On the back of 2023’s surge in women’s participation in Flag Football — thanks in part to Co-Ed flag football blitz days in the summer and the first ever competition entry for the Women’s Irish Wolfhounds Flag Football team in August’s IFAF European Championships — as well as the recent We Run the World Ireland flag football event in Dublin, American Football Ireland are thrilled to announce Ireland’s first Women’s Flag Football League, which will launch this Spring.
Speaking on the formation of this league, Interim Director of Flag Football Kelly Dwyer had this to say:
“The establishment of a women’s flag football league is a first in AFI history which comes after a year of genuine committed dedication to the development of this code.
Naturally, women in sport is a topic very close to my heart and I am personally incredibly proud to deliver these plans – but I would like to thank all those who are unseen and who have given their help and support behind the scenes, without whom this wouldn’t be possible.
The inaugural Women’s Premier League will consist of 4 game-days and the league structure has been built with accessibility for new teams in mind. The first three days are seeding days, where teams will receive points based on win, draw, loss (3 points, 1 point and 0.5 points, respectively) and the league table after game-day three will dictate the seeding for games on Finals day.
So any team is welcome to join the league at any stage – but early participation is rewarded!
Proposed game days are 13th April, 20th April, June 1st with Claddagh Bowl on June 15th.
Ultimately, and like every flag football event, it’s the clubs that participate that will make this new league a success.
What excites me most about this is that, over the last year, the conversation about women in our sport has moved from being primarily about “participation” to now being about “competition”. Competition is the new standard set by women in flag football and I’m excited to see where we’ll be this time next year!”
Though not yet confirmed for The Women’s Premier League, clubs such as South Dublin Panthers, Belfast Trojans and Dublin Rebels have previously submitted teams into co-ed tournaments and women’s only tournaments, while women-only teams that made their debut at We Run the World Ireland like the Cork City Tabbies and Phoenix Football are also potential additions to the league. Team applications to participate and to host game days can be sent via this link:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1wD_SVAyVqoVWV8C2FQ5YYD2qOhPZIqmV-YQGyNy1hsw/edit