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PENINSULA SPORTS, INC.
FLAG FOOTBALL
Fall 2024 season update for girl's high school flag football features 26 high schools fielding at least a Varsity team, and the PCAL Gabilan Division has Both Junior Varsity and Varsity levels playing. Altogether in two PCAL divisions there are 11 teams in the PCAL Mission and 9 teams in the PCAL Gabilan. SCCAL schools have 6 teams participating. There will be two Jamborees and one Tournament in addition to a regular season schedule that allows for 26 contests. Each league is planning to have an end-of-season Championship which will likely lead into a CCS section playoff bracket for the 2025 season. CIF has published a revised rule book and a NFHS Official Rules Book is expected to be published in late spring of 2025. Schools have plans for a few showcase games with the Varsity Flag game sandwiched between the boys JV and Varsity contests. San Francisco 49ers are continuing to provide support just as the Los Angeles Chargers are in the CIF South. Middle School Leagues are picking up either Co-Ed, Girls, and/or Boys seasons added to the Under Armour sponsored RISE youth flag FB and Intramural Flag FB at the Defense Language Institute where soldiers, sailors and airmen have been playing for several years. Demands for more flag football referees to work these games have risen.
The upcoming academic year will mark the first time students in California will be able to join girls' flag football as a state-sponsored varsity sport.
Why it matters: Girls' flag football has been around for years, but designating it an official high school sport will allow for expanded programming, funding opportunities and competition.
Catch up quick: The Federated Council of the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), the state's governing body of high school sports, unanimously approved the plan this year after a surge in interest among recreational leagues.
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Support from California's NFL teams has also spurred widespread engagement across the state, with the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers piloting a regional high school league.
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The San Francisco 49ers similarly backed the push for the state to sponsor the sport and the team has hosted several co-ed school camps, including a girls' flag skills jamboree last year. It has pledged to help with startup costs this season.
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"We really want more women to be at the forefront in the world of sports, specifically in the football industry," flag football athlete and 49ers associate counsel Myka Bell said in a statement in February after the CIF's vote.
State of play: Flag football will be offered as a fall sport this year, though schools with pre-existing spring seasons can retain that schedule if they choose.
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Teams will compete 7-on-7 in four 12-minute quarters, according to rules ironed out after the CIF's vote.
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If enough schools participate, the state could set up regional and state championships.
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The CIF, which is under California's Department of Education, has since shared campaigns focused on the message that football is a "game for all."
Zoom in: The San Francisco section of CIF, which covers the San Francisco Unified School District, has sponsored flag football locally since 2012 and has historically offered spring programs.
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Ten of its teams will participate this season, which will kick off in March, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The big picture: California joins a growing list of states offering flag football in high school athletics, including Florida, Arizona, Georgia and Nevada.