Rules to play Flag Football

1. A team shall consist of seven players. A team can play with a minimum of 5 players. The offensive team must have any 4 players on the line of scrimmage at the time of the snap. Substitutions are allowed between plays and during time outs. All players must be recorded on the roster and waiver form (with personal signature) before they are allowed to participate. The designated team area is located between the 20 yard lines, two yards off the sidel .....

Equipment and Facilities

2. All players must wear shoes. Rubber cleated shoes will be allowed. Open toe, open heel or hard soled shoes will not be allowed. No metal cleats. Pants and or shorts with belt loops and or pockets are strictly prohibited. A player may not turn his or her shorts inside out or tape his or her pockets in order to play. Towels may not hang from a participants waist or otherwise interfere with the removal of a flag. Covering Flags A team will get 2 war .....

Start of the Game and Timing

3. Toss of the CoinThree minutes before the start of the game, the referee will conduct a captains meeting in which he or she wil designate which captain shall call the toss of the coin. The captain winning the toss will have a choice of options for the first half or shall defer his her option to the second half to choose whether his or her team will start on offense or defense. to choose the goal his or her team will defend The captain, not having .....

Game Rules

4. Field dimensions are 80 yards by 40 yards with 10 yard endzones, yard markings every 20 yards. The ball will be placed on the 14 yard line after every touchdown. A team shall have four consecutive downs to advance to the next zone line to gain (and earn a first down). The zone line to gain in any series shall be the zone in advance of the ball, unless distance has been lost due to penalty or failure to gain. A new series of downs will be awarded .....

Screening

5. Blocking, as in regulation tackle football, is PROHIBITED! A screen block shall take place WITHOUT CONTACT. The screen blocker shall have his or her hands behind his or her back. Any use of the hands, arms, elbows, legs, or body to initiate contact during a screen block is ILLEGAL!!!!! A blocker may use his or her hand or arm to break a fall or retain his or her balance. A player must be on his or her feet before, during, and after screen blockin .....

Flag Belt Removal

6. In an attempt to remove the flag belt from the ball carrier, defensive players may contact the body of an opponent with his or her hands. A defensive player may not hold, push or knock the ball carrier down in an attempt to remove the flag.No player shall attempt to steal the ball, trip an opponent, contact an opponent who is on the ground, make unnecessary contact with an opponent, deliberately dive or run into an opponent or tackle the ball car .....

Kicking the ball

7. Protected scrimmage kicks (Punts)NO RUSHING FROM DEFENSE a. Punts must be announced before the ball is ready for play. The kicking team (offensive team that is kicking the ball) must have 4 players on their line of scrimmage. Punts must be snapped from the center. The punter must be at least two yards off the line of scrimmage upon receiving the snap and must punt the ball immediately. There will be no movement by the offensive players until the .....

Clarification

8. A defensive player may not remove an offensive players flag when the offensive player does not have the ball. Similarly, the defensive player may not remove the quarterbacks flag after the ball has been thrown. Penalty Illegal flag belt removal, 10 yards. A defensive player may not remove an offensive receivers belt prior to the receiver touching the ball. Penalty defensive pass interference, 10 yards and automatic first down. A defensive playe .....

Form a team

9. Gather several players together to play flag football if you arent already on a flag football team. Divide the group into two teams, each of which should have an equal number of players. .....

Mark the playing field with goal lines set up at opposite ends of the field

10. Players should be aware of the sidelines. The recommended size of the field is 30 yards by 70 yards with the end zones taking up an additional 10 yards. However, you may choose to play on a smaller area, such as a soccer field. .....

Outfit all the players with a flag football belt

11. One flag should be on each side of the hip. Most players tend to wear nonmetal cleats, but you could wear other athletic shoes. .....

Flip a coin to determine which team should start with the ball

12. ach team should have a captain, and the captain of one team should call the coin flip. The winning team of the flip should get the ball first while the losing team must defend first. .....

Place the football at the offensive teams 5yard line to start the play

13. This is unlike contact football, where the game begins with a kickoff. If your playing field isnt marked with yard lines, place the ball a few steps in front of the goal.Each team has 3 plays to cross the midfield. If the team is successful, it has 3 more tries to score a touchdown. If the team cannot cross midfield, the opposing team takes possession of the football on its own 5yard line. All possession changes, except for interceptions, start o .....

Start the timer

14. Most games are 40 minutes long, with the clock only stopping for timeouts. Teams are allowed 1 timeout per half that lasts 1 minute. Each team has 30 seconds to snap the ball, otherwise it will be issued a 5yard delayofgame penalty. .....

Score the flag football game

15. Scoring flag football is similar to regular football. Touchdowns receive 6 points, points after touchdowns (PATs) where the ball is placed at the 5yard line after the touchdown receive 1 point, and the PATs where the ball is placed at the 12yard line are worth 2 points. A safety is worth 2 points as well. Games can end in a tie. .....

Equipment

16. Unlike normal football, a lot less equipment is necessary to play flag football. Most participants wear nonmetal cleats. The only other required piece of equipment is a special flag football belt where you place the flag. Its also a good idea to have good hands and fast feet. .....

Ball carrier

17. Shall not deliberately drive or run into a defensive player, nor straight arm, nor protect the flag. (10 yard penalty) .....

Blocking

18. Blockers must be on their feet before, during, and after contact. (10 yard penalty). .....

Declared scrimmage kick

19. There i$no rushing the kicker when a team announces a declared kick to the Referee. be,fore the readyforplay. After announcement a team must kick.Both teams rnust keep 4 players on the line of scrimmage until the kick is made.A declared kick may be. used for the try and is worth one point. (10 yard penalty). .....

Defensive player

20. Shall not hold, grasp, orobstruct forward progress of ball carrier when in the act of removing a flag. (10 yard penalty) Exception (5 yards and first down defensiv holding. .....

Forward pass

21. All players are eligible receivers. A team may make multiple forvyard passes behind the neutral zone. No pass interference rule if pass stays in or lehind the neutral zone. .....

Kickoff recovery

22. An untouched free kick must travel 20 yards before the kicking team can legally recover unless touched by the receiving team. .....

Line to gain

23. The linetogain in any series is the zone in adwmceof the.balL p..new series is awarded a team when they legally advance tQ the next zone. .....

Length of Games and Time Outs

24. A. Periods The game shall be played in four (4) quarters, three (3) of ten (10) minutes each with the fourth quarter being of eight (8) minutes and six plays. In all games the clock will run continuously, stopping only for time outs, injuries, to retrieve long incomplete passes, and for any other reason the referee deems necessary. Teams shall exchange ends at the end of the first and third quarters. B. Half Time Half time will be five (5) minut .....

Players and Substitutions

25. A. Substitutions There will be free substitution as long as players being substituted for are off the field prior to the next snap or are out of the area of play and are departing the field in haste. There will be no Hideout plays. All players must be within fifteen (15) yards of the ball from the time the ball is marked ready for play and the ball is snapped. B. Team Roster Players may be added to the team roster up to the championship game, so .....