Utah Girls Football League

The Utah Girls Football League (Utah Girls Tackle Football League, GFL or Utah GFL) is a nonprofit youth American football league. Founded in March 2015, the league is currently in its seventh season. It is the first all-girls tackle football league in the United States and is continuously growing.[1] As of its 2020 season,[2] the GFL consists of three age divisions: elementary (grades 3-6), junior high (grades 7-8), and a High School division.[2] The league has over 400 girls on 24 teams; 35% of the girls are minorities.[3]

Utah Girls Football League
AbbreviationGFL
FormationFounded 2015
TypeNonprofit Youth Sports League
Region
Salt Lake County
Commissioner
Crystal Sacco
Key people
Sam Gordon
AffiliationsUSA Football
Websiteutahgirlstacklefootball.com

The league is currently run by a board of directors, overseen by the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner of the league. Everyone in the league is a volunteer.

Sam Gordon, female football player, known for her abilities as a football player that gained her acclaim playing with the boys when she was nine years old, helped found the league in 2015. She has played in it each season since.

Media coverage

The Utah Girls Football League gained national acclaim when it started in 2015. It has seen nationwide news coverage. The league has received both praise and criticism. While most news organizations have simply reported on it being the first of its kind (like CNN,[4] The Huffington Post,[5] USA Today,[6] Fox 13,[7] NBC News,[8] Yahoo Sports[9] and Good Housekeeping[10]), others, such as Bleacher Report[11] and espnW,[12] have reported on Sam Gordon's role in the league. Some media companies have even taken a specific stance on the league. ESPN, for example, aired a segment in which the safety of the league was called into question.[13][14] In the segment, they brought on a medical doctor who said that there is heightened risk of concussions for children and perhaps even further risk for girls. Others, however, have pushed praise onto the league, encouraging their audience to sign up.[15]

In June 2017 Sam Gordon and her father, alongside five other Utah Girls Football League players (and their parents), filed a class action lawsuit against three local school districts to force high schools to offer girls’ football in the Salt Lake Valley.[16] It uses Title IX as justification. The two-week trial featured testimony from girls who played and suffered a range of experiences, including assault and exclusion.[17] The lawsuit has received national coverage and has yet to reach a verdict.[18]

Two teams from the Utah Girls Football League played in the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl half time show, representing seventeen different Utah high schools.[19][20]

Districts

GFL is split into 6 districts based on the local cities and schools, each one containing three teams of different age divisions.[21]

  • Herriman
  • Bingham
  • Riverton/Utah County
  • West Jordan/Copper Hills
  • West Granite/Davis County
  • Canyons/East Granite/Murray

Corporate structure

The Utah Girls Football League is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and is run by a board of directors.[22] The league's board of directors is responsible for electing a Commissioner. The current president of the league is Crystal Sacco.[23][24] According to the rules of the Utah Girls Football League, the president is "responsible for coordinating and running meetings, maintaining league records, initiating the scheduling process, revising and distributing league rules, monitoring the registration process, and acting as the final arbiter of any disputes that might arise."[22]

Any formal propositions to change any league methods, procedures, systems or other major decisions are affirmed by a greater part vote of the Board of Directors present at the meeting at which the vote is taken. If necessary, the Commissioner of the league will vote to break the tie.[22] The GFL only employees volunteers who do not receive pay for their work/contributions to the league, the exception to this being the official game referees. In addition to the board of directors, Utah Girls Football League also employees a Deputy Commissioner, Treasurer, Safety Coordinator, Marketing Coordinator, Web Developer, Coaching Coordinator, and League Secretary.[23] Coaches for the league are volunteer and must be USA Football Heads Up Certified.[22]

References
  1. "Girls tackle football? Yeah, it's happening". Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  2. "Utah Girls Tackle Football League". Utah Girls Tackle Football League. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  3. This Football League Was Built For Girls Who Love To Hit
  4. Viral football star joins 1st tackle league for girls - CNN Video, retrieved 2017-03-17
  5. Dicker, Ron (2015-05-22). "There's Going To Be A Tackle Football League For Little Girls In Utah". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  6. "A group of fifth and sixth grade girls are getting a tackle football league of their own". For The Win. 2015-05-21. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  7. "Tackle football league for girls kicks off in West Jordan". fox13now.com. 2015-05-24. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  8. "Girls Tackle Football League Is a Big Hit". NBC News. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  9. "Girls tackle football? Yeah, it's happening". Retrieved 2017-03-19.
  10. "The First All-Girls Tackle Football League Debuts in Utah". Good Housekeeping. 2015-06-01. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  11. Studios, BR. "Sam Gordon Paved the Way for 1st All-Girls Tackle Football League". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  12. "Phenom Sam Gordon Set To Star In First Girls Tackle Football League". espnW. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  13. "ESPN". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2017-03-19.
  14. "ESPN on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2017-03-19.
  15. LAKANA (2017-03-02). "How Your Daughters Can Play Tackle Football". GOOD4UTAH. Retrieved 2017-03-19.
  16. https://sports.yahoo.com/sam-gordon-remember-files-lawsuit-make-girls-high-school-football-reality-235213870.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  17. Edward, James (2020-12-30). "Beehive State high school sports year in review". Deseret News. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  18. http://usatodayhss.com/2017/one-time-female-youth-football-phenom-sam-gordon-is-suing-to-create-a-hs-girls-football-league-in-utah. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  19. Dreossi, Morgan (January 18, 2020). "PEPSI TAILGATE AT PRO BOWL TO HIGHLIGHT GAMEDAY FAN ACTIVITIES AT CAMPING WORLD STADIUM". NFL Communications. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  20. Vejar, Alex (January 24, 2020). "Utah's Girls Tackle Football League will play at the Pro Bowl". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  21. "Utah Girls Tackle Football League". Utah Girls Tackle Football League. Retrieved 2017-03-17.
  22. "Utah Girls Tackle Football League Rules". Utah Girls Tackle Football League. Retrieved 2017-03-21.
  23. "Utah Girls Football League Linked In About". Retrieved 2017-03-21.
  24. "Utah Girls Football League - About | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2017-03-21.
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