Joe Burrow expresses desire to compete in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games

Flag Football will debut as a new discipline at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, and Joe Burrow, quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals, says he wants to represent his country.

“I’ve always wanted to play in the Olympics,” he said, via the Cincinnati Enquirer. “I’ve never necessarily played an Olympic sport before, so when this got announced, I was pretty excited about it.”

He also added: “The opportunity to win a gold medal [is] something that I’ve thought about – a moment like that – for a long time, since I was a kid. I think it would be something very special.”

Can NFL players compete in the Olympics?

Yes, NFL players will be able to compete in flag football at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. NFL owners unanimously approved a resolution allowing active players to participate.

However, there is a key restriction to protect teams during training camp: only one player per NFL team is allowed to represent their national team (plus one additional “international” player if they are part of the league’s global pathway program).

Interest from several players emerges

The bid by stars like Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill and Jalen Hurts to join Team USA for the 2028 Olympics has sparked a heated rivalry with the current National Flag Football team.

Led by quarterback Darrell “Housh” Doucette III, the flag veterans argue that NFL players shouldn’t automatically assume they can dominate a sport they haven’t specialized in.

Doucette has called the NFL’s sudden interest “disrespectful,” asserting that flag football is a distinct discipline with unique mechanics—a claim backed by recent 2026 exhibition games where the flag specialists outperformed the NFL pros.