The USA Wheelchair Football League (USAWFL), a program of Move United, is more than doubling its reach for the 2021 season, expanding from four to nine cities.
Founded in 2019 with teams in Chicago, Los Angeles, Kansas City, and Phoenix, the USAWFL’s growth expands programming to teams in Birmingham, Ala,, Buffalo, Cleveland, Tampa, and New Orleans. This opportunity will allow more than 100 veterans and adults with disabilities to participate in the sport.
The expansion is made possible thanks to support from the NFL-Bob Woodruff Foundation Salute to Service partnership “Healthy Lifestyles and Creating Community” grant. In addition to supporting the USAWFL’s competitive teams, the grant provides opportunities for grassroots growth of the sport through coaching education and learn-to-play clinics.
“This expansion brings the American game we love to more communities and more participants. Bringing sport back into a veteran’s life is the power that the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the NFL are showing through their increased support this year,’ said Move United executive director Glenn Merry.
“We’re grateful to have partners like the NFL and Move United who understand that when veterans return from their military service, they don’t return to agencies or organizations—they come home to American communities. Veterans are our friends, neighbors, and colleagues; when they thrive, our communities thrive,” said Anne Marie Dougherty, CEO of the Bob Woodruff Foundation. “This expansion of the USAWFL represents our continued investment in veterans
And the communities they call home. Together, we’re creating opportunities for veterans to redefine what’s possible.”
All nine teams will compete this fall in the inaugural USAWL season with two tournaments scheduled September 10-11 in Phoenix and October 30-31 in Chicago.
