IFAF Congress approves landmark reforms, strengthening American Football’s alignment with Olympic Movement

The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) has approved a series of landmark reforms at the XXVII Congress in Lausanne, Switzerland, concluding a record-breaking year for the sport and reinforcing its place in the Olympic Movement.

Delegates from five continents, representing a broad spectrum of IFAF’s 75 member federations, came together in Lausanne - the Olympic Capital - to vote on a series of significant reforms designed to reinforce IFAF’s governance structures, advance gender equality within the sport’s leadership, and broaden access to full membership.

More than 25 years after IFAF’s establishment in Paris, France, Congress approved the relocation of the federation’s headquarters to the Maison du Sport International in Lausanne, Switzerland, placing IFAF at the heart of global sport administration and deepening its integration within the Olympic Movement.

Members also backed the inclusion of new gender-equality initiatives in IFAF Statutes, including:

• The creation of a Female Vice President position on the IFAF Executive Board

• A second athlete position on the IFAF Executive Board, enabling equal representation of men’s and women’s athletes and further strengthening the athlete voice in governance

• A new Women’s Leadership Programme for all IFAF member federations, working towards a target of one-third female board representation

In addition, Congress approved immediate changes to membership criteria, removing a requirement for full members of IFAF to operate both tackle and flag football programmes. The move reflects the explosive global popularity of flag football - the more accessible, Olympic discipline - and is expected to support continued growth in emerging nations.

IFAF President Pierre Trochet, said: “This vote is a clear statement that IFAF - and our global American football family - believes its future belongs at the heart of the Olympic Movement.

“I am proud to lead this fast-growing community in a time of extraordinary opportunity. The momentum is real, and so is our responsibility to evolve as a model modern federation. We are entering a new era here in the Olympic Capital, not to celebrate what we have done but to prepare what we must deliver on the road to LA28 and beyond.”

Diana Flores, Chair of IFAF’s Athlete Committee, said: “Growing the representation of women in American Football - and strengthening the role of athletes in leadership - is my personal mission and something I have campaigned for passionately as an IFAF Board Member. Today is one of the proudest days I have experienced with IFAF, but we need to recognize that it is just the start. Building on this important commitment, I am determined to keep opening more doors for women and girls at all levels in our sport.”

Congress voted at the end of a day that also saw presentations from IFAF’s strategic partners with speakers including Pedro Dias, Gender Equality and Inclusion Manager at the International Olympic Committee, Mairi Irvine, Senior Education Manager at the International Testing Agency and Afia Law, International Flag Football development lead at the National Football League.

The event concludes a year that has seen unprecedented growth across global American Football, with:

• 101 senior national teams participating in IFAF Continental flag football competition over four events, including the inaugural IFAF African Flag Football Championships held in Cairo, Egypt in June;

• A 48% increase in nations holding IFAF Flag Football World Rankings since 2022, reflecting rapid global expansion since flag was confirmed on the programme of the LA28 Olympic Games;

• Major changes across the global competitive landscape, including Mexico’s women rising to world #1 for the first time, Australia’s men jumping eight places to World No 8 and China’s women becoming the highest ranked newcomers at World #18.

Attention now turns to 2026, expected to be a game-changing year as the world’s best teams prepare for a new-look IFAF Flag Football World Championship in Düsseldorf, Germany from 13 - 16 August. Just 16 men’s and 16 women’s teams have qualified via IFAF’s continental championships for what will be the biggest international flag football event before the sport’s Olympic debut.