Two years ago, a dramatic moment during a high school flag football game between Hamilton High School and Casteel High School helped propel the sport forward. Former Arizona Cardinals youth football club manager Mo Streety recalls that game as a key turning point for girls’ flag football.
“The AIA president was there, and a key play at the end of the game was a girl kicked a field goal,” Streety said. “The ball goes through the goalposts and into the pool during a swim meet. And everybody, even the swimmers, just cheered; it got loud. And he looked at me and said, ‘We’re going to do this,’ and that was it.”
Streety, who worked with the Cardinals for 20 years, witnessed the growth of flag football in the Southwest, largely thanks to the Cardinals’ efforts to host regional NFL flag tournaments and state championships. These events became crucial to the sport’s expansion, helping players make the leap to the NFL and, more recently, inspiring young girls to take up the game.
Streety collaborated with Renee Small, a prominent female referee in NFL Flag leagues, to create opportunities for youth in the sport. Small’s experience includes refereeing at various levels, as well as founding her own assigning company to improve the environment among officials.
Nearly 21 years ago, Small moved from Massachusetts to Arizona with her son to train with Streety. In Boston, she had trained her son, but in Phoenix, Streety saw her potential and began working with her. Small’s dedication to flag football and her leadership in officiating helped her stand out in a male-dominated field.
“I wanted to give back and change the culture a little bit,” Small said. “I saw it changing with younger referees, and the appreciation, and the love, and respect for being an official.”
Small’s commitment to the sport has earned her respect, and she has become a key advocate for girls in sports, both as an official and a role model. Over the years, she has seen flag football’s female participation grow, and the surge in interest makes her proud.
“It’s grown so much and made me so happy to see,” Small said. “Little girls run up to me like, ‘I want to be an official when I grow up. I’m so glad you’re my official. Where have you been?’”
Robert Judkins, former NFL broadcast engineer and partner at Blue Chip Youth Sports, has also witnessed flag football’s rapid growth from behind the scenes. His company is working to increase the sport’s visibility by covering games and tournaments, with a particular focus on highlighting young female athletes.
“Now that flag 2028 will be an Olympic sport, it’s just going to exponentially take off, in addition to worldwide,” Judkins said. “We’re starting to see that worldwide growth, and other countries are becoming interested in American flag football.”
Judkins has seen the rise of talented female athletes, with competition growing in intensity and making flag football an exciting sport to watch.
“Flag football for girls in the last two years, it’s just been growing like crazy,” Judkins said. “I actually think the girls’ competition and the girls’ play is much more intense and just a lot of fun to watch; some of the athletes are just amazing.”
Small encourages these athletes to also excel in academics and demonstrate leadership both on and off the field. “I want them to set an example that your grades still have to matter and your behavior outside of sports has to matter,” she said.
The future of collegiate flag football looks bright, especially for female athletes who already excel in multiple sports. Streety sees the potential for these athletes to play flag football along with other college sports like volleyball, basketball, and soccer. “It’s just making them understand this is yet another opportunity to get a scholarship,” he said.
Changing the culture of a sport takes time, but Small’s advocacy and leadership have already made a lasting impact. Her work has even inspired her granddaughter, who helped establish a flag football club at her school and scored the first touchdown in the club’s history.
“I was just so proud of her,” Small said. “I told her, ‘Now you’re an advocate. You can now carry the torch.’”
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