Azusa Pacific, Cal Poly Pomona, St. Olaf, UC San Diego Adding Flag Football Club Teams
Azusa Pacific University (CA) will add women's flag football next academic year. APU will have a club team for the 2026-27 academic year, followed by a varsity team in 2027-28. Bo Beatty will serve as the inaugural head coach for the flag football program. Athletic director Gary Pine stated:
"This addition of flag football strengthens our commitment to providing balanced, holistic athletic experiences. Selecting Bo as the inaugural head coach is an important decision. Few people in the history of APU exemplify the mission and purpose of Cougar athletics better than Bo. He brings passion and excitement to every one of his endeavors, and his success on the high school level will translate well into the women's college game. Simply put, he knows how to win, and more importantly, he is an outstanding and experienced mentor. Athletes love to play for him."
Azusa Pacific is joining NCAA Division III beginning with the 2026-27 academic year as a member of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). Other SCIAC members with flag football include California Lutheran University (club), the Claremont Colleges (club), and the University of Redlands (varsity).
Azusa Pacific is the latest school from California to add flag football. Over 40 club and varsity programs throughout the state will be competing in the 2026-27 academic year. That number will include two new club programs and potential opponents...
Pair of California Club Teams Launching
Two California colleges will add women's flag football club teams beginning with the 2026-27 academic year. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona) and the University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego) are launching student-run club teams.
Cal Poly Pomona becomes the first team from the NCAA Division II California Collegiate Athletic Association to add a club or varsity team. Meanwhile, UC San Diego is set to join the NCAA Division I West Coast Conference as a full member beginning with the 2026-27 academic year. Saint Mary's College of California (club) is the only other WCC school to offer a team.
Club teams are becoming increasingly popular across California across all three NCAA divisions. Azusa Pacific University (D-III) California Baptist University (D-I), California Lutheran University (D-III), Cal Poly SLO (D-I), the Claremont Colleges (D-III), Long Beach State (D-I), Saint Mary's (D-I), San Diego State University (D-I), the University of California Berkeley (D-I), UC Davis (D-I), UCLA (D-I), and USC (D-I) are also set to compete in the 2026-27 academic year.
St. Olaf Adding Club Team
Adding to the long list of new club teams, St. Olaf College (MN) launched a women's flag football club team for the 2026 spring season. St. Olaf is a member of the NCAA Division III Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC). The Oles will compete in the Midwest College Women's Flag Football League (MCWFFL), launched by the NFL's Minnesota Vikings in spring 2025.
St. Olaf will be one of nine schools to compete in the MCWFFL this spring, along with Augsburg University (Minneapolis, Minnesota), Augustana University (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), Bethel University (Arden Hills, Minnesota), College of Saint Benedict (St. Joseph, Minnesota), Concordia College Moorhead (Moorhead, Minnesota), Gustavus Adolphus College (St. Peter, Minnesota), University of Northwestern-St. Paul (Roseville, Minnesota), and the University of Wisconsin-Stout (Menomonie, Wisconsin). The MCWFFL will start its season this weekend.
Seven MIAC schools have announced flag football. Six of them will compete in the MCWFFL: Augsburg, Bethel, Concordia Moorhead, Gustavus Adolphus, Saint Benedict, and St. Olaf. The other MIAC school to offer flag football is St. Catherine University (MN), which announced a varsity program for the 2026-27 academic year.
Two NCAA D-I Club Teams Joining NCFA
Syracuse University (NY) and the University of Oklahoma are set to join the National Club Football Association (NCFA) beginning with the 2026-27 academic year. More club teams are expected to compete in the NCFA next academic year.
Club teams are seeing an increased number of leagues to compete in. Established leagues such as the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), National Collegiate Flag Football League (NCFFL), National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA), and Women's Collegiate Flag Football League (WCFFL) offer opportunities, while the NCFA will join the growing list. NIRSA will also revamp its structure to include a women's flag football club league in the 2026-27 academic year to provide more competitive opportunities.
The NCAA's addition of flag football to the Emerging Sports for Women program has led to continued growth of the sport. While varsity teams are being added more frequently, club teams account for the majority of flag football programs this spring. Varsity teams could outnumber club teams as soon as the 2026-27 academic year, depending on announcements in the coming months. Efforts from NCAA Division I Conferences to sponsor the sport, such as the Big 12 and Big South, are likely to spur additional varsity programs.