Australian team, NRL, AFL, netball, who can play, what are the rules, 2028 Olympics sports, Los Angeles\u060c<\/p>\n
Reece Walsh and Nick Daicos, Olympic gold medal winning teammates. <\/p>\n
Now it sounds. <\/p>\n
NRL, AFL and Super Netball players could soon become Olympians, with flag football<\/a> set to be played at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. <\/p>\n Flag football is essentially a gridiron game, but without tackling, and Australia plans to compete for a gold medal by recruiting athletes from various sports.<\/p>\n Gridiron Australia managing director Wade Kelly said his sport would be flexible and allow players to continue their professional careers while pursuing their Olympic dreams. <\/p>\n Kelly’s pitch to potential athletes is simple: Would you like to win<\/a> an Olympic gold medal?<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a 360-degree game, you have to go down the field, turn around and catch the ball. It\u2019s AFL, it\u2019s netball<\/a>, it\u2019s basketball. And then you add in the guys from the league and the union who are used to playing Oztag,\u201d Kelly told News Corp. <\/p>\n \u201cLook at guys like Reece Walsh, how good he is against Tyreek Hill as a wide receiver. Patty Mills, incredible in the air. Guys like (Charlie) Curnow in the AFL, imagine him going up against some of those NFL superstars. <\/p>\n \u201cThen look at the girls. Liz Watson at netball. Isabelle Kelly from rugby<\/a> league has been a fantastic player, she would adapt really well to the sport. And then AFL girls, you could take your pick. <\/p>\n \u201cWe also have our own players who are doing very well for us at the moment and we will be bringing in additional athletes from other sports. <\/p>\n \u201cWe are a start-up sport and we want people from other sports to come and have a chance to be part of the Australian team for 2028.\u201d <\/p>\n In NFL flag football, teams play five-on-five and each game consists of two 20-minute halves, but tournament games are typically shorter with 12-minute halves.<\/p>\n Instead of tackling their opponents, players carry two flags suspended along their sides by a belt and defenders stop the ball carrier by removing one or both flags.<\/p>\n The popularity of the NFL in Australia is booming and the league has already signed AFL and rugby league stars in the United<\/a> States, including Philadelphia Eagles tackle Jordan Mailata, who played in lower categories with the South Sydney Rabbitohs.<\/p>\n North Queensland star Valentine Holmes and former NRL player Jarryd Hayne have also taken sabbaticals from rugby league to play in the NFL, with the latter cracking the San 49ers starting team Francisco. <\/p>\n NRL, AFL and Netball stars on hit list | 01:25<\/p>\n <\/a><\/b>NEXT GEN: Every NRL club’s star of the season and what it means for 2024<\/b><\/p>\n \u201cEveryone’s been talking about the NFL for 15 years, year after year, it’s getting crazy,\u201d Kelly said.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the last 48 hours, guys who play elite professional sports have expressed interest in playing.<\/p>\n \u201cI had a conversation with an NRL player last week<\/a> who would love to play there.<\/p>\n