IFAF World
TWG2022 First Gold Medals
15 July 2022
Mexico (women) and USA (men) have won historic, first-ever gold medals in flag football at The World Games 2022 in Birmingham, Alabama with USA (women) and Italy (men) taking home silver. On a stunning final night in the Magic City, flag football made its mark as a debut sport at the global multi-sport event, giving its fast-paced, highly skilled and world-class athletes the opportunity to shine on the world stage.
In the women’s final, Mexico were runaway winners over world champions USA, scoring a momentous 39-6 victory. Despite plenty of support from noisy fans at Birmingham’s historic Legion Field, USA were unable to keep up with Mexico, who never looked in any doubt throughout the lightning fast game.
In the men’s final, home favorites and reigning world champions USA were pushed to the limit by Italy, in what was a highly competitive encounter. Scores were tied 24-all at halftime after Italy put the first points on the board early in the first half. The US came out strong in the second half, however, eventually winning the game 46-36.
Earlier, in the men’s bronze medal play off, Mexico and Austria battled it out in a hard-fought encounter, with Mexico eventually prevailing 39-35. While in the women’s, Panama took the lead early on in their game against Austria and never relinquished it, running away 40-19 winners to claim the bronze.
Speaking after the medal presentation, IFAF President, Pierre Trochet, said: “Tonight has been a fitting conclusion to what has been an amazing week here at The World Games 2022. We have written a new page in our history book and I want to thank the organizers, the volunteers, the fans and, most importantly, the incredible athletes for making it so special. The standard of football on display tonight at Legion Field has been simply amazing and it really highlights how well flag fits in this style of multi-sport event.”
Mexico's gold medal winning quarterback, Diana Flores, added: “It is a dream come true not only for me but for all my team, for flag football in Mexico and for flag football worldwide. For Mexico this is the start of a new era. We are excited to see how big this sport can get. We are happy to show the world how passionate and how much heart the athletes put in. I want to thank The World Games for giving us this opportunity so that everyone can share this passion and this love for the game.”
Flag football made its historic debut at The World Games 2022 in Birmingham, Alabama earlier this week when 16 of the world’s top teams began their pursuit for gold. It was the first time flag had been included on the official programme of the global multi-sport event and marked a landmark moment in the development of the popular, non-contact, inclusive format, which continues to grow rapidly around the world.
