Brazil sweeps South American flag football gold in Medellín

At Cancha de Fútbol Marte No. 1 beside Atanasio Girardot Stadium, Brazil edged Chile 28-26 in the men’s final and held off Colombia 21-19 in the women’s gold-medal game to sweep the South American flag football titles. The June 26-28 tournament ended with a knockout stage that upended the group-stage order.

The men’s bracket opened with Chile beating Venezuela 37-12, then stunning Argentina 21-19 in the semifinals after Argentina had gone unbeaten in group play. Brazil had already shown its range by reversing a group-stage loss to Colombia and then knocking out the hosts 42-19. In the bronze game, Colombia recovered enough to beat Argentina 32-28, and Brazil finished the job against Chile by two points.

The women’s side followed a similar path. Venezuela’s one-point win over Chile helped shape the semifinal bracket, then Colombia beat Venezuela 41-12 and Brazil handled Argentina 41-12 to set up the final. Brazil then outlasted Colombia 21-19 for gold, while Argentina closed with a 35-7 bronze-medal win over Venezuela.

Brazil entered Medellín as the top-ranked nation in both the men’s and women’s fields, and the ranking held in the knockout rounds. The women’s program has had continuity since Ingrid Camargo took over in 2018, a stretch that included a run to the bronze-medal game at the 2021 World Championships in Israel. The men have been steered by Heitor Medeiros, who started coaching American football in 2014 at age 17.

The championship brought together five national federations: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Venezuela, with Venezuela joining a field that had already featured the four nations from the 2025 IFAF Americas Flag continental championships. Brazil’s sweep comes ahead of the 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championships in Düsseldorf, Germany, from August 13-16, where 16 men’s teams and 16 women’s teams will compete, and ahead of flag football’s Olympic debut at Los Angeles 2028, where six men’s and six women’s teams will play five-on-five with 10 athletes per side.