Girls flag football is continuing to rise across the country, and Idaho is the latest state taking steps to expand the sports' presence at the high school level.

Optimist Youth Football, a local nonprofit that started Idaho’s first youth flag football league for girls in 2024, has launched a high school-level league to begin play this summer. The new level will consist of four teams with girls from high schools across the Treasure Valley, a metropolitan area centered around Boise, Idaho.

Since Optimist Youth Football's inception two years ago, its girls program has already seen steady growth in participation numbers across all age groups, going from 68 girls and eight teams in 2024 to 171 girls and 20 teams in 2026.

Their high school level, which currently has 34 girls attached, will play a 7-on-7 structure, the format most common for high school, collegiate and professional programs. Optimist Youth Football's youth programs play 5-on-5.

Idaho’s growing interest is just the latest development in the growth of girls flag football, which is currently an officially sanctioned high school sport in 20 states and is in a pilot program phase in 20 more. It will be making its Olympic debut in 2028 at the Los Angeles Games.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Idaho launches new high school girls flag football league