MENA Freedom 250 NFL Flag Football Launch and Championship

The U.S. Mission to Saudi Arabia, under the Department of State, is soliciting a cooperative agreement for the MENA Freedom 250 NFL Flag Football Launch and Championship. This 12-month program, with a total available funding of 150,000 dollars, aims to establish a foundational development pipeline for flag football athletes in the Middle East and North Africa region. The initiative is designed to leverage the sport's upcoming debut at the LA28 Summer Games to advance U.S. influence, economic interests, and sport-governance leadership. The project is anticipated to start in October 2026 and consists of four phases: the Freedom 250 Cup round-robin tournament culminating in a March 2027 final in Riyadh, high-performance Road to Podium workshops, national outreach and knowledge-sharing from April to August 2027, and follow-on monitoring through September 2027. Key requirements include the recruitment and management of U.S. sports envoys and strict adherence to biological sex eligibility for female divisions per Executive Order 14201. Applicants must be registered in SAM.gov with a Unique Entity Identifier and submit a proposal by September 14, 2026. Evaluation is based on a point system focusing on program quality, organizational capacity, planning, monitoring, budget realism, and sustainability. Awardees must comply with Department of State branding guidelines and federal regulations regarding trafficking in persons and drug-free workplaces. Payments are administered via form SF-270 and are subject to approval by the respective State agencies.