How points are scored
Flag football borrows its scoring from tackle football, with a few twists. These are the values most youth and adult leagues use, including formats like NFL FLAG. Your league can set its own, so treat this as the common baseline rather than a universal rule.
- 6Touchdown. The offense advances the ball into the end zone.
- 1Extra-point try from the shorter distance, often the 5-yard line.
- 2Extra-point try from the longer distance, often the 10-yard line.
- 2Safety. The offense is stopped behind its own goal line.
- 6Defensive touchdown. The defense returns an interception to the end zone.
- 2Defensive return of a try. Many leagues let the defense score on an intercepted extra-point attempt.
The extra-point choice
After a touchdown, the offense usually picks how far back to try the extra point. A try from the shorter distance is worth 1 point and is easier to convert. A try from the longer distance is worth 2 points and is harder.
This single choice is where a lot of flag football strategy lives. A team down by 2 late in a game may go for 2 to tie or win outright instead of settling for 1.
Why scoring varies by league
There is no single national rulebook that every flag football league follows. NFL FLAG, recreational leagues, school leagues, and tournament circuits each set their own values, field sizes, and conversion distances.
That is why the safe move is always to read your league rulebook before the season. Confirm the touchdown value, both extra-point distances and values, the safety value, and whether the defense can score on a return.
How ties are broken in the standings
Scoring also decides standings, and ties happen. A common tiebreaker order runs win-loss record first, then points allowed, then point differential, then head-to-head result, then a coin flip if everything else is even.
On Flag50 you set the scoring values and the tiebreaker order per division, and standings recalculate automatically as final scores come in, so the order resolves itself without a spreadsheet.