Credit: Edouard Hermet (IFAF).
The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) reviewed a historic year on Saturday at its congress. 2025 was notably marked by the organization of the first African Flag Football Championships in Cairo. Pierre Trochet, president of the IFAF, doesn't want to stop there. And that's fortunate, as 2026 will also be a busy year with the Flag Football World Championships in Düsseldorf and the federation's relocation to Lausanne. The Frenchman is drawing lessons from this weekend to... Francs Jeux.
What are the key takeaways from this congress?
Congresses are always special occasions; we see the majority of our 75 members, so it's interesting. I'm very proud of the reforms: the creation of a vice-president position held by a woman, a second board position within the athletes' commission to guarantee parity, and the launch of our leadership program to encourage federations to recruit a third of their leaders to be women. It's a revolution for our environment and for our federation. We continue to grow.
Did you specifically target this topic of female representation?
Let's be honest: American football has been a male-dominated sport in both its playing and governance for a very long time. The flag football boom needs to translate into a shift in governance. If we want to facilitate this change, we might as well start with ourselves. This is something I care deeply about, and I'm very proud that everyone has responded positively. These changes will make us an even more modern, even more agile, and even more future-oriented federation.
The congress also approved a change to the conditions for accessing membership status: a national federation can now join the IFAF even if it only does flag football.
Here again, it is a matter of reflecting reality: until now, access to the status of full member was reserved for federations that had the capacity to practice both activities (tackle and flag). The governance of our FI must reflect the reality on the ground, and when we see the growth of flag football globally… We have recognized countries as associate members – Nigeria, Guatemala – that have had flag football programs for a very long time: they will now have access to the status of full member and participate more actively in the future of our FI.
Credit: Edouard Hermet (IFAF).
The IFAF will leave Paris and move to Lausanne in the coming months. Why?
For reasons of proximity to other actors in the Movement—the International Federations (IFs), the International Technical Association (ITA), being at the heart of a specialized student resource that will help us refresh our ideas, etc.—it was also important for our community to send a message: we have our place at the heart of the Olympic Movement. This is a message from the community about our ambitions.
Is this also a way of affirming that the relationship between the IFAF and the Olympic Movement will be long-term?
It couldn't be clearer! This is the message from all members: we want to contribute. Actions speak louder than words: we will work within the Olympic capital, alongside and with all the stakeholders who bring it to life. This will also allow us to offer our NFL partners a better understanding of the Olympic environment and the various stakeholders.
Have you discussed this project with other FIs already established here?
Yes, of course. The doors are open. I have a very good relationship with FIBA, which is based in the canton. I've had discussions about offices and housing with our friends at World Rowing. The ambition isn't just to have a post office box; it's to gradually transfer the activities, operations, and... assets In Lausanne, there's a whole support process in place with the Lausanne Capital Foundation, the city, and the canton regarding the reception of employees, meetings, events, etc. I'm very pleased to have been able to benefit from the support and advice of other federations, such as FIBA, World Rowing, and World Archery.
When will the move take place?
We don't have precise dates because we have to follow a protocol. I think the transfer will have started at the beginning of the second quarter. Realistically, we can expect to be fully operational in Lausanne from the third or fourth half of 2026.
Will leaving Paris cause a little pang of sadness?
A lot has happened for the IFAF during our time in France. I think we had the opportunity to be more involved in promoting France abroad, but there were several attempts that didn't pan out. Now, we need to focus on what makes sense for the community's activities. This isn't goodbye, it's just see you later. There will potentially be activities with the NFL in Paris someday; we'll be back very soon.
