The United States men's national flag football team often referred to as Team USA represents the United States in men's international flag football competitions. The team is governed by USA Football. As of 2023, the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) ranks the United States men's team 1st worldwide.[2]
 | |
| Association | USA Football |
|---|---|
| Confederation | IFAF Americas |
| IFAF Ranking | 1  [1] |
| Colors | Red White Blue |
| Head coach | Jorge Cascudo |
| IFAF World Championship | |
| Appearances | 8 (first in 2008) |
| Best result |  Gold (2010, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2024) |
| Website | Official website |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| World Championship | ||
 |
2010 Ottawa | Team |
|
2014 Grosseto | Team |
|
2016 Miami | Team |
|
2018 Panama City | Team |
|
2021 Jerusalem | Team |
|
2024 Lahti | Team |
 |
2012 Gothenburg | Team |
| World Games | ||
|
2022 Birmingham | Team |
| Americas Championship | ||
|
2023 Charlotte | Team |
Team USA has won the won the IFAF Flag Football World Championship six times, most recently in 2024; which are the most championships won by a country for in the tournaments history. In 2022, Team USA won a gold medal at the World Games.
Competitive record
editChampions Runners-up Third place Fourth place
IFAF World Championship
edit| IFAF Flag Football World Championship | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA |
 2002 |
Did not participate | |||||||
 2004
| ||||||||
 2006
| ||||||||
 2008 |
Fourth place | 4th | ||||||
| 2010 |
Champions | 1st | ||||||
 2012 |
Runners-up | 2nd | ||||||
 2014 |
Champions | 1st | ||||||
 2016 |
Champions | 1st | ||||||
 2018 |
Champions | 1st | ||||||
 2021 |
Champions | 1st | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 392 | 125 |
 2024 |
Champions | 1st | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 370 | 111 |
| Total | 6 Titles | 8/11 | ||||||
World Games
edit| World Games | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA |
| 2022 |
Champions | 1st | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 205 | 89 |
| Total | 1 Title | 1/1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 205 | 89 |
IFAF Americas Championship
edit| IFAF Americas Flag Football Championship | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Result | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA |
| 2023[3] |
Champions | 1st | ||||||
| Total | 1 Title | 1/1 | ||||||
IFAF World Championship
edit2008
editAlthough the IFAF Flag Football Championship was founded in 2002, Team USA first competed in the 2008 edition of the tournament. The United States lost to France 45–0 in the bronze medal game, finishing fourth overall in the tournament.
2010
editIn the 2010 tournament, Team USA went undefeated in group play securing their way to the playoff round. The United States defeated Germany 33–0 in the quarterfinals and Canada 48–25 in the semifinals to reach the gold medal game. In the championship game, Team USA faced Denmark who they beat previously in group play. Quarterback Jorge Cascudo led the team to a 35–19 victory to capture the gold medal.[4]
2012
editIn the 2012 tournament, Austria defeated the United States in the gold medal game by a close score of 47–40. Team USA finished the tournament with a silver medal.
2014
editIn the 2014 tournament, the United States reclaimed the gold medal defeating Mexico by a score of 40–14.[5]
2016
editIn the 2016 tournament, The United States defeated Denmark 33–32, to win their second consecutive and third overall title. This was a rematch of the 2010 gold medal match, as Team USA narrowly escaped with another gold medal win over Denmark.[6]
2018
editThe United States won its third consecutive, and fourth overall title at the 2018 tournament. Team USA went undefeated in pool play, before beating Israel in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, the team defeated Denmark handily, jumping out to a 34–0 lead at one point against a team that they beat by only one point in pool play two days earlier. The team went on to defeat Austria in the championship by score of 19–13. In a rematch of the gold medal game in 2012 where Austria defeated the United States, quarterback Eric Holliday led Team USA to victory. The team's third consecutive championship was a first for any country in IFAF Flag World Championship history on either the men's or women's side.[7]
2021
editThe worldwide pandemic forced the tournament to move from 2020 to 2021. Team USA won its fourth consecutive, and fifth overall gold medal, defeating Mexico 44–41 in the final game. The United States went a perfect 7-0 throughout the tournament. Quarterback Eric Holliday led Team USA to a comeback victory in the championship game as Mexico was winning the game by a score of 41–30 with 10 minutes left to play in the game.[8]
2024
editTeam USA won its fifth consecutive championship title in the 2024 addition of the tournament. The team went undefeated throughout the whole tournament, and winning by 25 or more points in every single game that they played. Quarterback Darrell Doucette lead the team, throwing six touchdowns to four different receivers to lead the US to a 53–21 victory over Austria in the championship game.[9]
World Games
edit2022
edit
On July 20, 2020, the International World Games Association (IWGA), National Football League (NFL), and International Federation of American Football (IFAF) announced that flag football would join the existing lineup of 32 unique, multi-disciplinary sports for the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama.[10] The 2022 World Games, which marked the 40th anniversary of the event, took place from July 7–17, 2022, and was hosted at Birmingham's historic Legion Field
Team USA qualified as hosts of the tournament. With a roster including former NFL player Dezmin Lewis,[11] the team went a perfect 3–0 in pool play, with a score differential of +71.[12] Team USA would go on to play Germany in the Quarterfinals, and Austria in the Semifinals, defeating both teams. Team USA would go on to defeat Italy in the final game by a score of 46–36 to capture the gold medal.[13]
Summer Olympics
editFlag Football at the 2028 Summer Olympics
editOn October 16, 2023, the NFL and IFAF announced the approval of flag football as an official sport in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.[14] This will mark the first time that American football in any form will be featured in the Olympics since it was a demonstration sport in 1904 and 1932. Team USA will automatically qualify for the tournament as the host country.
On October 17, 2023, NFL executive Peter O'Reilly said the league will work with the players' union on allowing current and former players to participate in the 2028 Summer Olympics.[15]
References
edit- ^ "World Rankings". International Federation of American Football. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
- ^ "World Rankings". International Federation of American Football. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
- ^ "USA MEN OUTLAST MEXICO TO CLAIM IFAF AMERICAS CHAMPIONSHIP". International Federation of American Football. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
- ^ "CANADA AND USA ARE TRIUMPHANT AT 2010 IFAF FLAG FOOTBALL WORLDS". Football Canada. 2010-08-19. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ Spiewak, Stephen. "Overview of the IFAF Flag Football World Championships". blogs.usafootball.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ footballcanada (2016-09-12). "Final day recap – 2016 IFAF Flag Football World Championships". Football Canada. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ Burnett, Travis. "U.S. Men's and Women's Flag Football National Teams sweep gold at IFAF World Championships". blogs.usafootball.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ Letourneau, Jacob. "U.S. Women's and Men's Flag National Teams win gold at 2021 IFAF Flag World Championships in Israel". blogs.usafootball.com. Retrieved 2023-07-06.
- ^ Vargas, Ramon Antonio (2024-08-30). "Doucette helms US to fifth straight flag football world title as sport readies for Olympic debut". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
- ^ "NFL partners with The World Games to add flag football in 2022". NFL.com. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
- ^ "DEZ LEWIS COMPETING ON TEAM USA". University of Central Arkansas Athletics. 2022-07-10. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
- ^ "USA Football". usafootball.com. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
- ^ "Team U.S.A. men's flag football team wins first-ever World Games gold medal". American Football International. 2022-07-15. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
- ^ "IOC Makes Flag Football An Olympic Sport For 2028 Summer Games". www.seahawks.com. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
- ^ "Tyreek Hill, other NFL players could play flag football in 2028 Olympics". NFL.com. Retrieved 2023-10-19.