In this Sept. 19, 2023 file photo, a flag football game is shown at Wilson in Long Beach, Calif. (Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Pennsylvania officially recognized flag football as a sanctioned girls’ high school sport in an announcement made by Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, Inc. (PIAA), on Wednesday.
The girls’ flag football was made an official state-sanctioned high school sport after the sport met the requirement to have had at least 100 participating teams across the state, according to a press release.
The figure was achieved in April with the help of the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers, which launched girls’ flag football leagues in 2022.
“This is not just an important day for the Eagles and Steelers, but for the sport of football and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Eagles Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie said in the release. “When we launched our Girls Flag Football League in 2022, we set an ambitious five-year goal to get the sport sanctioned in our state. Now, here we are three seasons later and two years ahead of schedule. The sport’s organic growth is a credit to the participants, administrators, coaches, officials, and parents who helped raise the profile of Girls Flag Football.”
He continued, “We thank the PIAA for their leadership in recognizing a sport that has the power to unlock new pathways and opportunities for girls of all ages in every community.”
The sport will be officially available for high school girls in the state starting in the 2025-26 school year.
Pennsylvania has now joined other states, including Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New York, and Tennessee, in making girls’ flag football a state-sanctioned high school sport.
The decision will also unlock opportunities for the participants and school districts in allowing them to compete for a state championship and eventually create a pathway of talent for college sports and beyond.
Steelers President Art Rooney II, in a statement in the release, called the move a “groundbreaking moment for the future of girls’ flag football.”
“It has been great working with the Eagles to accomplish a successful ruling that will now give young girls the chance to compete at a state level,” the statement read. “We look forward to seeing how girls’ flag football continues to grow in Pennsylvania and worldwide.”
A growing interest in flag football, which is a non-tackling version of American football where players wear belts with flags on them, peaked this summer after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced in October 2023 that flag football would be included on the LA28 Olympic sports program.
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION Philadelphia 118, Indiana 114 (OT) Portland 125, New Orleans 103 Brooklyn 115, Milwaukee 102 Oklahoma City 128, Atlanta 104 LA Clippers 112, Golden State 104
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Edmonton 3, Detroit 2 (OT) Montreal 4, Philadelphia 3 New Jersey 6, Anaheim 2 Final Colorado 5, Ottawa 4
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE Arizona 28, Miami 27 Atlanta 31, Tampa Bay 26 Cleveland 29, Baltimore 24 Detroit 52, Tennessee 14 Green Bay 30, Jacksonville 27 Houston 23, Indianapolis 20 New England 25, NY Jets 22 Philadelphia 37, Cincinnati 17 Buffalo 31, Seattle 10 LA Chargers 26, New Orleans 8 Denver 28, Carolina 14 Kansas City 27, Las Vegas 20 Washington 18, Chicago 15 San Francisco 30, Dallas 24
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER Orlando City 2, Charlotte FC 0 Los Angeles FC, 2 Vancouver 1
(LOS ANGELES) — Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James — the NBA’s all-time leading scorer — and his son Bronny James make NBA history Oct. 22, taking to the court together as the Lakers faced the Minnesota Timberwolves in their season opener.
As the father-son duo teamed up, the rest of the James family watched the game unfold at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, including mom Savannah James, son Bryce and daughter Zhuri.
“Going up to the scorer’s table with my dad and checking in for the first time was a crazy moment I will never forget,” Bronny James said after the Lakers defeated the Timberwolves.
“It’s always been family over everything, so to be able to have this moment where I’m working still and I could work alongside my son is one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever got from the man above and I’m going to take full advantage of it,” LeBron James added.
LeBron James had 16 points in 35 minutes, while Bronny James did not score in the three minutes he played in his NBA debut.
Earlier in October, the Jameses also made history when they became the first father and son to play in an NBA preseason game together.
Bronny James is a guard with the Lakers, having been selected by the team in the 2024 NBA Draft.
“For a father, it means everything,” the elder James, a forward, said following the Lakers’ Oct. 6 preseason game against the Phoenix Suns. “For someone who didn’t have that growing up, to be able to have that influence on your kids and have influence on your son, to be able to have moments with your son and then ultimately, to be able to work with your son, I think that’s one of the greatest things that a father could ever hope for or wish for.”
LeBron James’ family often cheers him on at games, including at the 2024 Paris Olympics earlier this year, as the U.S. men’s basketball team won gold.
The Akron, Ohio, native has said he takes fatherhood seriously, having grown up without his own dad present in his life, and he prioritizes being present with his kids.
Although two of his kids — sons Bronny and Bryce James — have followed him onto the basketball court, LeBron James has said he doesn’t pressure them to play the sport.
“I’ve always let them just see if they had a love for [basketball]. Because, at the end of the day, nothing is going to come to fruition if you’re just doing it because you feel like it’s what your parents are doing. Nah, it’s going to fizzle out too fast,” he told Sports Illustrated in a 2022 cover interview with his sons.
