In recognition of the 37th annual National Girls & Women in Sports Day, the New York Jets, Nike and Gatorade announce the expansion of the Jets High School Girls Flag Football League which will continue play in Spring of 2023.
In collaboration with the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, North Jersey Super Football Conference, Big Central Conference, and North Jersey Interscholastic Conference, over 100 high schools from Hudson Valley, Long Island and New Jersey will participate in Jets High School Girls Flag Football Leagues. All new schools will receive implementation grants and/or equipment from the Jets and Nike. Additionally, each school will receive uniforms from Nike's Girls Flag Football line of apparel.
This is the third year for the Jets High School Girls Flag Football League in New Jersey, the second in Long Island with Section VIII and Section XI high schools, and the first in the Hudson Valley with Section IX high schools. The league will culminate with New York State and New Jersey Championship games at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center on June 10.
As part of the announcement, the Jets, Nike and Gatorade hosted players from four teams from Eastside High School (Paterson, NJ), Kingston High School (NY), Plainedge High School (North Massapequa, NY) and Harry Van Arsdale High School (Brooklyn, NY) at MetLife Stadium for a surprise uniform reveal in the Jets locker room. Additionally, the players participated in a Women in Sports Panel discussion hosted by CBS Sideline Reporter & Host Tracy Wolfson. Jets Senior Director, Client Relations & Retention, Nadege Pluviose, US National Women's Flag Team Quarterback, Vanita Krouch, and NFL Senior Director Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Sam Rapoport, were featured on the panel. Before the girls went to the locker room to see their new uniforms, the Jets provided a surprise Super Bowl ticket giveaway to Arianna Haynes-Barksdale from Eastside High School.
The Jets, Nike and Gatorade believe girls should have the opportunity to play football and experience everything the greatest game in the world has to offer.
New This Year
Beginning April 18 and running through May 17, the Jets and Gatorade will host eight regular season girls flag football games at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center. Teams from New York State, New York City and New Jersey will be able to compete on the same field the Jets players train on every day. Each week of the season, one player will be selected as the Jets and Gatorade High School Girls Flag Player of the Week. A $1,000 donation will be awarded in the players' name to their high school to support girls flag football.
Road to Varsity
Through ongoing support from the New York Jets, High School Girls Flag Football has become a reality in the Tri-State area. In 2011, the Jets began providing an annual donation of $50,000 to the New York City Public Schools Athletic League, becoming the first NFL Club to help create a Varsity Girls Flag Football League that has grown to over 60 teams in 2023. Beginning in 2024, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association will officially recognize Girls Flag Football as a Championship Sport. The Jets have created 60 teams in New York. The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association is actively exploring ways to officially pilot a Girls Flag Football state championship and hopes to have a proposal before its Executive Committee prior to the 2024 season. To date, the Jets have launched over 50 teams in New Jersey.
What's Ahead
On March 8, the New York Jets will announce the launch of a Girls Flag Football League in London, England. Teams and participants in the inaugural league will receive Nike uniforms. Regular season play will begin on April 17 and the championship game will occur on May 22.
