More than a hundred delegates from national American football federations worldwide will gather in Paris, France, this weekend as the IFAF holds its first Annual Congress since the recent IOC Session that granted full recognition to the IFAF. During this session, the historic addition of flag football to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics was witnessed.

The historic meeting will take place at the Jean Bouin Stadium in Paris on Friday the 24th and Saturday the 25th. It is in the city where the international federation was first established in 1998 and continues to serve as its global headquarters.

It is worth noting that the IFAF is currently one of the two international federations recognized by the IOC with legal headquarters in France and, as of last month, the only Olympic sports federation with this status.

The agenda for the IFAF Congress in Paris is scheduled to include a historic vote to add representation from the National Football League (NFL) to the expanded board of the IFAF.

The NFL, the premier professional American football league, has joined the IFAF through Vision 2028, a pioneering joint venture and collaboration model that makes flag football the cornerstone of shared goals for global sports development.

Alongside the Congress, on Saturday, November 25, the national finals of the first NFL Flag championships for children aged 5 to 15 in France will take place at the same venue (Jean Bouin Stadium). The program is being carried out by the staff of the French American Football Federation (FFFA), the IFAF's member federation in the country, following a successful model adopted in territories around the world.

IFAF President Pierre Trochet said, "It is fitting, in the year of the 25th anniversary of the IFAF, and a year that promises to be a milestone for our sport globally, to be able to welcome the global American football family back to Paris; the city where it all began for us and is now the Olympic host."

What is Flag Football, the sport that will be in Los Angeles 2028?

Flag football is a variation of American football played without the intense physical contact that characterizes the sport. In this game, there are no tackles; instead, they are replaced by flags that players wear attached to a regulation belt, one on each side of the waist. When a player successfully grabs the flag from an opponent, the game stops, and another play begins, similar to when there is a tackle in American football. The rules are practically the same; the only difference is the limited physical contact.

Basically, the game rules are based on those of American football, with some differences. The objective is the same as in the most popular sport in the United States of America, and there are four opportunities (up to 4 downs or flag grabs) to reach midfield. Once midfield is reached, there are another 4 opportunities to score in the opponent's field (touchdown).

Flag Football Modalities

There are different ways of playing it. In the United States, players wear 3 flags; one on each side of the waist and one at the back. Americans play it with 8, 9, or 11 players, while in Europe, it is played 5x5 (similar to futsal), and players only wear 2 flags.