The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) is the international governing body of American football associations. The IFAF oversees the IFAF World Championship of American Football, which is held every four years. The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) was formed in 1978.
IFAF is a non-profit organisation with the main purpose to promote and develop American Football in all amateur formats, whether contact or non-contact, through competitions and educational resources from youth levels through to senior levels.
History of IFAF
The first national American Football federation outside of the United States was founded in Canada in 1896, as Canada already had a long history with Canadian football. Japan was also an early adopter of American football, establishing its national federation in 1936. The first European federation was formed in 1976.
Since then, the sport has experienced a significant expansion, especially in Europe, culminating in the founding of the European Federation of American Football in 1996. Two years later (1998), the International Federation of American Football was officially formed. The IFAF became a provisionary member of the General Association of International Sports Federations in 2003, and became a full GAISF member in 2005.
Currently, the IFAF is composed of 62 member nations on six continents (North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania), all of which possess national federations dedicated solely to American football, except for Canada, whose federation is primarily devoted to the similar Canadian football.
The IFAF also governs the Women's World Cup and the Junior World Cup for players under the age of 19. IFAF currently holds World Championships on a quadrennial basis and flag football was on the sports programme of the World Games 2022 in Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
