What if your child had the talent, drive and heart for something they love, but not the access?
What if the game they loved had no place for them -- not because they weren't good enough, but because of their gender?
Those questions have stayed with me for years. The key to solving them? Flag football. That's my reason for advocating for flag at every opportunity.
In September, thanks to TEDSports Indianapolis, I had a chance to speak to a packed house of sports industry leaders -- some of the most influential in the world. What an incredible experience, and an incredible opportunity to elevate women in this space.
You can check out my full TED Talk here. Below are the stories, the thoughts, and the experiences that inspired it.
My hope is that it will encourage you to look at football in a new way -- and to join me in the movement that's expanding access, today, to girls around the world.
Playing on a Dead-End Street
Imagine a world where your sister, daughter, granddaughter or niece had every opportunity that exists for a boy. Where the playing field wasn't just metaphorically level—it was literally accessible. Where every locker room opened with the same ease.
Where sport didn't just shape character for some, but for all.
I was raised by a strong woman, Alma Vincent, who did the best she could with what she had, and that strength -- that quiet determination -- was all around me growing up. I remember a girl from my neighborhood named Tracy. Tracy didn't just hang around the playing fields; she played every sport with us. And she competed.
Tracy was smart. Fast. Tough. She ran with the boys and often beat us. But as time went on, Tracy's path slowly vanished.
There was limited opportunity for girls. There wasn't a coach recruiting girls from the neighborhood to play football. There were no tryouts. There was no team.
And just like that, Tracy's access faded.
Back then, that wasn't surprising. It was just how things were. Girls didn't have a place on the football field. They had talent. They had drive. They had heart. They just didn't have access.
It was so normal, we didn't even question it.
Hitting Close to Home
I went on to play professional football for 15 years, picked up a bunch of accolades along the way, and now serve as executive vice president of football operations for the NFL. My athletic journey made me realize that football isn't just a game. It's where young people learn discipline, leadership, teamwork and grit.
Now, I'm a parent to five not-so-young kids anymore. Five unique personalities. Five different sets of dreams and aspirations.
My oldest child, Desiré, was competitive and fierce from the start. Tough. Quick. Agile. She could throw a pretty good spiral by the time she was seven. Desiré played a lot of backyard football with her brothers and friends. She just had a natural command and hunger for the game.
Then something changed. Not in her, but around her. The same thing we had seen with Tracy from my neighborhood showed up again years later. This time it was in my own home, with my daughter.
By the time she turned 10, the opportunity to keep playing football quietly disappeared. There wasn't a girls' league of any sort. Tackle wasn't an option.
So what actually happened? Desiré didn't lose interest -- she lost access.
Meanwhile, my sons kept playing, earning opportunities at the collegiate level.
Eventually it hit me: The advice for my sons was never given to my daughters. The talks to my sons about toughness, the lessons they could apply to football, and then to life, made me realize I was reinforcing "the man box," that invisible set of rules that says boys get to compete, and girls get to cheer.
How often do we tell our daughters they can be anything -- but then forget to give them somewhere to be it?
That was the moment I grasped that the system was broken. But not the dream.
Driving the 'Football for All' Movement
Let's be clear: flag football has always existed. We played versions of it back in the day. We called it "two-hand touch." Tracy played. I played. But it wasn't a formal sport. It wasn't respected.
Fast forward almost 30 years, and flag has emerged as a legitimate pathway for girls, plus others on the sidelines of tackle football, to compete and thrive in our sport.
Flag football is more than an option -- it's a movement. It's everywhere, played by more than 20 million people across 100-plus countries. And girls aren't just participating -- they’re driving the growth.
Why? Because the sport is affordable, accessible and all-inclusive. It's fast, exciting and competitive. Flag doesn't require thousands of dollars in gear. It doesn't demand a certain look. All you need is a ball, a place to play, and a coach who believes in you.
Young women, advocating for their chance to compete, have spread the word far and wide.
Girls' flag football stood out in a record year for high school sports, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. Nearly 70,000 girls participated at the high school level in 2024-25, a 60 percent jump from the prior academic year.
That's just a fraction of the bigger picture; when you add NFL FLAG and other leagues, that number explodes into the hundreds of thousands in the U.S. alone.
Creating Futures Through New Paths
Football has always taught valuable life skills. Flag is no different. It instills leadership, character and resilience.
Read a defense? You can read a room. Call an audible? You can solve a problem. Lead a game-winning drive? You can lead a team, or a project, in daily life.
This is more than a sport. It's a proving ground.
Since 2020, the NFL and its partners have worked to build this emerging sport into a movement. Today, 17 states have sanctioned girls' flag as an official high school sport, and 19 more have pilot programs underway. More than 100 colleges now offer flag football—with scholarships.
Just look at Ki'Lolo Westerlund, who was recently awarded the first NCAA Division I scholarship for flag football.
A path that didn't exist five years ago is now creating futures.
And we're just getting started.
Going Global, Getting Involved, Expanding Girls' Worlds
In 2028, flag football will debut at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
That's right. Girls from around the world will take the field in a sport that once had no place for them. This is more than validation—it's a revolution.
NFL FLAG leagues are now active on six continents. From Cairo to Mexico City to Tokyo, we're seeing camps, clinics and championship teams take root.
Flag is becoming a global language, a shared game for the next generation.
But we can't just celebrate the momentum. We need to nurture it.
We need to make sure we're not commercializing football for boys while only offering access to girls. We must keep the playing field level for everyone. Every young person deserves to fall in love with this game -- and find a place in it.
So how can you get involved?
Start small. Ask your school about flag football. Call your local office of parks and recreation. Find a league. Start a league. Become a coach or a referee. Be the advocate. Be the voice.
Because movements need messengers. Our daughters need champions just as much as our sons.
As a parent, I've seen what happens when a child is told, "There's no place for you here." There's a fire that lights up when they hear, "Go—play, lead, have fun."
One shrinks their world. The other expands it.
Let's expand it together.
Let's make sure when a girl sees a field, she sees opportunity. She sees herself.
Building Football's Future -- Let Her Play!
Imagine a world for the next generation—for my granddaughters Lalia, Rosie, Nadia and Giani. For girls like Tracy and Desiré. For your loved ones.
Imagine your daughter scoring the game-winning touchdown. Your niece earning a scholarship. Your neighbor carrying the flag. Your granddaughter winning the gold.
That's not someday. That's not theory. It's already happening. Girls are competing right now in rec leagues, high schools and colleges, international competition—and soon, in the Olympics.
So, let's keep the momentum going. Let's widen the field. Let's build the future we should have always had.
Let her play.
Let her lead.
Let her dream.
Just let her take the field.
Because the future of football and sports? It's through women.
And it's now!
Troy Vincent Sr. is the executive vice president of football operations for the National Football League and is enshrined in the Philadelphia Eagles, University of Wisconsin and College Football Halls of Fame. He also serves as co-chair of Vision28 leading flag football's inclusion in the 2028 Olympics.
