How to coach flag football
Pick the guide for your league's rules and your players' ages. Each guide gives you a 60-minute first practice and every position in plain words. It shows what to teach first and what to bring on game day. It covers the 8 to 10 rules that matter most, with a link to the official rulebook. Every guide is also a free PDF.
You don't need to know football. Most new coaches are parents who said yes. This guide gets you through your first practice and your first game.
Updated · 15 guides, 6 practice plans, 24 drills, 28 plays
Youth flag football, by age
Just signed up to coach your kid's team? Start here. Pick your age group and your league's rules.
NFL FLAG 6U
5v5 · Ages 5 and 6
7U and 6U, 1st grade and younger
NFL FLAG 8U
5v5 · Ages 7 and 8
8U, 2nd and 3rd grade
NFL FLAG 5v5
5v5 · Ages 9 to 14
10U, 12U and 14U
USA Flag 5's
5v5 · All ages, youth to adult
Youth (13 and under), junior (14 to 17) and adult
USA Flag 7's
7v7 · All ages, youth to adult
Youth (13 and under), junior (14 to 17) and adult
NFL FLAG One-Way Field
5v5 · Ages 9 to 14
Youth divisions on a one-way field
Girls' high school, by state
NFHS rules for 7v7, plus the changes your state made.
Girls' high school (NFHS)
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
Varsity and JV girls' high school
Illinois girls' high school
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
Illinois girls' high school (IHSA)
North Carolina girls' high school
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
North Carolina girls' high school (NCHSAA)
Tennessee girls' high school
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
Tennessee girls' high school (TSSAA)
Maryland girls' high school
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
Maryland girls' high school (MPSSAA)
California girls' high school
7v7 · Ages 14 to 18
California girls' high school (CIF)
Adult rec and coed
No single rulebook, so start by setting your house rules.
Adult rec and coed
5v5 · 18 and over
Adult rec, coed and intramural
Practice plans by age
Every plan is 60 minutes in 5 blocks, with a free PDF.
Drills and plays
- 24 drillsSafe, no-contact drills for 7 skills, with diagrams and ages.
- 13 5v5 playsDiagrams, reads and a wristband card to print.
- 15 7v7 playsDiagrams, reads and a wristband card to print.
Plays that depend on a rule say so. Compare the rulebooks.
Fair playing time
- Count snaps, not quarters. Equal snaps is the fairest rule and the easiest one to check.
- Rotate positions until about age 10. Nobody knows who the quarterback is at seven.
- Tell families the playing time rule before the first game, in writing.
- Keep the rotation on a card or a clipboard so you are not deciding it in the moment.
- Stats help the conversation: a player who sees her own flag pulls and catches knows she matters.
Stat every scrimmage and game in the app.
Simple, fast and built for any ruleset, preset or customized. Statting is free.
- Stats and a stat card for every player
- Team leaderboards and season totals
- Families follow every play live
- A recap for every game
See how rulesets work. New to it? How to stat a game walks through it.
A completed pass, logged in seconds.
Coaching questions, answered.
No. Most youth flag football coaches are parents who have never coached. Keep practices to 60 minutes, teach flag pulling and catching first, install a few simple plays and rotate positions. The pages linked here give you a plan for every age.
Start with a 60-minute plan for your age group. Learn every name. Teach flag pulling and the snap, and add 1 play. Let everyone try quarterback, center and defense for a few weeks. Then pick spots based on what you saw.
In 5v5 the offense is a quarterback, a center who snaps and then runs a route, and three receivers. In 7v7 there are two more receivers or a back. On defense there is usually one rusher plus cornerbacks, safeties and linebackers in coverage.
Count plays, not quarters, and give every player the same number. Rotate spots at the younger ages. Tell families the rule before the season. Keep the rotation written down, so you never decide it in the moment.
Sixty minutes is enough for every age from 5 to high school. Younger players need short drills and lots of games; older players need more team time. Our practice plans break the hour into five blocks with minutes for each.
Flag belts for every player, footballs sized for your division, a bag of cones, water and a first aid kit. Mouthguards are required in some leagues. Wristband play cards help from about age 11.
Stat every scrimmage and game in the BreakAway app. A parent or helper taps what happens on the field. Every player gets stats and a stat card. Families follow live in the game center, and every game gets a recap. Statting is free.
Coach it. Stat it. Free.
Run the practice, then stat the game in the BreakAway app. Statting is free.