The International Federation of American Football

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The International Federation of American Football was formed in 1998 by founding nations Australia, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Sweden and Spain. By 2008 IFAF membership had increased to a total of 52 countries governed by five continental federations.

American Football has been played internationally since the late 1800s in countries such as Canada and the United States and can trace its roots in Japan back to the 1930s. The game gained popularity in Europe in the 1970s and gathered pace in the 1980s when sports enthusiasts were gripped by a surge in interest in both watching football on television and participating on the gridiron.

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http://www.ifaf.info/

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A record number of 35 countries were represented at the 12th annual International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Congress held in Canton, Ohio, in conjunction with the inaugural IFAF Junior World Championship.

While the United States, Canada and Japan were winning the tournament gold, silver and bronze medals respectively, IFAF membership continued to expand around the world. Seven countries - Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Venezuela - were granted full membership of IFAF.

"We are delighted to welcome these new and emerging federations of American football from Pan-American and Europe into the IFAF family," said IFAF President TOMMY WIKING. "The sport continues push its border internationally and by becoming IFAF members, these countries can benefit from a wealth of resources available through IFAF and also by communicating with fellow federations.

"Last year in Spain, 28 nations attended the IFAF Congress and this year's attendance illustrates how we are not only expanding but are also joining forces effectively to develop the sport."

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IFAF announced the venues for three future IFAF world championships:

•2010 IFAF Women's World Championship
Sweden will host the first historic world championship of American football when a minimum of four countries will compete in the Scandinavian nation's capital city of Stockholm in either late June or Early July 2010. In 2008, Finland and Sweden played the first-ever international match between two women's teams.

•2010 IFAF Flag Football Senior World Championship
Canada will host the fifth IFAF Flag Football Senior World Championship when the capital city of Ottawa welcomes male and female teams from August 11-16 to the athletic facilities at Carlton University. Canada also hosted the 2008 event in St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec, while previous tournaments have been held in Austria, France and Korea.

•2011 IFAF Senior World Championship
Austria has been confirmed as the host nation for the fourth IFAF Senior World Championship, which will be played in three cities in June or July of 2011. The Austrian capital of Vienna will be the venue for the Gold and Bronze Medal games and the fifth and seventh place playoffs as the senior national teams of eight nations assemble in Europe. Two groups of four teams will play in the cities of Linz and Graz for a place in the medal games. IFAF Senior World Championships have been hosted by Palermo, Italy (1999), Frankfurt, Germany (2003) and Kawasaki, Japan (2007).

The 2010 IFAF Congress will be held in Sydney, Australia in April of next year and the 2011 IFAF Congress will be held in Vienna, Austria, in conjunction with the 2011 IFAF Senior World Championship.

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A collection of 45 American teenagers gathered in Canton in the middle of June to complete a mission on the football field.

The mission was to win the 2009 International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Junior World Championship, an inaugural tournament being contested at Fawcett Stadium which consisted of players aged 19 and younger from eight countries, spanning four continents.

For USA Football's Junior National Team, that mission was accomplished Sunday July 5, 2009.

The second-seeded United States defeated top seed Canada 41-3 in the Gold Medal Game before a crowd of 15,473 fans at Fawcett Stadium.


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http://www.usafootball.com/articles/displayArticle/6924/8015

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USA Football is an independent non-profit organization leading the development of youth, high school, and international amateur football. In its role as the national governing body of America's favorite sport, USA Football provides programs and resources inspiring participation and further strengthening the quality of the game. USA Football was endowed by the NFL and NFL Players Association in 2002.

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TEAM USA
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http://www.usafootball.com/teamusa/index.php

We are part of the Pan-American Federation of American Football.

Growing the game of American Football in North, South and Central America and the Caribbean is the stated mission of the new Pan-American Federation of American Football (PAFAF).

The Federation was founded at a meeting between representatives of football organizations from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Argentina, and Uruguay in Miami on January 30, 2007.

“We made history in January by creating PAFAF as we support, and in times lead, the development of American Football internationally,” Scott Hallenbeck said. “It’s an honor to serve as the first president of PAFAF and lead such a passionate and committed group of national federation representatives, who enthusiastically pursue growing American Football in their countries.”

Four of the seven charter members of PAFAF (United States, Canada, Mexico and Guatemala) are already members of the nine year-old International Federation of American Football (IFAF), which was formed in 1998 with the expressed purpose of promoting the development of American Football worldwide. PAFAF will be the Pan-America Continental representative to IFAF.

