Sacramento State University is adding women’s flag football with plans for the sport to make a club debut in the fall of 2026 and transition to an NCAA Division I program the next year.”We are ecstatic to announce the addition of a women’s flag football team,” Athletics Director Mark Orr said in a statement on Monday. “At Sacramento State, we are inspired to provide opportunities for our current and prospective students to fulfill their goals and pursue their passions while enrolled at our institution. The addition of a women’s flag football team is in direct response to demonstrated interest from young women on campus who want to compete on the field as the sport grows in popularity across the state and across the country.” The plan is for the flag football team to play its first season as a club sport in the spring, funded through student club and recreation resources. In 2027-28 the program would be be elevated as an NCAA Division I sport and athletic scholarship could be awarded. The program would be funded via the Department of Athletics budget, NCAA sports sponsorship revenue, corporate sponsorships and philanthropy, Sac State said. The university said that as of this summer there are more than 75 colleges that compete in women’s flag football at the NCAA or club level. Sac State would become the eighth program in California. Sac State, which recently hosted 24 teams for its first high school girls flag football camp, said flag football is the fastest-growing sport in the state. Sacramento State student Raia Brown spearheaded a petition to bring flag football to the campus. “There are girls all across California who found a love of playing this game and never had a place to take it to the college level, and the demand has always been here,” Brown said in a statement. “Sacramento State adding flag football opens the door for all women to showcase their skills, compete, and be a part of the future in a sport that’s exploding nationwide and making its debut in the 2028 Olympics. We’re not catching up to the growth, we’re helping lead it, and I’m honored to be allowed by President Wood and Mark Orr to spearhead this monumental effort.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel
Sacramento State University is adding women’s flag football with plans for the sport to make a club debut in the fall of 2026 and transition to an NCAA Division I program the next year.
“We are ecstatic to announce the addition of a women’s flag football team,” Athletics Director Mark Orr said in a statement on Monday. “At Sacramento State, we are inspired to provide opportunities for our current and prospective students to fulfill their goals and pursue their passions while enrolled at our institution. The addition of a women’s flag football team is in direct response to demonstrated interest from young women on campus who want to compete on the field as the sport grows in popularity across the state and across the country.”
The plan is for the flag football team to play its first season as a club sport in the spring, funded through student club and recreation resources.
In 2027-28 the program would be be elevated as an NCAA Division I sport and athletic scholarship could be awarded. The program would be funded via the Department of Athletics budget, NCAA sports sponsorship revenue, corporate sponsorships and philanthropy, Sac State said.
The university said that as of this summer there are more than 75 colleges that compete in women’s flag football at the NCAA or club level. Sac State would become the eighth program in California.
Sac State, which recently hosted 24 teams for its first high school girls flag football camp, said flag football is the fastest-growing sport in the state.
Sacramento State student Raia Brown spearheaded a petition to bring flag football to the campus.
“There are girls all across California who found a love of playing this game and never had a place to take it to the college level, and the demand has always been here,” Brown said in a statement. “Sacramento State adding flag football opens the door for all women to showcase their skills, compete, and be a part of the future in a sport that’s exploding nationwide and making its debut in the 2028 Olympics. We’re not catching up to the growth, we’re helping lead it, and I’m honored to be allowed by President Wood and Mark Orr to spearhead this monumental effort.”
See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel