Canada crowned world champions after upsetting USA in flag football
Canada is sitting on top of the flag football world this weekend.
The Canadian women’s team entered this weekend’s IFAF Women’s Flag Football World Championship in Germany looking to make some noise, and they accomplished more than that.
Canada lined up against the three-time defending champion United States in Sunday’s gold medal game, and found a way to upset the Americans by a score of 27-20 to take home the country’s third World Championship title, and the first since 2014.
The Canadian women had already booked their ticket to the LA 2028 Olympics and are now the reigning World Champions.
OUR CANADIAN WOMEN’S SENIOR NATIONAL FLAG FOOTBALL TEAM ARE WORLD CHAMPIONS!!! 🇨🇦🏆
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NOTRE ÉQUIPE NATIONALE SENIOR FÉMININE CANADIENNE DE FLAG FOOTBALL EST CHAMPIONNE DU MONDE!!! pic.twitter.com/H1kJ6m58Gq
— Football Canada (@FootballCanada) August 16, 2026
Canada breezed through the preliminary round, finishing atop Group D with a perfect 3-0 record. They then made quick work of the knockout stage, defeating Austria 40-12 in the quarter-final and then secured a spot in the upcoming Olympics with a convincing 20-6 victory over Mexico in the semi-final.
The Canadian women will now prep for the 2028 Olympics, which is set to introduce flag football as an event for the very first time. With the next World Championship set for 2028 as well, Canada will likely enter the Olympic tournament as a medal favourite.
There was good news on the men’s side for Canada as well. While they weren’t able to get to the top of the podium, the men found a way to secure a medal at the World Championships this past weekend as well, defeating Mexico 34-26 in the bronze medal game, which also guaranteed them a spot at the Olympics alongside the women.
Flag football may not be the most popular sport in Canada, but both the women and the men have a chance to captivate the country if they can continue making history at the Olympics in two years’ time.