Girls' flag football in high school and college is growing rapidly, locally and nationally, and that excitement and growth were on full display at Saint Vincent College on Saturday afternoon.

Thanks to the Pittsburgh Steelers, six high schools and seven colleges met for a first-of-its-kind kickoff to the Girls Flag Football season.

The Steelers laid the foundation and established Girls Flag Football at high schools in the Pittsburgh region in 2022. Since then, they have invested over $250,000 to develop flag football programs at area schools. 

Former Steelers tight end Matt Spaeth says it is an investment paying off.

"I love the game," said Spaeth. "I have daughters. I think it is great. It is growing the game, and I think it is just a great thing for everybody."

What started with six high schools just a few years ago has grown into over 50 teams participating this season. And that is not all. The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association has voted to offer girls flag football as a state-sanctioned sport this year, with over 100 high school teams set to play around the Commonwealth.

Not only is this sport growing in high schools, it is growing at colleges and universities, thanks in part to the passion of players like Eve Majewski, who helped found the flag football team at the University of Pittsburgh.

She says this sport has given her so much.

"It is so important to me," Majewski said. "It has grown my ability to be confident since I was young. And it tells people that we play football. Girls play football. We play flag football, and we are dominant at flag football."

Over 30 states are offering sanctioned or pilot flag football programs, and the sport is growing so fast that flag football is already expected to be part of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.