Photo byJakob OwensonUnsplash

The 2024 IFAF Flag Football World Championship was held August 27th-30th.

Not only did Team USA’s women’s team win gold, but Henderson’s very own Maci Joncich was a vital part of the team.

Maci Joncich

Before Maci Joncich was a WR/DB for Team USA, she learned the game locally.

At the age of 6, Joncich started her flag football career playing for the Apex Predators, a Las Vegas-based youth flag football club.

She then played high school football locally at Coronado High.

The 2024 Coronado High School grad was the youngest member of Team USA.

Joncich’s next stop is the University of Florida, where she plans on majoring in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology. There, she will also continue her playing career playing club flag football.

Women’s Flag Football Is Growing

Women’s flag football is a fast-growing sport, not only in Nevada but all over the world.

Currently, 11 states sanction flag football as a varsity high school spot. That number is only going to grow.

Women’s flag football is also slowly growing in the college ranks. 25 NAIA colleges offer flag football scholarships. In 2025, five NCAA Division 3 colleges will follow suit.

That’s just in the states. Twenty million people across 100 countries, including the 75 members of IFAF, play flag football.

So, flag football is a truly global sport.

2024 World Championships

In the 2024 Flag Football World Championships, Team USA’s women beat long-time rival Mexico 31–18 in the finals. That was Team USA’s third World Title in a row.

With the exception of a tight win over Spain in the quarterfinals, Team USA made it look easy.

2024 U.S. Women’s Flag National Team Games

• U.S. vs. Sweden: 40–6
• U.S. vs. Australia: 48–6
• U.S. vs. France: 37–6
• U.S. vs. Ireland: 59–6
• U.S. vs. Finland: 61–0 (Round of 16)
• U.S. vs. Spain: 18–14 (Quarterfinal)
• U.S. vs. Austria: 41–24 (Semifinal)
• U.S. vs. Mexico: 31–18 (Final)

With flag football coming to the Olympics in 2028, Team USA and Maci Joncich herself will undoubtedly be strong contenders for gold.