NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is making a major push for women in football. Speaking with Lions star Amon-Ra St. Brown, Goodell championed flag football as the key.

Detroit Lions Star Amon-Ra St. Brown hosted Goodell in the latest episode of his St. Brown Podcast. The two discussed Flag Football being part of the 2028 Olympics. That's when the NFL Commissioner made the hopeful statement.

"Flag football is on fire...for young boys, but also...more importantly, young girls, because it's their access to play the game. And I love watching the kids play our game. And as a father of twin girls, I love seeing young girls be able to have the same things we all love about the game," said Roger Goodell.

A lot of young women are already showing interest in flag football, with new programs developing. It’s been added to the NCAA’s Emerging Sports for Women program. Around 40-60 schools were sponsoring women’s flag football teams by 2025-26, and that number is rising.

Adding to the growth, the sport is going global with the 2028 Olympics. Watching the top NFL stars go and play in the Olympics and even win a medal will only encourage more young girls to come and play the sport. Roger Goodell also pointed to another benefit.

"Even if you don't play at the NFL level, you get a chance to understand the values and the importance of teamwork and discipline, and how you prepare yourself, and that level of self-confidence that comes from playing sports."

Of course, flag football is much safer and less physical than American football, and that might encourage a different demographic.

NFL Commissioner Also Wants to Launch A Women's Flag Football League

Back in October 2025, Goodell announced that the NFL is planning to launch women's and men's professional flag football leagues in the next two years before the 2028 Olympics.

"We're committed to creating a women's professional league and a men's professional flag league. We've had a great deal of interest in that, and I expect that we'll be able to do that, launch that, in the next couple of years," Goodell said at the Leaders in Sport conference at Twickenham Stadium.

Goodell said that building a clear structure, starting with youth leagues, continuing through high school and college, and leading to the professional level, will create a scalable system. He stressed the need to establish this infrastructure. What do you think about his plans?

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Written by

Reyansh Dubey

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi