The year ends with a bang for the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and its president, Frenchman Pierre Trochet. It will remain historic.
Last month, the 141st session of the IOC validated in Mumbai the presence of flag football, the most accessible of the American football disciplines, as an additional sport at the Los Angeles 2028 Games. Saturday November 25, the IFAF is organizing its congress in Paris annual, the first of the Olympic era.
Pierre Trochet returned, to FrancsJeux, on the decision of the IOC session to retain flag football, its reasons and its prospects.
FrancsJeux : When did you learn that you were proposed to the IOC by Los Angeles 2028 as an additional sport?
Pierre Trochet : We were very confident about our proposal. We have worked hard to reassure the IOC and Los Angeles 2028 about our ability to bring something new to the Games. The process was very rigorous on their part. We followed him. But nothing was certain before the announcement of the Los Angeles 2028 proposal, a few days before the IOC session in Mumbai.
When did you really start campaigning for the introduction of flag football in LA? 2028?
When I was elected president of IFAF two years ago. We first sought to convince the NFL and our members of the relevance of leading a campaign. The next step was the announcement of our candidacy, during the 2022 World Games in Birmingham.
What role did the NFL play?
The NFL is a very strong partner of the IFAF. It contributes to its visibility, but it also brings us skills in events. We are a young federation, we must quickly increase our skills on the commercial level, on the events side… I must say that we are very happy to be able to count on their help.
Has the NFL been at the forefront of discussions with Los Angeles 2028?
Surprisingly enough, not at all. The flag football application was supported by the IFAF. We have a history as an international federation. The NFL trusted us by letting us move forward.
Flag football in Los Angeles 2028 will represent how many players?
Our proposal is an eight-team tournament, with ten players in total, including five on the field, plus three to five members of the management. This therefore represents a total of 160 players. This was our quota for the 2022 World Games.
Where could you play, on which site?
The discussions begin. All options are on the table. We proposed three options: the construction of a new site, the development of existing equipment, or sharing with one or more other sports. The advantage of flag football is the size of the field: 70 yards by 25 (64 m x 23). You can play indoors or outdoors, on rugby or American football fields…
Is it possible to see NFL players take up flag football and participate in the Los Angeles 2028 Games?
Quite. From the beginning of our partnership, the NFL has placed no restrictions on the participation of the world's best flag football players. The calendar allows it. Some NFL players have already taken the lead. But flag football at the global level is a very competitive sport today. It requires qualities of agility. Not all American football players are cut out for this sport. But it is interesting to know that today we have a little over a hundred NFL players who have a foreign, non-American passport. They would therefore be eligible to participate in their country's selection.
How many national federations are members of the IFAF today?
We currently have 74 member countries. Our ambition is to exceed a hundred in the coming years. We have initiatives all over the world, in Oceania, Asia, South America. My next goal is Africa. We are leading an operation with the NFL on flag football, NFL flag, focused on youth participation. I hope that we will be able to have international competitions in Africa in 2024.
