USA FOOTBALL AND MAXPREPS ESTABLISH GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL FLAG FOOTBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD

USA Football and MaxPreps team up to recognize top high school flag football athletes 

USA Football and MaxPreps, America's source for high school sports, have partnered to create the Girls High School Flag Football Player of the Week Award. The award recognizes athletes for their outstanding contributions on the field and brings attention to the exploding popularity of flag football throughout the country. 

USA Football is the sport’s governing body in the United States and the organization that creates and leads the U.S. National Teams that represent our country in international competitions, including World Championships and flag football’s debut in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.  

USA Football and MaxPreps will announce an award winner each week during the fall and spring high school girls’ flag football seasons, based on game statistics entered by coaches into MaxPreps. Each award winner will receive a special invitation to a USA Football Talent ID Camp to be further evaluated through USA Football’s scouting process for potential spots in the National Team Development Program and U.S. National Team Trials.  

USA Football Talent ID Camps feature Olympic-style 5v5 scrimmages, combine testing, 1v1 drills and competitions designed to develop and assess athletes using the Football Development Model, USA Football’s long-term athlete development program. 

Thirteen states sanction girls’ flag football as a varsity sport for current or future seasons, including Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania and Tennessee. More than a dozen states have pilot programs.  

“USA Football is excited to support the exponential growth of high school girls flag football by partnering with MaxPreps to launch the Girls High School Flag Football Player of the Week Award,” said USA Football Managing Director of High Performance and National Teams, Eric Mayes. “These girls are pioneers who continue fueling the sport’s popularity and making inroads throughout the football landscape. We’re supportive of the expanding opportunities for girls and women to play flag football at the high school and collegiate levels as we prepare for the sport's Olympic debut in 2028.” 

“It has been so exciting to watch girls flag football become so impactful so quickly across the high school landscape,” said Gerry Valerio, Senior Director of Partnerships for MaxPreps. “Our goal at MaxPreps has always been to cover every team, every game and every athlete. This partnership with USA Football will help us further promote the sport and shine a brighter light on the accomplishments of the players nationally.” 

Per USA Football research, in the ten years from 2014 through 2023, the numbers of girls ages 6 to 17 playing flag football increased by approximately 44%. Participation numbers reached new heights in 2023 with more than 230,000 girls playing flag football.  

Growth at the youth level has been astonishing. During that same ten-year span, the number of girls ages six to 12 playing flag football increased 222%. Participation numbers are expected to increase as more states adopt pilot programs and sanction girls’ flag football as a varsity sport.  

Flag football’s growth extends beyond the youth level. Women now have chances to earn college scholarships and compete for a championship in flag football at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) level. Three members of USA Football’s U.S. Women’s Flag National Team – Kennedy Foster, Ashlea Klam and Addison Orsborn – compete at NAIA programs and recently won gold medals with the National Team at the 2024 IFAF Flag Football World Championship in Lahti, Finland.  

Flag football’s inclusion in the 2028 Olympics led to the sport’s exponential growth. The opportunities flag provides girls and women to coach and play football will continue to fuel its development as one of the fastest-growing sports in the world.  

About MaxPreps: MaxPreps is the nation’s leading high school sports destination, offering fans the most comprehensive coverage with the latest scores, statistics, news, rankings, photos, and more. MaxPreps aspires to cover every high school team, game and player by partnering with more than 100,000 coaches throughout the country. A unit of Paramount and a CBSSports.com site, MaxPreps was founded in August 2002 and is headquartered in El Dorado Hills, Calif. For more information about MaxPreps, please visit www.maxpreps.com. 

About USA Football: USA Football is the governing body of American football in the United States, the sole U.S. member of the International Federation of American Football, and a recognized sports organization of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Its non-profit mission includes designing and delivering premier educational, development, and competitive programs for American football, including tackle and flag football. USA Football is the only organization that selects and organizes men’s and women’s U.S. National Teams in federation-sanctioned international competition.