Women's tackle football has 2 leagues whose championship games are on ESPN2
Women have been playing tackle football for decades, usually under the radar.
Two leagues, operating independently, are helping the sport get more attention.
The Women's Football Alliance will be back on ESPN2 for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display.
The Women's National Football Conference will have its title game on ESPN2 for the first time, live on Saturday from the Dallas Cowboys' Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. The Washington Prodigy will face the Texas Elite Spartans in the title game. In its sixth season, the league has 17 teams from 14 states and Washington, D.C.
The WFA was founded in 2009 and participation has increased by 300% since its debut season, according to Commissioner Lisa King. It has 12 teams from nine states and D.C. in its top level and a total of 55 squads in three divisions. The WFA also has international teams in Europe, Africa, South America and North America.
Like the WFA, the WNFC does not pay salaries.
The WNFC does plan to give a total of $20,000 to the players on the championship team and did budget to pay weekly and season award-winners thanks in part to support from sponsors such as Adidas, Dove and Riddell.
WFA sponsors, which include Wilson, along with ticket sales and licensing rights cover some of the players' costs.
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Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Women's tackle football has 2 leagues whose championship games are on ESPN2
Women have been playing tackle football for decades, usually under the radar. Two leagues, operating independently, are helping the sport get more attention. The Women's Football Alliance will be back on ESPN2 for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display. The Women's National Football Conference will have its title game on ESPN2 for the first time, live on Saturday from the Dallas Cowboys' Ford Center in Frisco, Texas. The Washington Prodigy will face the Texas Elite Spartans in the title game. In its sixth season, the league has 17 teams from 14 states and Washington, D.C. The WFA was founded in 2009 and participation has increased by 300% since its debut season, according to Commissioner Lisa King. It has 12 teams from nine states and D.C. in its top level and a total of 55 squads in three divisions. The WFA also has international teams in Europe, Africa, South America and North America. Like the WFA, the WNFC does not pay salaries. The WNFC does plan to give a total of $20,000 to the players on the championship team and did budget to pay weekly and season award-winners thanks in part to support from sponsors such as Adidas, Dove and Riddell. WFA sponsors, which include Wilson, along with ticket sales and licensing rights cover some of the players' costs. ___ AP sports:
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Women's tackle football gives female athletes opportunities in a game dominated by men
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When Detroit beat the MIFA All-Stars of Ontario in an American Women's Football League game at Allen Park High School, daughters, sisters, mothers and grandmothers experienced the joy of big plays and camaraderie along with the pain of inevitable injuries. After a postgame handshake line along the 50-yard line, the black-clad Prowl and the visitors in pink gathered on the visitors' sideline to celebrate their sisterhood and shared goal of growing the sport. 'You just begin to love these girls around you,' said MIFA All-Stars quarterback Rachel Vesz, who is from Toronto and played rugby at the University of Waterloo in Ontario. 'And, you all support each other.' Walking wounded Despite the inherent risk of injuries in football, women are choosing to join pay-for-play leagues for the love of the game and to inspire young girls to play a game traditionally limited to men. 'I use my own health insurance when I am injured, same with all of my other teammates,' said Bernadyn, who works as an EMT and fitness instructor. 'But at the end of the day, it's worth every dollar I've paid. 'It's worth every ice pack I've needed to use, every day of rest, every cast, every boot, because I know that I'll be able to line up on that football field again.' Playing for championships The Prowl lost their bid for a second straight AWFL title with a first-round loss in the 14-team playoffs that wrap up with the league's second championship game July 12 at West Charlotte High School in North Carolina, streaming on BAWLLR TV. The AWFL has 18 teams from eight states and Canada. Two leagues, meanwhile, have raised their profile enough to have women competing for championships on ESPN2 in high-end venues. The Women's National Football Conference will have its title game on the network for the first time on Saturday. The Washington Prodigy will face the Texas Elite Spartans in Frisco, Texas, at the Dallas Cowboys' Ford Center, which has about 12,000 seats. 'When someone sees the WNFC for the first time, it opens up the possibilities,' said Odessa Jenkins, founder of the WNFC. 