USA Football and the Los Angeles Rams are partnering to host a National Team flag football talent identification camp on Saturday, July 22. The event will feature the top West Coast girls entering into 6th through 12th grade for the 2023-24 school year. The top performers will be scouted by U.S. National Team coaches and personnel and will be eligible to receive invitations to the 2024 U.S. National Team Trials. The Trials will take place this coming spring at the United States Performance Center in Charlotte, N.C. Athletes who participate in the Trials will have an opportunity to earn roster spots on USA Football's 15U, 17U or Women's Flag Football National Teams to represent their country against international competition.
National Team coaches and USA Football personnel will be on-hand to scout the 300 girls who will attend the West Coast Talent ID Camp.
USA Football's 2023 U.S. National Teams recently swept the gold medal ceremonies at the Junior International Cup and IFAF Americas Continental Flag Football Championship in Charlotte, N.C. from July 5-7. The events featured more than 30 total teams representing eight countries across the 15U, 17U and adult divisions. Now, the U.S. National Team program turns its attention to the 2024 Junior International Cup and IFAF World Championships. The 2024 IFAF World Championships will take place in Lahti, Finland.
The talent ID camp will include panels for parents and athletes to learn about the U.S. National Team selection process and requirements, athletic testing, field work and lunches provided for the athletes, courtesy of the Rams in partnership with El Torito.
Several coaches and athletes who will attend the West Coast Talent ID Camp recently won gold medals in Charlotte, including Women's Assistant Coach Liz Sowers, current Women's National Team members Madison Fulford and Amber Clark, 17U Girls' Head Coach Elliott Giles, 17U Girls' Assistant Coach Amanda Lara, 15U Girls' Head Coach Willy Perez and 15U Girls' Assistant Coach Matt Hernandez. Women's National Team Head Coach Saaid Mortazavi is also expected to attend.
See the chart below for more information on the junior pathway to the U.S. National Team.
The Rams are steadfast supporters of providing more opportunities for girls and women to participate in football. Their support and generosity continue to build the game's infrastructure, which is expanding to the high school level as an official sport for girls in California. In partnership with USA Football, the Rams provided a Girls Flag Football Resource Package with information about rules, grants, equipment and practice plans to high school flag programs throughout Southern California earlier this year.
In addition, the Rams and USA Football provided equipment kits to 100 local high schools to assist with practices and games. The Rams and USA Football's efforts throughout Southern California have helped bring flag football to girls through numerous youth camps, an annual community Blitz and the Los Angeles Girls Flag Football League of Champions.
To celebrate girl's flag football as an official sport in California, the Los Angeles Rams worked alongside Gatorade, Nike and USA Football to host the Girls Flag Football League of Champions Super Bowl. Take a look at the best photos from the event!
Flag football's popularity is booming in the United States and internationally. An annual participation study from the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) in 2022 revealed that 7.1 million people in the U.S. participated in flag football with approximately 2.5 million people routinely engaging with the sport.
Flag football's international appeal and prosperity is particularly relevant for Los Angeles and the city's surrounding areas, which will host the 2028 Olympics. USA Football and the International Federation of American Football (IFAF)s are hopeful that flag football's prominence and exploding international popularity will secure the sport a spot in the summer games.
