Olympic organizers huddle over ‘Footballs’ future




For 16 days the world was captivated by sports like curling, the biathlon, figure skating and hockey.
But are we ready for some Olympic football, too?

Not yet, and maybe not anytime soon. But the idea “is not crazy,” says Scott Hallenbeck, the executive director of USA Football. In fact, the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) has already taken the first steps in that direction, applying for recognition as a sport by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
If that application is accepted in 2011, it will lead to increased funding for the IFAF, which already has American football federations in 57 countries and on five continents. And while Hallenbeck said yesterday the IFAF board hasn’t had any “serious discussions” about an Olympic movement yet, it’s not out of the question IOC recognition could lead it to push to include football in the Olympics, perhaps as soon as 2026.
“Moving to the Olympic calendar isn’t crazy, but it’s a function of time,” said Hallenbeck, who also is the treasurer of the IFAF. “To have a rational and logical conversation about this we’d have to see, not necessarily more participation around the world, but higher quality participation. We’d need at least 20-30 countries with the structure set up, and having some of their elite players in the NFL. Those would be some of the tell-tale signs about whether it makes sense to go with an Olympic-type strategy.
“I just don’t think we’re there yet.”
They are closer than they’ve ever been, though. Even though the NFL shut down its European league in 2007, it still has a large international appeal and plays an annual, sold-out regular season game in London. And the IFAF has federations in such unlikely places as New Zealand, Thailand, India, Greece, Finland, Belarus, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
American football was also an invitational sport at the World Games in 2005 and will be back for the World Games in Germany in 2013. Last June, the IFAF held its first world junior championships in Canton, Ohio, with what it called the eight best 19-and-under national teams. And this June in Sweden, the organization will hold its first women’s American football world championship, featuring teams from the U.S., Canada, Germany, Austria, Finland and Sweden.
Building a competitive women’s division is key to any Olympic application, as is insuring the sport is played on every continent (IFAF currently has no federations in Africa). The biggest obstacle, though, is likely the current competitive imbalance in the distinctly American sport. At those world juniors, the U.S. team won its three games by a combined score of 174-3. (78-0 over France, 55-0 over Mexico, 41-3 over Canada).
“Absolutely, the competition level has to improve,” Hallenbeck said. “But we’ll get there. Look, if you go back to the history of basketball – 50, 60, 70 years ago we were kicking everybody’s tail. But look at the game now. Some of the best players, even at the NBA level, are international players. You have to start somewhere.”
There are other issues, too, such as how to cram a football tournament into a 16-day Olympics when games are usually played a week apart. At the world junior tournament, each team played three games in nine days. At the women’s world championships, teams will play three games in seven days, and there will be just one day between the semifinals and the finals.
So it’s possible, even though Hallenbeck said that it’s so far away “there’s no reason at the moment to have serious conversation about that.
“Clearly, though, the appeal of the sport is growing,” he added. “It’s not crazy, not by any stretch, but it’s going to take some time.”

Source: NY Daily News

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