The 2026 Ningbo Flag Football Open (NBFO) is a premier international sports event . This year’s tournament is particularly significant as it marks the first time this homegrown Chinese sports brand has expanded overseas, with plans for tournaments in Thailand and Spain . The event saw impressive participation, drawing more than 800 athletes from 60 teams across 29 countries and regions, including national squads from China, Russia, the Philippines, Spain, and Malaysia, among others . The tournament features divisions for adult men, adult women, and youth, with matches held at local universities . As an officially recognized event by the International Federation of American Football (IFAF). The NBFO is riding the wave of flag football’s growing popularity ahead of its debut as an official Olympic sport at the Los Angeles 2028 Games .

This year Russian boys achieved notable success at the tournament, most prominently the youth team “Varyagi” (Варяги) from the Vologda region . The team won a gold medal in the mixed under-15 age (U15) category. Their path to the championship was dominant, as they won all six of their group stage matches and secured the title with a decisive 43:13 victory over the Chinese team “Lions” in the final . The Vologda team competed against 14 other national teams from countries including Russia, China, Japan, Mexico, and Thailand . The head coach and captain of the championship team was Nikita Shemyakin, described the victory as a major sporting and reputational success for the team and the region.

This is of course a major win for Vologda which has invested a lot of time and effort into raising the next generation of American football players in Russia. We congratulate the Varyagi and their coach Mr. Shemyakin with this world championship victory. They put in a lot of long hours of training during very long Vologda winters.