Allegheny, Bryant & Straton-Albany, and Bucks Adding Flag Football
Three more schools are adding a women's flag football team for the upcoming 2026 spring season. Allegheny College (PA), Bryant & Stratton College - Albany (NY), and Bucks County Community College (PA) all announced this week they will add the sport.
Allegheny is officially adding a women's flag football team. Allegheny will field a club team for the 2025-26 academic year and is aiming to have a varsity team for the 2026-27 academic year. The Gators had a "soft" launch of the team in March 2025 when it competed at a flag football event set up by the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers.
Allegheny is located in Meadville, Pennsylvania, and is a member of the NCAA Division III Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC). Bethany (PA), Chatham (PA), Franciscan (OH), and Saint Vincent (PA) are all members of the PAC that also took part in the Steelers' flag football event in March. All five now have a club or varsity team that will compete in the 2025-26 academic year.
Bryant & Stratton College's Albany campus will also be adding flag football for the 2025-26 academic year. The Bobcats are a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA). Bryant & Stratton has ten different campuses in New York, Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin. The Buffalo, New York (USCAA) and Milwaukee, Wisconsin (NJCAA) campuses also sponsor flag football.
Bucks County Community College will add flag football to its athletic offerings this year as well. Bucks is located in Newtown, Pennsylvania, and will also compete in the USCAA.
Nearly 100 new collegiate programs will take the field in the 2026 spring season with the additions of Allegheny, Bryant & Stratton-Albany, and Bucks. Over 215 teams from the NCAA, NAIA, NCCAA, NJCAA, 3C2A, USCAA, and independent programs are expected to compete next season. The sport is growing at all levels, not just collegiately.
17 states have sanctioned flag football as a championship sport at the high school level: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Mississippi, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Washington. The Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) made its announcement on Thursday at the 2025 NFL Flag Championships in Canton.
The NCAA is likely to add flag football to the Emerging Sports for Women program in early 2026, while the NAIA recently elevated the sport from Emerging to Invitational Status for the 2026 spring season. Flag football will make its Olympic debut during the first week of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.