The sport will debut as an Olympic sport in 2028
It is a sport like American football that eliminates any contact
The Assembly of the International Olympic Committee approved last Monday the inclusion of 5 new sports modalities for the Olympic Games to be held in 2028: cricket, lacrosse, baseball, squash and Football Flag dThey will debut in Los Angeles. This last sport has been the one that has drawn the most attention to the public. What is flag football?
American football without contact
Flag Football is a version of American football that eliminates contact in its practice.. Unlike the traditional game, in Football Flag l Players do not tackle each other, but rather use ribbons or “flags” hanging from their opponents’ belts to stop a play. These ribbons resemble small flags and, when stripped by a defender, se considers the ball carrier to be “tackled”.
FLAG FOOTBALL – Flag football is a type of American football played without tackles. Instead of throwing the opposing player to the ground, the defending team must remove one of the two flags or handkerchiefs that hang on the sides of the waist.
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Sport has always had the ability to evolve and adapt to the preferences and needs of its participants.. In this context, the Football Flag has emerged as an exciting and growing alternative for American football lovers. Although it is not a new sport, it has gained momentum and popularity in recent years, attracting people of all ages and skill levels.
Traditional American football, like the one we see in the NFL, andIt is one of the sports that punishes the body the most due to its brutality and aggressiveness in blows or tackles. He Football Flag offers a variant that maintains the speed and fun of the discipline but protects the player more. Although football is the king of sports in the United States, this sport is also very popular around the world, and in Spain there is also great representation, especially by the women’s team.
Differences with the NFL
The game scenario in Football Flag diverges noticeably from the typical NFL ‘field’. While in traditional American football the field covers an extensive 100 yards, Football Flag takes place in a more compact space of 60 yards. But that’s not all, since on the playing field of Football Flag A peculiar “no-run zone” is introduced in the last five yards prior to each end zone. This rule arises from the recognized difficulty of stopping a player who is in the middle of the race during that stretch.
Contrasting further with the NFL, in the Football Flag the offensive team begins its journey from the 5-yard line of its own field, and is given 4 opportunities (downs) to advance towards the center of the field and approach the end zone. In contrast, in the NFL, each team has the mission of advancing 10 yards in 4 downs to approach the end zone.
Flag football contains all the spectacular nature of the classic sport
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The duration of the matches also presents notable discrepancies. In Football Flag, the matches are made up of two 20-minute halves, while in the NFL, games are divided into four halves of 15 minutes each. These differences in field dimensions, rules, and time structure contribute to giving the Football Flag its unique identity as an agile and exciting variant of American football.
The scoring system is similar to that of the NFLa touchdown is also worth 6 points, but here the extra kick (to add one more point) disappears: teams have a play from the five-yard line for 1 more point or they can opt for a play from the 10-yard line for 2 more points.
Each team is made up of 5 players on the pitch, with some variations in positions.s. The figure of the passing quarterback is maintained, but the protection line is only formed here by a center, in charge of passing the ball to his ‘marshal’, so the passing time is greatly reduced. The other players are in charge of receiving the ball, known in the NFL as wide receivers or ‘open ends’. On the defensive side, they are all ‘defensive backs’ and are in charge of covering their defenders individually or in a zone. Here everything is simplified.
There is a future in Spain
Although the economic difficulties are evident, the Football Flag In Spain it is in good hands, with the women’s team being the one that has had the most success in recent years. They were champions in 2019 in Israel, they won bronze in the previous tournament and this 2023 they fell in the final, getting a well-deserved silver in Ireland.
The men’s team has not enjoyed the same success, but it does have a base of players and coaches that is increasingly prepared.