The Fanatics Flag Football Classic is going stateside, and it might have an Olympic-like feel.
Tom Brady and a handful of current NFL stars of past and present will compete in the Fanatics Flag Football Classic, which will now be held at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will still be held on Saturday, March 21, after switching events, but Team USA Football will now participate in the event, according to a release.
With Team USA Football being added to the event, the Fanatics Flag Football Classic will now feature three 12-player teams. Brady and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts will captain Founders FFC, which will be coached by Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow will captain Wildcats FFC, which will be coached by San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Those two teams will draft their rosters from a pool of 24 players on Wednesday, March 18. NFL icon Rob Gronkowski, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, Cleveland Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett, NFL star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and WWE star Logan Paul will be among the pool of players drafted from that group.
New Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh will serve as a defensive specialist for both teams. Drew Brees and Larry Fitzgerald, who were both just voted for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, will serve as commissioners for the event.
The IFAF Flag Football World Champion U.S. Men’s National Team will make up the third roster in the event. That team will be captained by Aamir Brown and Darrell “Housh” Doucette and coached by Jorge Cascudo.
Brady invited the U.S. Men’s National Team to participate in the event after it asked to be included in a social media post this past week.
“I like the sound of that @usafootball – DM me and we’ll get it set up. Just know there’s no turning back,” Brady wrote in a social media post.
The event will serve as a precursor to flag football making its Olympic debut in the 2028 Summer Olympics. In fact, the Fanatics Flag Football Classic will be held in the same stadium where flag football will be played at for the upcoming Summer Games.
The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will also be played with the same rules as flag football will be played during the 2028 Summer Olympics. There’ll be two 15-minute halves with a running clock on a 50×25 yard field. Each team can only have five players on the field at a time.
All three teams will participate in a round-robin tournament. After those three games are played, the top two teams will advance to the championship.
The Fanatics Flag Football Classic will air live on FOX, FOX One and Tubi at 4 p.m. ET on March 21. The event will also be streamed internationally on the Fanatics YouTube channel. Actor and comedian Kevin Hart will serve as the host alongside actor and comedian Druski.
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