Flag football has gone global, as the emerging sport takes center stage this week at The World Games 2025 in Chengdu, China.
Eight top national flag football teams will kick off their tournament campaigns beginning on Wednesday night, all aiming for Sunday's championship final.
Reigning champions Mexico will look to defend their 2022 title against the 2024 IFAF World Championships-winning USA as well as 2024 bronze medalists Japan.
Meanwhile, squads from Austria, China, Canada, Great Britain, and Italy will look to upend the three tournament titans.
Fueled primarily by women's sports athletes, the sport is on the upswing, rising from its debut at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Alabama, to secure a spot at the 2028 LA Olympics amid growing media exposure as well as backing by the NFL and the NCAA.
"[The sport] started rolling faster after World Games [2022]," Mexico captain and quarterback Diana Flores said at an IFAF press conference this week. "It was a very important moment for the flag football community… the first time flag football was showcased on a platform as big as the World Games, a multi-sport competition where the most elite athletes go and represent their countries."
"It took a quick spiral from the World Games Birmingham to the media exposure we got to the support our organization has given us," echoed USA star quarterback Vanita Krouch. "To be here paving the way, being these trailblazers and pioneers, it's a huge honor."
How to watch flag football at The World Games 2025
The USA and Canada will kick off The World Games 2025 flag football preliminaries at 9 PM ET on Wednesday.
Knockout rounds begin when the quarterfinals take the field 8:30 PM ET on Friday, with Saturday's 11:30 PM ET bronze-medal game and Sunday's 12:50 AM ET final determining this year's podium.
The tournament will stream live on The World Games website.