Girls Flag Football in Illinois
Sanctioned Illinois recognizes girls' flag football as a varsity sport with a state championship.
Is girls' flag football a varsity sport in Illinois?
Yes. Girls' flag football is sanctioned by the Illinois High School Association (IHSA), with a state championship. First sanctioned season: 2024-25. Checked against IHSA's own materials on 2026-09-15.
Does Illinois have girls' flag football?
Yes. High schools in Illinois play girls' flag football as a IHSA-sanctioned sport. The season is played in fall.
When is girls' flag football season in Illinois?
Fall; regionals late September, state finals mid-October. From IHSA's own materials.
Can you play college flag football in Illinois?
Yes. We have checked 3 varsity women's flag football programs at colleges in Illinois: College of DuPage (NJCAA), Lewis University (NCAA D-II), Triton College (NJCAA). Each is confirmed from its conference's, college's or governing body's own pages.
The details
| Governing body | Illinois High School Association (IHSA) |
|---|---|
| First sanctioned season | 2024-25 |
| Season | Fall; regionals late September, state finals mid-October |
| Participating schools | 234 |
| State championship | Yes, first held 2024 |
| Rule set | NFHS |
Checked on 2026-09-15 against IHSA's association quick facts and school manual.
IHSA Girls Flag Football Quick Facts for 2026-27 records the first year of the state series as 2024, with no classifications. Entries have grown each year: 154 schools in the 2024 series, 223 in 2025 and 234 in 2026. The series runs regional, sectional and state final, with 2026 state finals held as a two-day, four-session tournament on 16-17 October at Willowbrook High School, Villa Park. Plays under NFHS rules. Maine South won the 2025 title.
College programmes in Illinois
Varsity women's flag football programmes based in Illinois, checked against conference or school sources:
- College of DuPage — NJCAA
- Lewis University — NCAA D-II, GLIAC
- Triton College — NJCAA
See all checked college programmes.
How states sanction the sport
Every association sets its own requirements before it adds a sport. Our guide to how states sanction girls' flag football compares them.
Where Illinois fits nationally
23 states and the District of Columbia have sanctioned girls' flag football as a high school sport, by our count, and Illinois is one of them. See the national tracker for every state, or why published counts differ.
Neighboring states
Equipment rules in Illinois
| Flags | Two pop flags, one on each hip |
|---|---|
| Ball | Wilson GST Speedskin Heir for the state series |
From IHSA adoptions for NFHS flag football rules (2025-26). The NFHS rules apply where the state is silent — see equipment rules by state.
Illinois girls' flag football state champions
| 2026 | St. Charles North def. Prospect (Mount Prospect), 32-13 |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Maine South (Park Ridge) def. Whitney Young (Chicago), 26-6 |
| 2024 | Fremd (Palatine) def. Guilford (Rockford), 24-12 |
From the IHSA's own record. Every final we have confirmed is on our state champions page.
Funding for girls' flag football in Illinois
- Chicago Bears (Bears Care): More than $375,000 since 2022 in grants and in-kind donations (uniforms, cleats, headgear, mouthguards); helped launch the Chicago Public League in 2021. No open application found. (Bears timeline)
National grants open to schools anywhere are in our directory of girls' flag football grants.
More on girls' flag football
- How to start a girls' flag football team
- Grants and NFL club funding for girls' flag football
- Girls' flag football state champions, every state
- Women's flag football scholarships by division
- Flag football at the 2028 Olympics: where high school fits
- High school girls' flag football rules: the FAQ
- Equipment rules by state: headgear, mouthguards, flags, cleats
- How many girls play flag football, by state
- The sanctioning timeline, state by state
- When girls' flag football season is played in each state
- How the rules differ from state to state
- The pathway from high school to college
- Every state and the District of Columbia