YOUTH FOOTBALL TEAMS SPANNING SEVEN STATES COMPETE IN CANTON SATURDAY TO BEGIN JOURNEY TO NFL FLAG CHAMPIONSHIP AT PRO BOWL
WHO: Youth flag football players and families from across Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
WHAT: Boys and girls ages 9 to 14 will compete in the round-robin, single-day NFL FLAG powered by USA Football Regional Tournament, conducted by USA Football at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton in partnership with the Cleveland Browns.
Winning youth teams from each age bracket (9-10 coed; 11-12 coed; 13-14 boys; 13-14 girls) will advance to the NFL FLAG Championships at Pro Bowl on Jan. 23-27 in Orlando, Florida.
Nearly 25 flag teams from the following cities will compete at the USA Football-run regional in Canton:
- Baldwinsville, N.Y.
- Beverly, Mass.
- Canton, Ohio
- Cedar Rapids, Iowa
- Fort Wayne, Ind.
- Grandview, Mo.
- Indianapolis, Ind.
- Mentor, Ohio
- Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Warren, Ohio
- Youngstown, Ohio
In addition to the Browns, NFL FLAG powered by USA Football Regional Tournaments in 2018 are hosted by the following NFL teams: the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, Houston Texans, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Oakland Raiders, Philadelphia Eagles, Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
University Hospitals, the official healthcare partner of the Cleveland Browns, will provide on-site athletic trainers Saturday.
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 20; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
WHERE: Pro Football Hall of Fame National Youth Football and Sports Complex
2323 17th Street NW
Canton, OH 44708
ON-SITE CONTACT: Steve Alic, USA Football, 703-973-6182
NFL FLAG powered by USA Football promotes physical fitness and teaches the sport’s values and life skills on and off the field to nearly 400,000 young people. A non-contact version of traditional football offered for boys and girls ages 5-17 in cities across the country, the program emphasizes fun, safety, teamwork, self-esteem, discipline and goal-setting.
USA Football, a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, is the sport’s national governing body and the official youth football development partner of the NFL, the Browns and each of the league’s other 31 teams.
For more information on NFL FLAG powered by USA Football visit www.NFLFLAG.com.
About USA Football: USA Football designs and delivers premier educational, developmental and competitive programs to advance and grow the sport. As the sport’s national governing body, member of the U.S. Olympic Committee and organizer of the U.S. National Team for international competition, USA Football partners with leaders in medicine, child advocacy and athletics to support positive football experiences for youth, high school and other amateur players.
About the Cleveland Browns and Browns Give Back: The Browns Give Back to Northeast Ohio with a commitment to education and youth football while engaging the community through the team’s signature First and Ten volunteer movement. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback.
Education – A core focus of Browns Give Back is education, and the Cleveland Browns Foundation supports this mission through financial grants and other resources to local, education non-profits to ensure youth in Northeast Ohio receive the education and development they need as a foundation for independence and success. The Cleveland Browns Foundation has identified three areas of impact – school attendance, early learning and college and career readiness – with the goal of identifying opportunities, removing barriers and providing support for students to empower them for long-term success.
Youth Football – The Cleveland Browns are committed to assisting the development, safety and growth of youth and high school football throughout Northeast Ohio with year-round programming for players, coaches, officials and parents. Through camps, clinics and other initiatives, the Browns’ goal is to promote healthy, social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of youth by enhancing opportunities for youth football participation and education.
First and Ten – Launched in June 2014, the Cleveland Browns First and Ten campaign is the team’s community program, established to inspire fans to #give10 and help their communities by volunteering for 10 hours each year. Through First and Ten, the Browns are the only NFL club to promote a long-term volunteering program that unifies the team and its entire fan base, with the goal of impacting every individual’s city across the globe, as well as the franchise’s local community. To date, more than 1.5 million hours of volunteering have been pledged through First and Ten. All Browns fans are encouraged to join the volunteering effort by signing the First and Ten pledge on the team’s website and by sharing their stories with #give10.