In September 2025, Fox NFL analyst and Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady announced that he would be ‘coming out of retirement,’ sort of. The seven-time Super Bowl champion announced that he would be playing in the Fanatics Flag Football Classic in Saudi Arabia in March.
Brady said at the time that he was ready to get his “competitive juices” flowing and that he has always admired flag football.
The event was originally scheduled for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 21, but amid mounting global tensions and rising regional war in the area, a move to the United States is increasingly likely, according to Front Office Sports.
The U.S. and Israel bombed Iran on Saturday morning, and the Iranian response has including striking U.S. bases and interests in neighboring Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, where Iranian drones struck the U.S. embassy on Tuesday.
A specific location for the event in the U.S. hasn’t been finalized, per FOS, but an official announcement could be made as early as this week.
The showcase, which is set to be broadcast by Fox and Tubi, will be hosted by Kevin Hart and will remain on March 21. An airtime hasn’t been finalized, but a move to the U.S. allows for a more manageable viewing window for fans in the States than Riyadh, which is eight hours ahead of Eastern Time.
Three teams, coached by Pete Carroll, Sean Payton, and Kyle Shanahan, will compete in a round-robin tournament featuring active and retired NFL players such as Jayden Daniels, Saquon Barkley, CeeDee Lamb, Christian McCaffrey, Sauce Gardner, Myles Garrett, Brock Bowers, Maxx Crosby, Tyreek Hill, Odell Beckham Jr., and Rob Gronkowski.
Flag football will make its Olympic debut in the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles, and the Fanatics Flag Football Classic will follow Olympic rules, where games will be played on a 50-yard field with two 10-yard end zones, a 5-on-5 format, and two 20-minute halves.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.