Girls’ flag football is now a PIAA-sanctioned high school sport, writes Gabriela Carroll for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The sport recorded a meteoric rise from an emerging activity to being sanctioned as an official high school sport in Pennsylvania following several years of advocacy by the Philadelphia Eagles and community organizations, as well as local girls’ flag football players.

Prior to 2022, the majority of leagues were independently operated. The Eagles helped popularize the sport in Southeastern Pennsylvania when they started the first girls’ flag league with 16 schools.

In the two years since, the league has grown to 65 teams across the Greater Philadelphia area. This year, both the Public and Catholic Leagues approved girls’ flag football as a high school sport and hosted a championship not related to the Eagles’ league.

It was designated as an emerging sport last year by PIAA, which is the first step required to become an official varsity sport at high school level.

Now that the sport is officially sanctioned, schools all around the state will be provided with support from the organization and access to compete in state-sponsored championships.

Read more about girls’ flag football becoming a PIAA-sanctioned high school sport in The Philadelphia Inquirer.