UT Arlington to create first Division-1 women’s flag football team in Texas
As flag football expands across Texas, UT Arlington will become the first Division 1 athletic program from the Lone Star state to start a women’s flag football team.
UT Arlington President Jennifer Cowley announced the team on Thursday, and it will debut in the Spring of 2027, acknowledging football is king in Texas.
There are only five Division 1 women’s flag football teams in the country, including UT Arlington, and three in Texas across all divisions.
UT Arlington Director of Athletics Jon Fagg explained the appeal of adding the sport.
“This sport has so much upside,” said Fagg, “I’ve been here a couple of years and from day one, Dr. Cowley and I talked about potentially adding women’s sports, and as we got more serious, she was the one who said, ‘hey, what about flag football?’ It just had so much upside. It meshes well with NIL and the new age of sport. We decided let’s get out in front of the curve and picture ourselves being a national powerhouse.”
Flag football will only continue to grow in Texas and beyond, especially with its addition to the 2028 Summer Olympics set to take place in Los Angeles.
