Spencer Wagen / 1600 ESPN
Remember how great it was to watch Team USA win gold last summer against France in men’s basketball at the Paris Olympics? Who could forget Stephen Curry’s clutch performance in the fourth quarter, draining four three-pointers to help the Americans hold off the French en route to Team USA’s fifth straight gold medal in the sport? It truly was one of the greatest performances in Olympics history.
Now imagine your favorite NFL stars suiting up at the Olympics and competing for a medal and national pride. That’s something that’ll now happen after the league’s owners OK’d letting players compete in flag football at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Yes, that means Patrick Mahomes, Saquon Barkley, Justin Jefferson and a bevy of other NFL players can, and likely will, play the sport in the next Summer Olympics.
ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler said Tuesday’s vote by the owners to approve the flag football resolution was unanimous, despite only needing approval from 24 of 32 owners to pass. According to ESPN.com, approving this resolution was just the first step, and negotiations between the league, the NFL Players Association, Olympic officials and national governing bodies are next to determine the specifics of allowing players to participate.
What Tuesday’s vote does, for now, is set rules and a basic structure for how the NFL hopes to see the process work, which of course is subject to those negotiations. ESPN reports that the resolution that passed on Tuesday includes several key items, such as a limit of one NFL player per NFL team on each national team and allowing each team to designate an international player per team to play for his home country.
In total, The Athletic says six countries will be represented at the 2028 Summer Games for both men’s and women’s flag football. Games will be played in a five-on-five format, with rosters of 10 players chosen by each country’s International Olympic Committee.
“I think this news represents a great opportunity for the sport, for the NFL,” Commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters Tuesday after the announcement. “It’s truly the next step in making NFL football and football a global sport for men and women of all ages and all opportunities across the globe. We think that’s the right thing to do, and this is a big step in accomplishing that.”
In all, I think this is a really cool opportunity for NFL players and football fans worldwide. We see players in the NBA and NHL compete in the Olympic Games regularly, and we have the World Baseball Classic, where the best in the world compete on the baseball diamond. Now, the best of the best in pro football can compete, albeit in the flag football realm.
Now it’s time for us fans to start coming up with our ultimate “Dream Team” lineup for flag football. Who would you want to see on the roster for Team USA? How many NFL players do you think will try out for an Olympic team? Time will tell how successful this venture is for the NFL, but Tuesday’s approval is a step that players and fans alike were waiting for.
Spencer Wagen is the host of “Spencer on Sports,” weekdays from 4-6 p.m. on 1600 ESPN. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @SWOnTheRadio.
