Hawai'i Pacific adds women's flag football, first collegiate program in state

Hawai'i Pacific University gave women’s flag football a college home in the islands, becoming the first university in Hawai'i to add the sport at the collegiate level. The move gives local athletes an in-state path that does not require leaving the state, while also putting HPU in position to build early in one of the fastest-growing women’s sports in the country.

The NCAA announced the addition on June 16, 2026, and HPU said the program lifts its Division II women’s sports total to 11 and its overall athletic offerings to 18. Athletics director Debbie Snell called it a big day for the university and for women’s athletics in Hawai'i, saying the school is proud to be first in the state at the college level.

HPU said it expects to compete in the Pacific West Conference, pending scheduling opportunities, and is also exploring matchups against post-high school leagues, Oahu club teams and PacWest affiliate members. The program will be built around a seven-on-seven format played on an 80-yard by 40-yard field with 10-yard end zones, with defenders stopping plays by pulling flags rather than tackling. That speed-first model is part of the sport’s appeal, and it has helped flag football spread quickly from high school fields to the college level.

The timing matters beyond Honolulu. Women’s flag football was added to the NCAA Emerging Sports for Women program in January 2026, creating a clearer path toward eventual NCAA championship status, and the sport is set for its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles. The NCAA said at least 65 schools were sponsoring women’s flag football at the club or varsity level in early 2025, with more expected to join in 2026.

Hawai'i arrives with a built-in base. The state became the 12th to sanction girls flag football at the high school level in 2024, with all 44 public schools, plus some private schools, expected to offer varsity teams. Competition was tentatively set to begin Feb. 27, 2025. The NCAA also said 24 schools across Division I and Division II already sponsor the sport in Hawai'i high school athletics, a sign that the college game now has a local recruiting pool to draw from.

For HPU, the addition is more than a new team. It is a foothold in a sport still early in its college development curve, and a marker that Hawai'i is no longer waiting for the rest of the country to catch up.