'It's like, 'What a minute. Women play tackle football?' There's no greater joy than to open up new possibilities for yourself and others.' The WNFC does not pay salaries, but does plan to give a total of $20,000 to the players on the championship team and did budget to pay weekly and season award winners thanks in part to financial support from Adidas, Dove and Riddell. The Women's Football Alliance does not pay players either, but some of their costs are covered by sponsors such as Wilson, ticket sales and licensing rights. The WFA will be back on the network for its championship game on July 26 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, where MVP jerseys from previous title games are on display. 'This new contract with ESPN is a testament to the high level of football played on the field contributing to the growing popularity of our league on a national and international level,' WFA Commissioner Lisa King said. Two better than one? Former WFA players include Katie Sowers, who became the first woman to coach in the Super Bowl as an offensive assistant in San Francisco, and Jennifer King, who was the first Black female full-time coach in the NFL in 2021 when she was Washington's assistant running backs coach. Jennifer King, who is on the WNFC advisory board, hopes the sport's top two leagues find a way forward together. 'When you have two champions, you want to know who's the best,' she said. 'It would be great to have one Super League, but it would be really hard to do because both of the leagues are far down the road.' Sowers agrees. 'A big issues is, everyone has an idea of who can do it best,' she said. 'We need to come together and create one powerhouse league that has more resources.' Flag on the field The NFL is investing a lot in flag football, which will be an Olympic sport in 2028. The league did give women's tackle football a platform at halftime of the Pro Bowl in 2020, when 22 players from the Utah Girls Football League were featured in a scrimmage. Former NFL offensive tackle Roman Oben, the league's vice president of football development, applauded the commitment women are making to play tackle football. 'It's been really commendable to see the growth of the sport,' Oben said. 'There isn't a formal partnership with the NFL, but there have been discussions with a few of the leagues. We're aware these women are paying to play for pads, insurance, equipment and travel and they should be applauded.' Flag football, Jenkins said, will ultimately have the same effect on women's tackle football as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese have had on the WNBA and the sport will benefit from the increased interest in girls and women playing basketball, soccer, softball, volleyball and more. 'Flag football is putting the ball in the hands of more girls and women than ever and it's going to create the greatest pipeline in the history of the sport,' Jenkins said. 'Women have been playing tackle football for 60 years, but now we have brands everyone knows stepping up to alleviate some of the financial pressure on our players and that's what it is going to take to move it past a club level.' ___ Follow Larry Lage on X ___ AP sports:
CTV News
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- CTV News
SGA, Thunder look to clinch NBA title in Game 6 against Pacers
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander does up to score against the Indiana Pacers during the second half of Game 5 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Monday, June 16, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings) INDIANAPOLIS — The NBA season could end on Thursday night. It's Game 6 of the NBA Finals, with the Oklahoma City Thunder leading the Indiana Pacers 3-2 in the title series. Game 6 is in Indianapolis and Game 7, if necessary, will be Sunday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder are one win away from becoming NBA champions. And Gilgeous-Alexander is on the cusp of a nearly unprecedented season when it comes to individual honors. He is the favorite to win NBA Finals MVP. He already has won the NBA MVP award for this season, meaning he could be the first double MVP since LeBron James did it with Miami in 2011-12 and 2012-13. It could get even better. Gilgeous-Alexander is also the reigning scoring champion, meaning an even more exclusive club may await him. Only three players in NBA history have won MVP, Finals MVP, a scoring title and a championship in the same season: Michael Jordan did it four times, and Shaquille O'Neal and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did it once each. Gilgeous-Alexander could join them if the Thunder win this series. The Pacers got good news a couple of hours before Game 6 when guard Tyrese Haliburton — who is battling a strained calf that flared up in Game 5 — was cleared to play. 'We got a job to do tonight,' Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. 'We've got to get ready to battle a team that has been the best team in the league all year long. It's a tough game. It's an elimination game. There's a lot going on.' Thursday is also the 25th anniversary of the end of Indiana's last appearance in the NBA Finals. On June 19, 2000, O'Neal finished off that MVP Finals/MVP-scoring champion/league-champion season when he and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Pacers in Game 6. If the Pacers avoid that fate Thursday and force a Game 7, it will be Sunday in Oklahoma City. Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
