The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) has partnered with its member federation in France to launch a joint development project aiming to share knowledge and best-practice among French-speaking nations.  The “Flag, football and Francophonie” initiative seeks to grow awareness and participation in the sport by establishing a dedicated think tank to which all stakeholders will be invited to contribute.  The partnership will build on the work of the French American Football Federation (FFFA) which, since 2018, has sought to play a leading role in the development and organization of American football in Europe and the world.  The project forms part of wider efforts to accelerate the global growth of American football, identified as a core pillar of IFAF’s strategic plan. The sport is enjoying booming popularity, spearheaded by the rise of the accessible, youth-friendly and inclusive flag football format. An estimated 20 million people are currently playing flag football, in more than 100 countries.  According to the International Francophonie Organization, French is spoken in 112 nations, by an estimated 255 million people every day. The number is expected to reach 820 million by 2050. Growth is fastest on the African continent, which is home to 90% of the world’s French speakers currently aged 15-29.  Brigitte Schliefer, President of the FFFA, said:  “We are proud of the years of work that have placed our federation in a position of international influence. This latest project, with IFAF’s oversight, will give the FFFA an opportunity to play its part in the global development of American football. It will enable us to share with all French-speaking federations the fundamentals of our development programmes for flag and tackle football. I am really excited by the idea of putting French expertise at the service of everyone.”  Pierre Trochet, President of IFAF, added:  “We are proud to partner in this innovative project that places the resources of the French federation at the service of our sport’s development in some of the youngest and fastest-growing regions of the world. It is an opportunity to fast-track progress across our many shared objectives, which centre on harnessing the power of flag football to drive rapid growth in participation, transforming the lives of millions of young people around the world.”  In addition to driving participation in French-speaking countries, the initiative is also motivated by a desire to support efforts towards flag football’s inclusion in major multi-sport Games, by growing awareness of the fast, modern and spectacular format with its strong educational and societal values.  Flag football is one of nine additional sports shortlisted for potential inclusion in the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028. The discipline is well suited to the multi-sport environment, and the platform of major Games will provide a catalyst to the development of American football throughout the world, bringing benefits to all the players, coaches, officials and leaders who make up the sport’s global family.  The first phase of the “Flag, Football and Francophonie” project will launch in the second trimester of 2023 with the core topic of training and education. All affiliated French-speaking nations will be invited to come together to share information, ideas and experiences.