Nico Casares, Team USA quarterback, competes at 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championship in Los Angeles; defends world title
Team USA quarterback Nico Casares can’t wait to get the ball rolling at 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championship - exclusive
Team USA quarterback Nico Casares can’t wait to get the ball rolling at 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championship - exclusive
Team USA quarterback Nico Casares reflects on his full-circle journey from youth flag football to competing at the IFAF World Championship ahead of LA28.
For Team USA quarterback Nico Casares, the journey to the 2026 IFAF Flag Football World Championship has been a long and surprising one.
Long before flag football was named an Olympic sport for LA28 , Casares started playing the sport at the age of six. His path into the sport was far from the norm. Raised in a single-parent household by his mother, who actually taught him how to throw a football, Casares was primarily a soccer player. That all changed during an elementary school physical education class when his PE coach, Rudy Fernandez, spotted his arm talent.
“He saw me throw a football in PE and told my mom, ‘I’m going to have that kid play quarterback for me’,” Casares recalled. “Rudy noticed it, took me, and developed me into who I was at the time and who I am today.”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 21: (L-R) Jorge Cascudo, head coach, and Nico Casares #10 of the US Men’s Flag Football Team celebrate during the Fanatics Flag Football Classic at BMO Stadium on March 21, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy
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Nico Casares is ready to play ball
“ If you would have asked me when I was 14 if I could have ever gotten to this point, I would have said no, because it didn’t seem possible ,” Casares said.
Growing up, the options to play flag football beyond childhood were limited.
“The biggest thing with flag was you used to age out at 14 years old and then flag football kind of became an afterthought after that.”
His youth flag career culminated in winning an NFL Flag U14 championship on the team coached by Fernandez. He went on to play American football at high school and collegiate level. As his college playing days started to wind down, that was when he rediscovered flag football, which had become an emerging, fast-growing sport.
Casares made his first Team USA trial and survived the cut from 60 players to 18. He ultimately landed on the roster as an alternate in 2024, an experience that became the wake-up call he needed.
“I was underprepared,” Casares admitted. “I was still finishing college. I just didn’t understand how much I had to train and how much I had left to grow.”
“ Getting cut ultimately led to making it .”
Casares credits the mentorship of Fernandez, who now serves as an assistant coach for Team USA at the World Championship, along with assistant coach Willy Perez and Team USA starting quarterback and team leader Darrell “Housh” Doucette III.
As Casares prepares to compete in his first World Championship under center, his focus is on helping Team USA defend its world title.
As the IFAF Flag Football World Championship builds momentum toward the sport’s Olympic debut at LA28, No. 1-ranked Team USA knows the rest of the world is catching up. Casares believes the Americans’ dominant performance against Canada earlier this summer in the Rivalry Series exhibition game was a reminder that Team USA remains the team to beat.
“I would say our biggest advantage is our positional versatility,” Casares told Olympics.com about what sets this team apart. “We have guys that can go play both sides of the ball without any problem.”
For Casares, his soccer background has become one of his superpowers on the flag field, especially when it comes to his footwork and field vision.
That familiarity is another advantage for Team USA. Ten of the 12 players from the previous World Championship team return, giving the group an established chemistry that Casares believes extends beyond the field.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 21: Nico Casares #10 of the US Men’s Flag Football Team and Tyler Davis #0 of the US Men’s Flag Football Team celebrate during the Fanatics Flag Football Classic at BMO Stadium on March 21, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Owens
Getty Images for OBB Media - FANATICS STUDIOS)
Nico Casares puts his spin on things
The players on this roster come from different parts of the country and have full-time jobs outside of flag football, but come together to train and represent the United States on a global stage.
His personal goal for the World Championship is simple: “To throw zero interceptions, and be as careful with the ball as humanly possible.”
On Thursday, Casares and Team USA will begin their World Championship title defense against Israel at 13:00 local time. Watch the game live on IFAF Media’s YouTube channel.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 21: Nico Casares #10 of Team USA passes in front of Speed #7 of Wildcats FFC during the Fanatics Flag Football Classic 2026 at BMO Stadium on March 21, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How
Picture by 2026 Getty Images