Sagrado Embraces Flag Football: A New Sporting Opportunity for the Dolphins

The new university association was announced in October during the 2026–2027 Student Organization Initiation.

By Alondra Del Mar Martínez
Student and Sports Journalist, Deportes Sagrado

Universidad del Sagrado Corazón (Sagrado) is making room for flag football in Puerto Rico’s university sports scene with the creation of a student association led by Sebastián Rampolla. The initiative aims to bring players together and promote the development of the sport within the university community.

Rampolla, a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in Exercise Science and Health Promotion and the team’s quarterback, took on the presidency of Sagrado Flag Football to advance a sport that has been part of his life since childhood.

“This sport is my passion. It’s what I’ve been playing since I was 10 years old,” Rampolla said. “Being able to lead this effort and take action to fulfill some of my childhood dreams fills me with pride, and I’m really happy with what we’re doing,” he added.

Flag football is a variation of American football in which players stop an opponent’s advance by removing a flag attached to the player rather than tackling them through physical contact. The Olympic format features five players per team, unlike traditional 11-on-11 football.

Interest in the sport has grown as flag football prepares to join the program for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games (LA28), marking its Olympic debut. The International Olympic Committee approved its inclusion in October 2023, alongside four other sports: baseball, softball, cricket and lacrosse.

Rampolla was introduced to the sport as a child, when his coaches used it as part of physical conditioning for contact football.

“One way we practiced early in the season when we played contact football was by playing this version of the game. That way, we could work on our conditioning without risking an injury from a bad collision early in the season,” he explained.

His interest continued to grow amid the lack of opportunities to play contact football at the collegiate level in Puerto Rico. As flag football expanded and earned a place in the Olympic program, he recognized an opportunity to bring the sport to the university level.

“Those of us involved in the Intercollegiate Flag Football 5 League (LIF5, per its acronym in Spanish) took the idea and presented it to universities as a model they could establish. That’s how this really grew and became part of the university sports scene,” he said.

According to Rampolla, LIF5 is the five-on-five intercollegiate flag football league that organizes competitions and tournaments among university associations. Although Sagrado’s association competes within this sports community, flag football is not yet an official discipline of the Interuniversity Athletic League (LAI, per its Spanish acronym).

Establishing the association at Sagrado required identifying students interested in playing the sport and developing a structure to organize the team.

During the initial phase, Rampolla reached out to players he already knew and promoted recruitment efforts in collaboration with the university. These included social media posts and flyers displayed in campus buildings to attract new members.

“That’s basically how we went about finding people we could recruit, so we could get as many players as possible and establish the association,” he said.

Rampolla explained that recruitment will eventually transition to a more traditional process, including tryouts and evaluations of participants’ performance.

The student-athlete also highlighted the contributions of Carib Hernández, the team’s coach and president of the Puerto Rican Flag Football Federation, who assists with athletic planning and the team’s development. He also acknowledged the support of Carmen Susana Montero Rivas, Sagrado’s athletic director and the association’s faculty mentor, whose administrative efforts have helped make the initiative possible within the university.

“She’s doing everything she can on the administrative side, moving heaven and earth so we can practice and, even though we’re not officially an LAI sport, at least have the university’s support,” Rampolla said.

For Rampolla, adding flag football to the LAI would create an opportunity to expand university sports offerings and develop athletes capable of representing Puerto Rico in international competitions. He believes its inclusion could also help more people discover the sport and challenge the perception that American football is inherently dangerous because of its physical contact.

“The sport isn’t played as much because American football itself has a bad reputation, and people think it’s too risky. But it’s the opposite: we can play and have fun without getting hurt,” he said.

From his perspective, flag football’s noncontact format and inclusion in the Olympic program provide two compelling reasons to promote the sport throughout Puerto Rico, particularly within the LAI.

The Dolphins Take the Field

Sagrado’s Dolphins have already played their first games. On Saturday, October 17, 2026, they defeated the Jaguars of the University of Puerto Rico at Carolina (UPRCA), 38–12, at Roberto Clemente Sports City. On Saturday, October 24, 2026, the Dolphins fell to the Gallitos of the University of Puerto Rico at Río Piedras (UPRRP), 25–37, at the Jump Sports Development Center.

Their next matchup is scheduled for Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. at Roberto Clemente Sports City, where they will face the Tarzanes of the University of Puerto Rico’s Mayagüez Campus (RUM).

As the association continues to grow at Sagrado, Rampolla remains focused on expanding opportunities for participation and demonstrating that flag football has a place within the university community. His message to those who have yet to give the sport a try is simple. “It really is a sport that anyone can play. Everyone is welcome,” he said.

To learn more about Sagrado Flag Football, visit the team on Instagram at @sagradoflagfootball and follow Deportes Sagrado on Facebook and Instagram.

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