The University of Wisconsin-Parkside will add women’s flag football as a varsity sport beginning competition in the 2026–27 academic year, becoming the first NCAA university in Wisconsin to offer athletic scholarships for the sport.
Women’s flag football will be the 17th varsity program within Parkside Athletics, Wisconsin’s only NCAA Division II athletic program.
“This program reflects who we are as an institution—forward-thinking, student-centered, and committed to creating new pathways to compete, lead, and succeed,” Chancellor Lynn Akey said. “We are proud to help shape the future of this sport.”
The move comes as women’s flag football gains national momentum. The sport received an NCAA Emerging Sport recommendation in 2025 and is scheduled to debut as an Olympic sport at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Games.
“This is more than the addition of a sport,” Director of Athletics Adam Schemm ’08 said. “It’s an investment in student opportunity, leadership, and community engagement.”
Participation in girls flag football continues to grow nationwide. Nearly 50,000 athletes competed during the 2024–25 school year, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. For 2025–26, 16 states have sanctioned the sport, with 18 additional states operating pilot programs.
UW-Parkside currently sponsors 16 varsity sports, where more than 340 student-athletes compete and achieve, posting a combined 3.55 cumulative GPA during the fall 2025 semester. UW-Parkside is a Universities of Wisconsin institution and serves more than 4,100 students located in the heart of the dynamic Chicago-Milwaukee corridor.
An announcement regarding the program’s inaugural head coach will be made shortly.
Any prospective student-athletes should click here to fill out the questionnaire, or visit ParksideRangers.com/FlagRecruit.
The addition of women’s flag football is supported in part by a $1 million gift from the Brookwood Foundation announced last month. The UW-Parkside Foundation has also established a matching challenge grant to support the women’s flag football program.
Written by UW-Parkside
Link to original story: https://parksiderangers.com/news/2026/1/7/uw-parkside-to-add-womens-flag-football-first-ncaa-university-in-wisconsin-to-offer-scholarships.aspx