The creation of the Pan-American Federation of American Football is further proof of the fast global growth of American Football,” said Tommy Wiking of Sweden, President of the International Federation of American Football (IFAF). “IFAF will continue its work to spread football.”

Among the issues PAFAF’s charter members discussed in the formation meeting were the organization’s statutes, election of officers and plans for growing the sport in the Western hemisphere.

Delegates from the seven countries elected Scott Hallenbeck of USA Football the first president of PAFAF. Jorge Orobio Rojas of Mexico, Marco Cobar of Guatemala, Guillermo Suarez of Panama and Fernando Rodriguez of Uruguay were also elected to the Board of Directors. PAFAF operations will be run out of the USA Football office in Vienna, Va.

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PAFAF Congress Adds Three Members

PANAMA CITY, PANAMA -The addition of three new members and a commitment to youth (15 and under) and junior (19 and under) development were the key accomplishments of the Pan-American Federation of American Football (PAFAF) Congress held on May 9 in Panama City.

Six of the seven founding members of the confederation - Argentina, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, the United States and Uruguay -were represented at the Congress. The seventh PAFAF member, Canada, was unable to attend.

Guests of the Congress included International Federation of American Football president Tommy Wiking, NFL International's Kathryn Kelly and American Football Coaches Association spokesman Todd Bell.

The Congress heard presentations from three prospective members - the Bahamas, Brazil and the Dominican Republic - before voting unanimously to accept all three as members of PAFAF.

The primary topic of discussion at the Congress was the development of youth and junior football throughout the Americas. PAFAF members agreed unanimously to focus their efforts over the next year on creating and expanding youth and junior flag football in their respective countries.

"The 2008 PAFAF Congress was a great success with productive discussion and a commitment to growing our great game at the youth and junior levels. We agreed that developing the game below the senior level is necessary to sustain the growth of football in the Americas," said PAFAF President Scott Hallenbeck.

The Congress host, the Panamanian Federation of American Football (PFAF), was presented as a model for developing federations to follow. Panama currently offers flag and contact leagues for ages 8 and older.

Panama's plan for growth includes the construction of a 5,000-seat football-only stadium in Panama City that will serve as the home base for the federation and has the potential to become a center for regional PAFAF competitions, clinics and training.

"The Panamanian Federation of American Football did a tremendous job of hosting the PAFAF Congress and we look forward to supporting their continued efforts to expand American football in Panama and Latin America," Hallenbeck added.

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IFAF announced the venues for three future IFAF world championships:

•2010 IFAF Women's World Championship
Sweden will host the first historic world championship of American football when a minimum of four countries will compete in the Scandinavian nation's capital city of Stockholm in either late June or Early July 2010. In 2008, Finland and Sweden played the first-ever international match between two women's teams.

•2010 IFAF Flag Football Senior World Championship
Canada will host the fifth IFAF Flag Football Senior World Championship when the capital city of Ottawa welcomes male and female teams from August 11-16 to the athletic facilities at Carlton University. Canada also hosted the 2008 event in St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Quebec, while previous tournaments have been held in Austria, France and Korea.

•2011 IFAF Senior World Championship
Austria has been confirmed as the host nation for the fourth IFAF Senior World Championship, which will be played in three cities in June or July of 2011. The Austrian capital of Vienna will be the venue for the Gold and Bronze Medal games and the fifth and seventh place playoffs as the senior national teams of eight nations assemble in Europe. Two groups of four teams will play in the cities of Linz and Graz for a place in the medal games. IFAF Senior World Championships have been hosted by Palermo, Italy (1999), Frankfurt, Germany (2003) and Kawasaki, Japan (2007).

The 2010 IFAF Congress will be held in Sydney, Australia in April of next year and the 2011 IFAF Congress will be held in Vienna, Austria, in conjunction with the 2011 IFAF Senior World Championship.

This years flag finals are on here, I'm hoping to be playing

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This years flag finals are on here, I'm hoping to be playing

for the US or Ireland?

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Ireland, I'm Irish

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Ireland, I'm Irish

OK xthumbsupx
I though maybe you were an American living in Ireland.
How popular is Gridiron Football there?

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OK xthumbsupx
I though maybe you were an American living in Ireland.
How popular is Gridiron Football there?

It is what it is a minority sport

But we have 12 kitted teams & around 20 flag.

It's a pretty popular viewers sport not as much playing. That said that amount of teams in a country this small isn't bad

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http://www.ifaf.info/articles/view/176

Our Super Bowl as it were. Hoping to head up to it