Cairo: Nigeria’s women’s and men’s teams have been crowned the inaugural IFAF African Flag Football champions as the sport marked a major milestone on its journey to a first Olympic Games appearance in Los Angeles 2028. The Nigerian men edged a thrilling final game, winning 13-12 to claim gold over hosts Egypt in front of a loud and high-spirited home crowd inside the Club One Stadium in Maadi, Cairo, where distinguished guests included Egypt’s Minister of Youth and Sport Dr. Ashraf Sobhi.
According to African Press Organization, in the women’s tournament, Nigeria put out a confident performance to take victory over Morocco 26-12 in the final, with two decisive second-half touchdowns thrown by quarterback Anuoluwapo Bello. Bronze medalists Tunisia (men) and Egypt (women) completed the historic podiums.
“It’s amazing, it’s surreal, it’s history, it’s unbelievable,” said Nigeria men’s quarterback Hayes Obinna-Uzoh. “We’ve made history.” Egypt men’s quarterback Mahmoud Aboushady added, “We went for it, but we came up just short. The crowd was awesome, and it was a big crowd who were all cheering and that was really touching.” Morocco women’s center, silver medallist Sonia Mouimen noted, “We usually don’t see crowds of this size making so much noise unless it is at soccer matches. I am very proud of my team.”
Flag football, one of the world’s fastest-growing sports, is developing quickly across Africa, with many of IFAF’s member federations in the continent recording more than 100% growth in participation last year. The Africa Flag 2025 tournament was delivered in partnership with the NFL, who are working with IFAF to drive the development of flag football in Africa.
In an effort to ensure the event builds on the legacy for American football across the continent, the NFL is hosting a series of wraparound activities in Cairo. These include a continental NFL Flag youth championship for U12 boys and girls teams from across Africa, an NFL talent identification session with the potential for players to advance to the NFL Africa-Europe Academy and International Player Pathway (IPP) program, and a coaching education clinic for aspiring female coaches from Africa, conducted in partnership with IFAF.
Two current NFL players, New York Giants’ Bobby Okereke (Nigeria) and Tanoh Kpassagnon (Ivory Coast/Uganda), traveled to Cairo to join these activities and were present to witness the historic finals session alongside two-time Super Bowl winner and NFL Africa lead Osi Umeniyora. “The first African Continental Championship was a tremendous success, and Egypt proved to be the perfect host as we continue our journey to grow flag football across Africa,” said Umeniyora. “It was inspiring to see nations from across the continent come together for the two-day event and showcase the incredible talent of their young athletes.”
IFAF President Pierre Trochet remarked, “Every player and official who set foot on the field in Cairo this week can claim a piece of history. I’m enormously proud and grateful to our Egyptian federation, who have hosted this milestone event with great professionalism and warmth.”
The IFAF African Flag Football World Championships were hosted over two days by the Egyptian Federation of American Football. Its President Ali Rafeek shared, “No words can truly capture the emotion of this moment. It was a world-class competition filled with outstanding performances and, above all, incredible energy.”
The event in Cairo also witnessed the kick-off of IFAF’s new, comprehensive partnership with the International Testing Agency, whose staff were present to deliver anti-doping education activities for participating athletes and team officials. The IFAF Flag Football Continental Championship series will continue in September with the EURO FLAG 2025 event in Paris, France.