Girls flag football is one step closer to becoming a sanctioned high school sport in Missouri.

The Missouri State High School Activities Association, or MSHSAA, announced Thursday that member schools overwhelmingly voted to make girls flag football an emerging sport.

Nearly 74% of respondents in MSHSAA's 2025 Annual Survey supported the new classification, which marks the first step toward the sanctioning body eventually offering a state championship in girls flag football.

Statewide, the sport has seen the biggest growth in the Kansas City area in recent years, buoyed by NFL and Kansas City Chiefs initiatives aimed at increasing access and participation at youth levels.

The results of the survey will be certified at MSHSAA's next meeting in June, paving the way for girls flag football officially to become an emerging sport effective July 1.

If 50 or more schools representing at least three of MSHSAA's eight districts register girls flag football teams, the sport would move to "provisionally interscholastic" status.

After two years at provisional status, it could transition to a full-fledged MSHSAA sport.

Last October, the Kansas City Chiefs honored University of Saint Mary Coach Amber Clark for winning the flag football world championship. You can watch that story in the video player below .