2028 Olympic Games News & Rumors

The NFL will go forward with permitting players to participate in the 2028 Summer Olympics’ flag football event. Owners have approved a previously reported measure involving the new Olympic sport, Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports.

In a development that will certainly make other countries’ efforts to claim gold in flag football more difficult, the NFL voted unanimously to approve the measure (via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Although this will not greenlight unlimited participation among players, a formidable collection will be in line to take part in July 2028.

As referenced recently, the proposal will allow only one player per NFL team to participate for his country. A separate player in the league’s international pathway program could participate for his home nation, however. Seeing as the majority of NFL players are Americans, Tuesday’s approval vote primarily impacts the host country’s approach to the new noncontact event at the Los Angeles Games.

This will not exactly rival the NBA’s famed Dream Team from the 1992 Games. Football is not a global game (the NFL’s increased international forays notwithstanding) and no restrictions on who could participate existed involving the NBA in 1992. The Bulls (Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen) and Jazz (Karl Malone, John Stockton) each sent multiple players as part of Team USA.

Though, the flag format will present a five-on-five event. Six men’s and women’s teams will be part of the new discipline. Rosters will include 10 players in total, limiting the spots available to a flood of qualified performers. Games will take place on a 70-yard field, 9News’ Mike Klis notes.

The L.A. Games are set to run from July 14-30, which is on the earlier side for a Summer Olympics. That will help NFL players return on time — or soon after — to training camps. Marquise Goodwin was on rosters while he made bids to make Olympic teams, but his efforts never conflicted with training camp. A 2012 Olympian in the long jump while he was still at Texas, Goodwin did not qualify for the 2016 or 2021 Games. Sprinter Jeff Demps joined Goodwin as a London Olympian, being part of the 4×100-meter team. But the 2012 UDFA did not sign with a team — the Patriots — until after the Games concluded.

Teams will see some players arrive late to camp come 2028. Though, padded 11-on-11 work will not be slated to commence — for teams not involved in the Hall of Fame Game, that is — while the flag football event is being contested. That said, players will need to be present for tryouts; it will be interesting to when those will take place ahead of the ’28 Games.

A salary cap credit will be put into place for any injured player, according to ESPN; this would presumably cover teams in the event of missed games only. A leaguewide insurance policy providing injury protection for players is also expected to be included in this agreement, a buildup our Adam La Rose has covered for over a year here.

Generations of NFL players, barring select track and field standouts (and brief bobsledder Herschel Walker), have been unable to do compete in the Olympics. Jockeying for spots at tryouts will be interesting when that time comes.

Justin Jefferson will be one of the players, in all likelihood, in play to represent Team USA. The Vikings wideout has not decided if he will do so (via ESPN.com’s Brooke Pryor), though he has called it “a dream” to represent his nation in the Olympics. Patrick Mahomes, Mike Evans and Tyreek Hill have also expressed interest, though the two wideouts may have an uphill battle due to their respective ages. How this approval impacts NFL secondaries will also be something to watch. Considering Travis Hunter‘s skillset, he would stand to be an obvious choice — assuming the Jaguars draftee stays on his present course.

How other countries’ rosters look will be an interesting storyline to monitor, though with NFL players likely to comprise all of Team USA’s 10-man squad, the host nation will undoubtedly enter as the gold-medal favorite. Flag football, on the men’s and women’s side, has made notable inroads into the world’s sports lexicon in recent years; the revamped Pro Bowl Games provide perhaps the most notable example. Although this team is three years away from being assembled, the flag football event will be a regular talking point within the league until those Summer Games commence.

10:00pm: Providing clarity on today’s resolution, NFL EVP Jeff Miller said (via Tashan Reed of The Athletic) the proposal in place would allow for one player per team, per country to take place (i.e. NFL teams could in fact have multiple representatives).

ESPN’s Kevin Seifert notes the resolution being considered would see league-wide insurance policies purchased as injury protection for players taking part in the Olympics. Salary cap credits would be in place for teams in the event of injury.

10:35am: During his most recent comments on the subject, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell expressed optimism many of the logistical issues pertaining to Olympic participation in 2028 would be sorted out in the near future. Another step toward allowing NFL players to take part in the debut of flag football could take place later this month.

A resolution has been drafted on the topic, as noted by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The proposal in place would see each NFL team send up to one player to the Los Angeles Olympics; players granted an international roster exemption would also be eligible to participate. The resolution will be voted on at the upcoming league meetings.

Unlike the March version of that summit, where coaches and general managers were in attendance, only owners will be present next week. A split between the league and owners is believed to be in place on the topic of Olympic participation. Injury risks in a non-NFL environment represents a natural cause for concern, and the timing of the Games (July 14-30) means NFL training camp schedules may need to be adjusted. Discussions between the league and union date back to at least last February, and further negotiations on this matter will continue into the future.

The NFL played a central role in making flag football an Olympic event, and having active players take part would obviously help the league’s goal of expanding its footprint on a global scale. Overcoming owners’ concerns and the legal roadblocks to non-NFL football activities will be key, though, and the NFLPA will be involved in any arrangement which comes about. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes the union is likely to side with the NFL in supporting Olympic participation, something active players like Tyreek Hill and Mike Evans have publicly endorsed.

A new round of discussions about the Olympics took place in March, and those talks no doubt weighed heavily on the drafting of this resolution. It will be interesting to see if enough support amongst owners will exist for it to pass or if a different approach will prove necessary.

APRIL 7: Tension appears to exist between the NFL and owners on the matter of Olympic participation, as noted by Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. Members of the latter group are understandably hesitant about players getting injured in a non-NFL environment and missing offseason time with their respective teams in the process. It will be interesting to see if progress toward an agreement addressing this matter comes about in the near future.

APRIL 6: 2028 will mark the debut of flag football as an Olympic event. The prospect of NFL players taking part has been raised on several occasions, so to no surprise it was a topic of discussion at the recent league meetings.

When speaking to the media on the subject, commissioner Roger Goodell said he has heard from several players (American and otherwise) expressing a desire to play at the Olympics. Several matters related to insurance and timing will need to be worked out for that to be feasible, since the Games are scheduled for July 14-30. Discussions related to moving training camp and other issues have taken place, and further progress could be coming soon.

“I think that’s something that we’ll continue to discuss with, not just the union, but also the clubs,” Goodell said, via ESPN’s Stephen Holder. “I think both of those [injuries and scheduling] are things that we’ll probably resolve sometime in the next 60 days.”

Clarity for all parties involved would be welcomed as NFL players look ahead to playing on the international stage. It was clear last February a mutual interest existed between the league and the NFLPA for an agreement paving the way for participation to be made possible. Wideouts Tyreek Hill and Mike Evans are among the active players who have publicly stated a desire to take part in the Olympics.

The NFL played a central role in making flag football an Olympic event, and having strong representation from the league could help lead to further interest in the sport on a global level. The NFL’s continued exploration of international venues for regular season contests marks another sign of its willingness to grow football in general and flag in particular. On that note, it was reported around the time of the Super Bowl that work was taking place for the creation of a professional flag football league.

Goodell said at the league meetings (via NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero) bids are coming in with respect to a flag league getting off the ground. On that front as well, Goodell expects progress to be made in the near future. Provided things go according to plan, flag football will – in more than one capacity – remain a key priority for the league now and for several years to come.