BEREA, Ohio – Today, the Cleveland Browns kick off the 2026 Girls High School Flag Football season, continuing the organization's commitment to growing girls flag football across Ohio and creating pathways for success both on and off the field. The Browns Girls High School Flag Football program is presented by Gatorade and in association with Bridgestone. The 2026 season marks the first year of girls high school flag football officially having a sanctioned state championship tournament for Ohio.
"The growth of girls flag football across Ohio has been incredible to witness, and this season marks an exciting new chapter as the first season where girls flag football is officially recognized as a sanctioned championship tournament sport in Ohio," said Jenner Tekancic, Vice President of Community Relations. "At the Browns, we are all excited to watch these athletes compete on the field and to continue building on these milestones for young women to succeed and thrive."
In July 2025, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) officially approved girls high school flag football to be a State Championship Sport, making Ohio the 17th state to sanction girls flag football across the United States. The Browns began the implementation of girls flag football in 2021 alongside Northeast Ohio Flag Football, which led to the creation of the first Girls High School Flag Football league in Ohio. Over the last five years, the Browns have played a pivotal role in working towards the sanctioning of girls flag football as a varsity high school sport, growing the number of Northeast Ohio high schools with teams from six in 2021 to 120 and over 61 new high schools committed to play in the Spring 2026 season.
With the Ohio High School Athletic Association now officially recognizing Girls High School Flag Football as a state championship sport, the inaugural sanctioned state championship tournament will take place on May 16 at the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Leading up to the championship, the Browns league will feature 120 teams divided into four conferences with 11 divisions competing across Northeast and Central Ohio, reflecting the continued growth and statewide momentum of girls high school flag football. At the conclusion of the regular season, the 11 division champions will earn automatic qualification to the playoffs, along with five wild card teams selected based on the best overall win percentage. The top 16 teams will advance to compete in the Browns Championship, a single‑elimination tournament held on May 11 at the University of Akron's InfoCision Stadium. The champion and three runner‑up teams from the Browns Championship will earn automatic bids to the state championship tournament, where they will compete in a single‑elimination format against the top four teams from the Bengals division to crown Ohio's first sanctioned state champion.
The Cleveland Browns Girls High School Flag Football programming aims to provide access and opportunities for high school female student-athletes to compete in and experience the fastest growing sport, flag football. By providing resources and information to players, coaches and parents, the Browns are able to expand athletes' knowledge of the game and provide opportunities through the Cleveland Browns, USA Football, NFL FLAG and the NFL.
The following schools are set to participate during the 2026 season: Academy For Urban Scholars Columbus, Agape Christian Academy, Akron Early College High School, Amherst Steele High School, Andrews Osborne Academy, Archbishop Hoban High School, Avon Lake High School, Barberton High School, Beachwood High School, Bedford High School, Berea-Midpark High School, Berkshire High School, Bishop Ready High School, Black River High School, Brooklyn High School, Brush High School, Buchtel High School, Campbell Memorial High School, Canton McKinley High School, Chagrin Falls High School, Champion High School, Chardon High School, Cleveland Central Catholic High School, Cleveland Heights High School, Cloverleaf High School, Collinwood High School, Columbus School for Girls, Conneaut High School, Copley High School, Cornerstone Christian Academy, Cornerstone High School, Cuyahoga Falls High School, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, Delaware Hayes High School, East (Youngstown) High School, East Liverpool High School, East Technical High School, Eastlake North High School, Edgewood High School, Ellet High School, Elyria Catholic High School, Elyria High School, Euclid High School, Fairbanks High School, Field High School, Garfield Heights High School, Garrett Morgan High School, Genoa Christian Academy, Gilmour Academy, GlenOak High School, Glenville High School, Harvey High School, Hathaway Brown School, Hawken High School, Highland High School, Horizon Science Academy Cleveland High School, Howland High School, Jefferson Area High School, John Adams College & Career Academy, John F Kennedy High School, John Hay High School, John Marshall High School, KIPP Columbus, Kirtland High School, Lake Catholic High School, Laurel School, Liberty High School London High School, Lutheran High School East, Lutheran West High School, Madison High School, Magnificat High School, Maple Heights High School Marion Harding High School, Marlington High SchoolMassillon High School, Mayfield High School, Medina Christian Academy, Medina High School, Mentor High School, Midview High School, Mineral Ridge High School, Newark High School, Newton Falls High School, Nordonia High School, North Royalton High School, Notre Dame Cathedral Latin High School, Oberlin High School, Our Lady of the Elms School, Perry High School, Pymatuning Valley High School, Rhodes High School, Richmond Heights High School, Riverside High School, Rootstown High School Saint John School, Saint Martin De Porres High School, Sandusky High School, Shaw High School, St. Clairsville High School, St. Vincent-St. Mary High School, Stow-Munroe Falls High School, Streetsboro High School, Strongsville High School, Tallmadge High School, Theodore Roosevelt High School, Tree of Life Christian School, Trinity High School, Valley Forge High School, Villa Angela St. Joseph High School, Warren G. Harding High School, Warrensville Heights High School, West Branch High School, Westerville Central High School, Westerville North High School, Westerville South High School, Whitehall Yearling High School, Wickliffe High School, Willoughby South High School, Worthington Christian High School.
For more information about the Browns Girls High School Flag Football program and the Spring 2026 season, visit clevelandbrowns.com/girlsflag.
About the Cleveland Browns and Browns Give Back:
The Cleveland Browns focus on advancing education, youth football and equitable opportunities across Northeast Ohio and beyond. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback and follow @BrownsGiveBack.
About Bridgestone Americas, Inc.:
Bridgestone Americas, Inc. is the U.S.-based subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation, a global leader in tires and rubber, building on its expertise to provide solutions for safe and sustainable mobility. Headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., Bridgestone Americas employs more than 45,000 people across its worldwide operations. Bridgestone offers a diverse product portfolio of premium tires and advanced solutions backed by innovative technologies, improving the way people around the world move, live, work and play.
About The Gatorade Portfolio:
The Gatorade Portfolio, a division of PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), is a connected performance and wellness ecosystem built to fuel all athletes and exercisers. Bringing together Gatorade, Propel, Evolve and Muscle Milk, the Gatorade Portfolio is the most complete offering in the category today, with a broad range of personalized solutions at every stage of the athlete journey. This integrated system of brands is built on Gatorade's 60-year history of studying athletes and is fueling the future of athletic performance and wellness by delivering solutions across hydration, protein, energy and all-day nutrition to fuel consumers, no matter how or why they sweat. For more information and a full list of product offerings, please visit www.gatorade.com.
