Traffic and noise are intense when Lars Carlsen picks us up at the Stazione di Centrale in the center of Catania, the second largest city in Sicily. Lars has just arrived by plane from Paris via Rome after three days of meetings in his new job as sports manager at the International Federation of American Football (IFAF). “Buongiorno – mio amico” is what the 60-year-old from Helsinki says, whom I first met more than 20 years ago at the Academy of Danish Sports Coaches. Lars was the national coach for American football and sports director for DAFF in the years 1995-2022, concluding with a 5-year period as the federation’s director from 2020 to 2024. Lars has always been passionate about American football and not least the sport’s development of players, coaches and referees, both in Denmark and internationally. Last fall, a unique opportunity presented itself for Lars to realize a dream job combined with a permanent residence in Italy with his wife Birgitte.
“Birgitte and I have always been very fascinated by the Italian lifestyle – la bella vitae. We have been on many holidays in Italy and through American football we have also built up a large network of Italian friends. We are very happy with the Italian values, especially the priority that food and wine should be quality, and it should preferably be consumed with good friends. It is also not the case that the choice fell on Sicily and the village of San Gregorio at the foot of Etna. One of my Italian friends convinced us with the following statement: Tuscany is the best place in the world, but Sicily is the best place in Italy”, Lars says convincingly.
Flag football – An exciting variant of American football
Flag football is an exciting variation of American football (NFL), but without hard tackles and physical contact. The players wear belts with flags and the aim of the opponent is to remove these flags to stop the game, instead of tackling the player. Flag football is a combination of physical, mental and tactical skills and a skilled flag football player must have good speed, coordination, strength, agility, and at the same time be able to think and act strategically in relation to fellow and opposing players. The rules in flag football are in many ways different from American football, including that each team consists of 5 players on the field and a total of 12 players. The number of players in American football, by comparison, is 11 players on the field and a total of 45 players. The field is also smaller (25-70 yards) and the playing time is 2 x 20 minutes. The goal of the game is to score more points than the opponents by running the ball over the opponent’s goal line. There are different types of scores in flag football. The sport is therefore very suitable for both women and men as well as children and young people.
Flag football – A new Olympic sport in LA28
The first five months of Lars’ new job have been very busy with a large number of travel days around the world. The most important reason is that flag football is among the new sports at the upcoming 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Lars Carlsen has the main responsibility for all sporting preparations leading up to the games in three years. “It is a unique opportunity to expand our sport to all five continents and fortunately we have great support and backing from the NFL, who greatly appreciate the fact that flag football is now an Olympic sport. There will certainly be enormous attention on flag football at the 2028 Olympics, not least because the club owners in the NFL have recently decided that active NFL players can participate in the games in Los Angeles. The NFL has set some special rules around this, but it will mean that many of the NFL’s megastars have the opportunity to participate; the Americans for the host nation USA but also NFL players from other nations can represent their country at LA28. One of my most important tasks leading up to the 2028 Olympics is to hold Continental championships and World championships, and to ensure that they are held in accordance with the current rules, which have been tightened with the status of an Olympic sport. This presents some challenges as we are also bringing many new nations into the IFAF that do not have much experience with organized sports and certainly not at the level that applies to Olympic sports. In addition, continental championships something new on several continents. Europe has held European Championships for many years, while this year we are holding the American Championships for only the second time, and the African Championships for the very first time here in June. On the one hand, we must of course be flexible in relation to new nations and new continental championships, but on the other hand, the IOC will also pay close attention to whether IFAF in all areas lives up to the Olympic Charter”, says Lars with equal parts smile and seriousness.
Denmark has good chances of qualifying for the 2028 Olympics
Lars Carlsen is of course still following the development of flag football in Denmark and not least the national team’s results. Denmark came in 4th at EURO FLAG 2023 and is currently ranked 11th in the World Ranking. “It will of course be a difficult – but not impossible – task to qualify the Danish national men’s team for the 2028 Olympics. The IOC has just announced that the Olympic tournament will consist of 6 nations for women and men respectively. The USA is a given, while 3 or 4 nations from Europe will probably qualify. The first indication of Denmark’s Olympic chances will come at EURO FLAG 2025, which will be held over 3 days in September in Paris. 24 nations for men and 19 nations for women have registered, which is a historical record. “The fact that flag football has become an Olympic sport has certainly had a very big influence on these numbers,” says Carlsen.
Friendships all over the world
Lars is a fantastic ambassador – not only for Danish and international flag football – but also for Danish sports. A pleasant evening at a fish restaurant in Catania ends with a good chat about the qualities and values of Danish and international sports. “I am of course happy and proud that Birgitte and I can realize our personal dream, but I especially hope that I can help develop both players, coaches and referees within a sport that has given me friends all over the world and that I can represent Danish sports and Danish values in the best way”, concludes Lars Carlsen.
Sources:
- International Federation of American Football (IFAF) – https://www.americanfootball.sport/
- National Football League (NFL) – https://www.nfl.com/international/
- LA28 Games – https://la28.org/
- Danish American Football Federation (DAFF) – https://www.daff.dk/
