Flag Football Grows as Parents Reject Tackle Amid CTE Findings

Parents across the country are moving their children away from tackle football and into flag leagues after new data confirmed widespread brain damage among professional players.

The shift follows two studies released this week by researchers at Boston University. The first, published in April, examined the brains of 338 former NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021. It found that 315 of those players had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.

A second study released on Wednesday expanded that analysis. Researchers used national death records and brain bank data from 396 donated brains plus 1,966 other deceased former players. They estimated that three out of four players who died between 2008 and 2023 most likely had CTE.

Dr. Daniel Daneshvar, the lead author of the earlier study, said that limiting young people's participation in tackle and eliminating hits during practices could lower the risk. Robert Stern, who co-founded the CTE Center at Boston University, noted that CTE is a progressive disease linked to repeated head impacts. It was first observed in boxers in the 1920s and can only be diagnosed after death.

Sandeep Basran, an assistant coach in the Chicago area, has kept his nine-year-old son in a flag football league for four years. The boy has suffered only a minor leg injury and no head trauma. Basran said the repetitive minor hits in tackle football, rather than just large collisions, are the primary concern for brain health.

Basran turned his son away from tackle even as friends began playing that version of the sport. He cited the risk of injuries affecting other sports the boy loves, including basketball, tennis, and golf. His five-year-old daughter also plays. The family plays in the i9 Sports flag football league.

Tim Lewis, a parent and coach in San Diego, sees the same trend in the Football 'N' America league. He has coached boys for five years and now coaches a girls team. He reported that girls flag football is growing faster than the boys game. Torrey Pines High School recently hosted a girls flag football event where players were announced at halftime.

Joe Becker, owner of i9 Sports, said girls flag is the main outlet for female players since tackle is less common for them. He noted that flag is now an official sport for girls in Illinois high schools and will debut in the Olympics in 2028.

Data from the Aspen Institute's State of Play report shows flag football was the only team sport to grow among children ages 6 to 17 between 2019 and 2024. Participation in flag rose by 14 percent during that period, while tackle fell by 7 percent. By 2024, 4 percent of children aged 6 to 12 played flag compared to 2.7 percent who played tackle.

NFL FLAG serves more than 620,000 children ages 4 to 17. The league has campaigned for flag to be adopted in high schools for girls. Rashad Crawford, a mentor and former college player at Indiana State, said the camaraderie of tackle exists in flag as well. He noted that players plan celebrations in the huddle and maintain team bonds regardless of the contact level.

The sport is set to appear at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. Crawford believes this visibility could lead to a professional league within five to six years. For now, parents like Basran and Stern are making immediate changes to protect their children's heads.

Stern, who researched CTE for nearly 20 years, said he can no longer watch tackle football. He described the human brain as not being designed to function like a battering ram. The new estimates have made the medical risks of the sport difficult to ignore for families deciding how their children will play.