Latest news with #ScottHallenbeck
NBC Sports
20-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
USA Football acknowledges "tremendous responsibility" to select and train Olympic flag football players
The NFL has cleared the path for active players to participate in the 2020 Olympic games. The real game has yet to begin. With the league limiting participation in the flag football tournament to be held three years from now to one player per franchise, the team must be picked and prepared to play. That task falls to the American governing body for international football competition: USA Football. 'On behalf of USA Football, I'd like to thank NFL clubs for approving the resolution allowing NFL players to participate in the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles when flag football debuts on the Olympic stage,' USA Football CEO and executive director Scott Hallenbeck said in a statement issued after the league announced that the resolution to loan active players has passed. 'USA Football has had extensive discussions with the NFL on the potential of player participation, and we're thrilled to see those efforts become a reality. 'As the National Governing Body of American football, we have a tremendous responsibility ahead of us — selecting, training and leading the U.S. Men's and Women's National Teams for LA28. 'We're fortunate to have a talent pool that already features prominent flag football stars who have helped USA Football establish a gold-medal standard in international competition. Including players from the NFL only strengthens our ability to build the best U.S. Men's National Team possible and achieve our ultimate goal for LA28: to bring home two gold medals in flag football. 'We will continue to develop our high-performance plan that guides the creation of our National Teams. We look forward to working with the NFL on the specific opportunities that NFL players can use to showcase their skills and become eligible for selection to Team USA.' The league has allowed not only participation in the Olympic flag football tournament but also submission to 'a tryout or qualification process.' It remains to be seen what that will be, who will be chosen, whether established flag football players will have a fair chance to protect their turf, and whether a sufficient and effective training process will be developed to get NFL players ready, given the requirements of their primary football responsibilities.
New York Times
20-05-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
NFL players can try out for Olympic flag football, owners vote
NFL owners approved a resolution Wednesday allowing players to try out for flag football teams in the 2028 Olympics. The owners' vote came at the spring league meeting in Minneapolis. Only one player on each NFL roster can try out for a given country's Olympic team. That means multiple players on the same team could compete as long as they represent different countries. Since players added via the International Player Pathway program don't count towards a roster spot, they'll also be allowed to try out. Advertisement Six countries will be represented for men's and women's flag football at the 2028 Summer Games. The International Federation of American Football, which is the international governing body of contact and flag football, will determine which nations participate. The games will be played in a five-on-five format. The NFL's resolution to allow its players to participate in flag football at the 2028 Olympics has passed, per source. Who makes your dream team? — Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) May 20, 2025 Scott Hallenbeck, USA Football's CEO and executive director, told The Athletic last week that USA Football has been in 'regular communication' with the league about NFL players potentially being eligible to participate in the Olympics. 'We stand ready to provide opportunities for NFL players to be part of Team USA and compete alongside established flag football stars and talent-transfer athletes from other sports,' Hallenbeck said in a statement. 'We will field the best team possible in pursuit of our ultimate goal of earning two gold medals for the United States in flag football.' The NFL has taken steps to preserve the health and safety of any players who participate in the Olympics. For an Olympic flag football team to be eligible to roster an NFL player, the team will be required to implement 'certain minimum standards' for medical staff and field surfaces.' The NFL and the NFLPA will have future discussions about what those standards will be. 'We fully support our player members participating in the Olympics and taking this opportunity to represent their country on the highest international stage,' an NFLPA spokesperson wrote in a statement to The Athletic last week. 'We look forward to discussing NFL player participation further with the league to ensure players who choose to compete can do so without detrimental impacts to their health, safety and job.' Advertisement Although flag football is a contactless sport, there's still a chance that players could suffer significant injuries. NFL teams will have some protections in the scenario that players suffer injuries while participating in activities related to an Olympic flag football team. They'll be provided with injury protection and salary cap credit through the placement of one or more league-wide insurance policies. From a scheduling standpoint, Olympic flag football teams will have to make sure their practices, games and other events don't conflict with players' commitments to their respective teams. The 2028 Olympics will take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028, in Los Angeles. NFL training camps typically begin in late July. Despite potential concerns about injuries and scheduling conflicts, the league office sold owners on the hope that NFL participation in Olympic flag football could lead to the growth of the sport both domestically and internationally. Flag football is played in over 100 countries. From 2014 to 2023, the number of children who played flag football in America increased by 38 percent to over 1.6 million, according to USA Football. During that same time frame, the number of girls participating in flag football increased by 44 percent to upwards of 230,800. The NFL is optimistic that growth will lead to more men and women who go on to play and work in football later in life. The league started NFL Flag 50, a campaign pushing for girls' flag football to become a sanctioned varsity high school sport in all 50 states. It's currently sanctioned in 15 states, but that number is expected to grow in the years to come. Flag football has become a collegiate sport at the NAIA and NJCAA levels, and the NCAA Division I, II and III levels. Earlier this month, the sport got a recommendation to join the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program, which would allow schools in all three NCAA divisions to make a deeper commitment to the sport and one day potentially submit it for consideration for championship status. The NFL has explored creating professional men's and women's flag football leagues, which would give those college athletes another way of continuing their careers. Advertisement If the NFL can use flag football as a vehicle to increase the popularity of football globally, that means more money in the pockets of team owners. Ultimately, that made giving NFL players a green light to participate in the Olympics a risk they viewed as worth taking. (Photo of flag football at 2024 NFL Pro Bowl Games: Megan Briggs / Getty Images)
Fox Sports
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
USA Football selects 2025 flag football roster as NFL considers allowing players to play at Olympics
