To celebrate the sport being sanctioned in California, the Los Angeles Rams hosted their inaugural Girl’s Flag Football Jamboree, presented by Bridgestone at Loyola Marymount University. The event brought together over one thousand girl’s flag football players from throughout Southern California.
Teams competed against each other in flag football and tug-of-war tournaments. The Jamboree also featured a “Women in Business” panel discussion and a vendor village.
“One of our pillars is creating access and opportunity and we want girls to know that football is a sport that they deserve to play,” said Rams associate manager of social justice and football development Noel Grigsby. “With a thousand-plus girls, they love to play just as much as anyone else. The energy, the enthusiasm, camaraderie, the smiles and the excitement, makes it all worth it.”
Rams director of social justice and football development Johnathan Franklin and Grigsby were not only the masterminds behind the event, but they worked to make girl’s flag football a sanctioned sport in California.
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“I just have such tremendous gratitude and appreciation for their efforts,” said Rams executive vice president in community impact and engagement Molly Higgins. “We had probably 15 Rams staff give up their Saturday to come and pour into these young women and speak to them about their career journey.”
The panel discussion included Rams senior director of partnership management Brittany Ramos and Bridgestone Americas Senior Manager of Partnership Marketing Caitlyn Ranson with Higgins acting as the moderator. Being a former student athlete, Ranson was happy to see young women compete in a sport that was not available for her to play in her formative years.
“It is so incredible to see the amount of girls out here today and to have them all be able to come play the game that they love,” Ranson said. “For Bridgestone, it’s super important for us to continue to create that equitable opportunity and create access to future generations.”
The vendor village included resources and information from the USA Football National Team, LMU, and Massov Athletics.
Eastside High School freshman Torre Harris mentioned how the Jamboree helped her bond with her teammates.
“We get to learn each other more because we like all playing together and communicate on the field,” Harris said.
Lancaster High School senior Raeon Nicholson recognized how the Jamboree was great for networking with students from different parts of the SoCal region.
“It’s good for you to meet and experience other people’s energy,” Nicholson said. “Since [the Rams] are putting this out and it’s multiple L.A. County districts, it’s very good for us.”
Flag football is a sport on the rise, the International Olympic Committee approved the sport for the 2028 Summer Olympics. Arlington flag football coach Adam Wright is excited about the momentum of the sport.
“Some kids may have never ever touched sport and now they’re wanting to dabble in it,” Wright said. “They’re all starting from a pretty similar learning curve.”
