Alert: Carolina Panthers and Conference Carolinas Host Women's Flag Football Kickoff Announcement at Bank of America Stadium
 
Press conference will be held at 1:30 p.m. to announce Conference Carolinas inaugural women's flag football league with representatives from Conference Carolinas, the Carolina Panthers, and the Durham Sports Commission
 
As part of National Girls and Women in Sports Day, Conference Carolinas and the Carolina Panthers will host a Women's Flag Football Kickoff Celebration on Wednesday, February 4, at Bank of America Stadium to celebrate the expansion of women's flag football across the Carolinas at the collegiate level. A press conference will be held at 1:30 p.m. in the Panthers Team Auditorium with representatives from Conference Carolinas, the Carolina Panthers, and the Durham Sports Commission addressing the media. The press conference will be followed by open media availability for all coaches and student-athletes in attendance.
 
Conference Carolinas is the first NCAA Division I or II conference to sponsor varsity women's flag football and will have 11 institutions competing in the upcoming inaugural season, beginning with the first conference games on February 28 at Emmanuel (GA) University. The inaugural Conference Carolinas women's flag football championship will take place on April 17-19 at Durham County Memorial Stadium in Durham, N.C.  
 
Women's Flag Football is the newest sport in the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program. It is anticipated that over 40 NCAA institutions, across all three divisions, will sponsor the sport at the varsity level in the spring of 2026. Barton College, Chowan University, Emmanuel University, Erskine College, Ferrum College, King University, Lees-McRae College, Mars Hill University, University of Mount Olive, Mount St. Mary's University and Wingate University are slated to compete in the league.
 
The Carolina Panthers are proud to serve as a catalyst for growing the game of women's flag football across the Carolinas with the goal of it being sanctioned as a high school varsity sport in both states. Currently, 145 high schools in North Carolina and 35 high schools in South Carolina are competing in flag football leagues across the region. The sport is currently sanctioned as a varsity sport in 17 states across the country and is slated to make its Olympic debut in 2028 at the Los Angeles Summer Games.