Associated Press USA Football has selected its national flag football teams for this season only. What those rosters — more specifically, the men's squad — might look like before the sport makes its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games remains unknown. The NFL owners are discussing a proposal this week at their spring meetings in Minnesota that would allow players under contract to participate in flag football at the Olympics. Should the resolution be approved by at least 24 of the 32 team owners, the league could negotiate with the NFL Players Association, Olympic officials and national governing bodies on the specifics of letting NFL players participate. Scott Hallenbeck, the CEO and executive director of USA Football, said in a statement the organization is 'thrilled that the topic will be discussed.' 'If participation is approved, we stand ready to provide opportunities for NFL players to be part of Team USA and compete alongside established flag football stars and talent-transfer athletes from other sports,' added Hallenbeck, whose organization oversees the selection and training of the national teams for international competitions. "We will field the best team possible in pursuit of our ultimate goal of earning two gold medals for the United States in flag football.' On Monday, USA Football officially announced the 12-athlete rosters for the 2025 men's and women's flag football national teams. The squads will compete in September at the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Americas Continental Flag Football Championship in Panama. The women's team also will play at the World Games in Chengdu, China, in August. At the moment, the men's roster features no active NFL players. There are several players who played tackle football in college. The NFL has been making a big push into flag football in the hopes of increasing youth participation and opportunities for women in the sport. The league played a role in helping the sport gain inclusion into the Los Angeles Olympics. The U.S. men's and women's squads both won gold medals last season at the IFAF flag football world championships in Lahti, Finland. The men have now won five straight IFAF flag football world championships, while the women have won three in a row. 'The depth of talent in our athlete pool is the best it's ever been,' said Eric Mayes, the managing director of high performance and national teams for USA Football. ___ AP Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report. ___ AP sports: recommended in this topic
Hamilton Spectator
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
USA Football selects 2025 flag football roster as NFL considers allowing players to play at Olympics
USA Football has selected its national flag football teams for this season only. What those rosters — more specifically, the men's squad — might look like before the sport makes its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games remains unknown. The NFL owners are discussing a proposal this week at their spring meetings in Minnesota that would allow players under contract to participate in flag football at the Olympics. Should the resolution be approved by at least 24 of the 32 team owners, the league could negotiate with the NFL Players Association, Olympic officials and national governing bodies on the specifics of letting NFL players participate. Scott Hallenbeck, the CEO and executive director of USA Football , said in a statement the organization is 'thrilled that the topic will be discussed.' 'If participation is approved, we stand ready to provide opportunities for NFL players to be part of Team USA and compete alongside established flag football stars and talent-transfer athletes from other sports,' added Hallenbeck, whose organization oversees the selection and training of the national teams for international competitions. 'We will field the best team possible in pursuit of our ultimate goal of earning two gold medals for the United States in flag football.' On Monday, USA Football officially announced the 12-athlete rosters for the 2025 men's and women's flag football national teams. The squads will compete in September at the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Americas Continental Flag Football Championship in Panama. The women's team also will play at the World Games in Chengdu, China, in August. At the moment, the men's roster features no active NFL players. There are several players who played tackle football in college. The NFL has been making a big push into flag football in the hopes of increasing youth participation and opportunities for women in the sport. The league played a role in helping the sport gain inclusion into the Los Angeles Olympics. The U.S. men's and women's squads both won gold medals last season at the IFAF flag football world championships in Lahti, Finland. The men have now won five straight IFAF flag football world championships, while the women have won three in a row. 'The depth of talent in our athlete pool is the best it's ever been,' said Eric Mayes, the managing director of high performance and national teams for USA Football. ___ AP Pro Football Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report. ___ AP sports:
San Francisco Chronicle
19-05-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
USA Football selects 2025 flag football roster as NFL considers allowing players to play at Olympics
USA Football has selected its national flag football teams for this season only. What those rosters — more specifically, the men's squad — might look like before the sport makes its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Games remains unknown. The NFL owners are discussing a proposal this week at their spring meetings in Minnesota that would allow players under contract to participate in flag football at the Olympics. Should the resolution be approved by at least 24 of the 32 team owners, the league could negotiate with the NFL Players Association, Olympic officials and national governing bodies on the specifics of letting NFL players participate. Scott Hallenbeck, the CEO and executive director of USA Football, said in a statement the organization is 'thrilled that the topic will be discussed.' 'If participation is approved, we stand ready to provide opportunities for NFL players to be part of Team USA and compete alongside established flag football stars and talent-transfer athletes from other sports,' added Hallenbeck, whose organization oversees the selection and training of the national teams for international competitions. "We will field the best team possible in pursuit of our ultimate goal of earning two gold medals for the United States in flag football.' On Monday, USA Football officially announced the 12-athlete rosters for the 2025 men's and women's flag football national teams. The squads will compete in September at the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Americas Continental Flag Football Championship in Panama. The women's team also will play at the World Games in Chengdu, China, in August. At the moment, the men's roster features no active NFL players. There are several players who played tackle football in college. The NFL has been making a big push into flag football in the hopes of increasing youth participation and opportunities for women in the sport. The league played a role in helping the sport gain inclusion into the Los Angeles Olympics. The U.S. men's and women's squads both won gold medals last season at the IFAF flag football world championships in Lahti, Finland. The men have now won five straight IFAF flag football world championships, while the women have won three in a row. 'The depth of talent in our athlete pool is the best it's ever been,' said Eric Mayes, the managing director of high performance and national teams for USA Football. ___
