It hasn’t even been a year since the

Olympics in Paris, but the next Olympic Games in the USA are already on the horizon. At least as far as the new sport of flag football is concerned.

In three years, flag football will be part of the Olympic Games for the first time in history. The United States of America can already count the gold medal here due to the supremacy of the NFL. But are the owners of the NFL teams now throwing a spanner in the works?

According to the CBS podcast “Pro Football Talk”, there are currently disagreements between the league officials and the owners. While many players have already expressed their support for participation and would be supported by the league, the team owners are against their stars taking part.

On the sidelines of this year’s Pro Bowl, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans said the event was “good practice for the Olympics.” Traditionally, the Pro Bowl, like the Olympics in three years, will be played with flag football.

NFL: Player contracts prohibit participation in the Olympics

From the league meeting in Florida, it was clear that the league hopes to expand the NFL brand by having its superstars participate in the Olympics.

Team owners are more concerned about the health of their players and argue that parts of the pre-season preparation would be missed due to the tournament. The Olympic Games will take place in Los Angeles from July 14 to 30, and will thus coincide with the teams’ pre-season training camps.

The team owners refer to paragraph three of each player contract, which states: “Without the prior written consent of the club, a player may not play football or participate in football-related activities, except for his own club, or engage in any activity that carries a personal risk of injury.”

And further: “The player represents special, extraordinary and unique skills, experiences and abilities as a football player, whose unforeseen loss cannot be adequately replaced. Therefore, the player agrees that the club has the right […] to prohibit a player from engaging in football-related or other activities that involve an increased risk of injury.”

Simply put, this means that each NFL team can sue its players who participate in flag football at an event like the Olympics without their consent.

Flag football at the Olympics: Gold for the USA inevitable?

The likelihood that team owners will take the risk of injury is very unlikely, according to the report.

However, the report does point to a new generation of former NFL players who should still be able to win the gold medal and put the NFL in a good light.

Mike Evans should also have completed his NFL career by then and be well prepared after training in the Pro Bowl.