnovers.

Running plays are not allowed in flag football when the offensive team is five yards or fewer from the end zone.

Teams attempt to score an extra point by rushing or throwing from the five-yard line, or two extra points from the 10-yard line, following a touchdown, which is worth six points.

The dimensions of a flag football field are 70 by 30 yards (64 by 27.4 meters), with each of the two endzones receiving 10 yards (9.1 meters).

The same spirit of inclusion that defines American football continues to be present in the game, accepting players of all backgrounds, genders, and skill levels. Play follows the same rules as a contact game, with the defensive team trying to stop the offensive team’s four efforts (downs) to reach a certain spot on the field.

Flag football’s most significant regulation is that no contact of any kind—including tackling, diving, blocking, screening, or fumbles—is permitted. Players don flags that are fastened to their sides by a belt in place of physically taking down opponents. By taking away one or both of the ball-carrier’s flags, defenders “tackle” the player.

Although this rule is intended to ensure player safety, there are a number of additional regulations that restrict player-to-player contact, such as:

  • Unless the ball was handed off first, the quarterback is not permitted to run with it. They are unable to gain yardage even if they sprint behind the line of scrimmage.
  • Every pass has to be made forward and received over the line of scrimmage.
  • Only direct handoffs are allowed; laterals and pitches are not.
  • Sneak plays in the center are prohibited.
  • There are no errors made. Rather, the ball remains under offensive control and is recovered at the location where the ball-carrier’s feet were at the time of the fumble.
  • When a touchdown or safety is scored, the ball-carrier’s knee touches the ground, the ball-carrier steps out of bounds, the ball-carrier’s flag slips off, or all of these occur, the ball is declared dead.
  • Players are not allowed to protect or block their flags.

The clock runs continuously in each of the two 20-minute halves of a flag football game until the two-minute warning.

Every time there is a pause following the two-minute warning, such as when the ball carrier runs out of bounds, a forward pass is intercepted, there is a turnover, or a touchdown, the clock stops.

In the event that there is a tie after forty minutes, sudden-death overtime is played, with the winning team being the first to score.

 

 

 

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