FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                             CONTACTS

NFL                  11/15/01                                              BRIAN McCARTHY, NFL

                                                                        mccarthyb@nfl.com, 212/450-2069

           

STEVE ALIC, NFL

                                                                                    alics@nfl.com, 212/450-2066

 

YOUNGSTERS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY PLAY IN NFL FLAG NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS SATURDAY AT WALT DISNEY WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS COMPLEX

 

Youth Teams From 16 Cities Compete on the Gridiron for NFL Youth Football Crown

 

NFL Flag football champions will be crowned Saturday, Nov. 17, at the NFL FLAG National Tournament of Champions at the Walt Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla.

 

Twenty-three teams from 16 cities have advanced to NFL Flag’s National Championship tournament from a pool of approximately 100,000 girls and boys across the United States. All 23 teams qualified for the NFL Flag National Championships by virtue of their NFL Flag regional tournament performances in October and early November.

 

For the right to be named NFL Flag Champions, teams will compete for titles in 9-11 Year Old Coed; 12-14 Year Old Girls and 12-14 Year Old Boys Divisions. Teams hail from the following cities:

 

·         Chicago

·         Denver

·         El Centro, Calif.

·         Las Vegas

·         Los Angeles

·         Miami

·         New York City

·         Pittsburgh

·         Preston, Md.

·         North Miami Beach, Fla.

·         Redding, Calif.

·         Rocklin, Calif.

·         Runnemede, N.J.

·         St. Petersburg, Fla.

·         Wayne, N.J.

·         West Sacramento, Calif.

 

For the second-consecutive year, ESPN and ESPN2 will televise the NFL Flag National Tournament of Champions on Jan. 2, 16, 19 and 23. Former NFL star quarterback BOOMER ESIASON, the official spokesperson for NFL Flag, will host the telecasts. Proceeds from NFL Flag benefit the Boomer Esiason Foundation for Cystic Fibrosis. Esiason also is an NFL Flag coach for his children’s teams.

 

“We’re very excited about this year’s field of NFL Flag Tournament of Champions finalists,” said NFL Senior Director of Youth Football Development Scott Lancaster. “To get to this point, these teams not only have shown talent on the football field, but also a high level of teamwork. All of these teams play well together.”

 

Parents or guardians across the United States may register their children to play in NFL Flag leagues by calling 1-800-NFL-SNAP or by logging on to www.playfootball.com.

 

NFL Flag is part of a series of NFL Youth Football Development programs that provide exciting ways for even more children to play, watch, experience and enjoy the game of football. The NFL is the favorite sports league of kids, according to the 2000 ESPN Kids Sports Poll.

 

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