National Gay Flag Football League
| |
Sport | Flag football |
---|---|
Founded | 2002 |
Commissioner | Thurman Williams |
Country | United States |
Headquarters | New York City |
Official website |
ngffl |
National Gay Flag Football League (NGFFL) is a nonprofit LGBT flag football league, currently comprising 200 teams in 24 leagues in the United States and Canada.
History
The NGFFL was founded by Jim Buzinski and Cyd Zeigler[1] in 2002.[2] Teams compete in the national championship tournament to win the Gay Bowl.[1] The championship takes place annually over Columbus Day weekend.[3] The first tournament was held in 2002 at Hollywood High School[3] in Los Angeles, California. It was a two-day event with teams from San Francisco, Boston, and Los Angeles competing.[4] LA Motion won the first Gay Bowl. In 2003, Boston hosted Gay Bowl III. The New England Patriots sent Andre Tippett to officiate the ceremonial coin toss.[5] The DC Gay Flag Football League won the Gay Bowl in 2003 and 2004.[6] In 2005, Chicago Freeze won the Bowl.[7]
In 2016, the Gay Bowl held in Washington, D.C.[8] on the National Mall.[6]
In 2017, the San Diego Bolts were the five-time defending champions of the tournament.[3][5] In 2017, the New England Patriots sponsored the Gay Bowl XVII. Additional sponsors included several Boston teams including the Red Sox,[9] Celtics, and the Bruins.[10] This is the first time professional sports franchises have sponsored the Gay Bowl.[11] The tournament took place at Progin Park in Lancaster, Massachusetts. There were three divisions in the tournament, Open A, Open B, and Women's.[3] The New York Warriors won the A-Division Gay Bowl XVII.[10] The Gay Bowl XVIII is scheduled take place in Denver.[10]
Teams
Currently, 200 teams in 24 leagues in the United States and Canada are part of the NGFFL.[12][13] DC Gay Flag Football League is one of the oldest members of the League.[6] The NGFFL imposes a limit on the number of heterosexual players at twenty percent on each team's roster for the Gay Bowl. This is enforced using the honor system.[14]
Media coverage
The NGFFL was the subject of the 2015 documentary F(l)ag Football. It features several people including Wade Davis, Cyd Zeigler, and Brenton Metzler.[1][15]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 de la Cretaz, Britni (2017-07-06). "Inside the National Gay Flag Football League With 'F(l)ag Football'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Sastre, Sole (2016-06-28). "South Africa's rugby team Jozi Cats defy gay stereotypes". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- 1 2 3 4 Butler, Alex (2017-05-25). "New England Patriots sponsoring Gay Bowl XVII". UPI. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Atkinson, Michael (2009). Battleground sports. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press. ISBN 9780313087875. OCLC 428819414.
- 1 2 Zeigler, Cyd (2017-05-21). "New England Patriots sponsoring Gay Bowl 17 in Boston this October". Outsports. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- 1 2 3 Zeigler, Cyd (2016-09-16). "DC Gay Flag Football League produces 2017 calendar". Outsports. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Forman, Ross (2012-09-19). "Four Chicago teams to vie for Gay Bowl crown". Windy City Times. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ "Flag football league brings annual 'Gay Bowl' to Boston area". Boston Herald. 2017-10-07. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Nicole, Nicole (2017-06-10). "The Red Sox announced their sponsorship of the Gay Bowl at Pride night at Fenway". Boston.com. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- 1 2 3 Avery, Dan (2017-10-09). "The New England Patriots Donated $25,000 To A Gay Football Tournament". LOGO News. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Dowling, Brian (2017-10-08). "Local pro teams back Gay Bowl". Boston Herald. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ "National Gay Flag Football League - Home". ngffl.com. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Sales, Bethany (2017-09-27). "Have you heard of the other Super Bowl? You're about to. Gay Bowl XVII is here". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
- ↑ Bishop, Greg (2011-06-29). "Softball Case Raises Question: Who Qualifies as Gay?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-06-05.
- ↑ Jaworowski, Ken (2017-06-15). "Review: 'F(l)ag Football' Finds Gay Athletes Upending Stereotypes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-06-05.