Pop Warner football has been around since the inception of the league in 1929 by founder Joseph J. Tomlin as a four-team conference in Northeast Philadelphia. Since then, participation has steadily increased to today's record numbers. Over 250,000 youths participated in Pop Warner-sanctioned football programs in 2010, and those numbers are continuing to grow.

OVERVIEW: Pop Warner offers the opportunity for participants from 5 years of age to 14 years of age to play football in our leagues. We have non-competitive developmental divisions for those between the ages of five and six. They are Tiny Mite/Rookie Tackle/6U. In Tiny Mite/Rookie Tackle/6U competition, no score is kept. At the Mitey Mite/8U thru the JV/14U division, score is kept and there is potential for regional and national playoffs.

League champions are declared in each of the competitive divisions and the champions continue to play and represent their league in the Mid South Regional Playoffs. Mid South Regional Champions represent the region at the National Pop Warner Super Bowl played each December at the ESPN Wide World of Sports located at Walt Disney World in Orlando Florida.

The season begins on August 1st of each year. Teams generally play 7 to 9 regular season games in the months of August, September, and October. All Pop Warner Coaches are required to complete National and Regional Coaches Training. Competitive level teams with winning records at the end of each regular season are also allowed to participate in Region approved Post Season Bowl Games.

SAFETY FIRST: Did you know that Pop Warner football is safer than soccer? Pop Warner football has 12% fewer injuries per capita among 5-15 year olds than organized soccer in the same age range! (U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, NEISS)

Kids compete with kids of similar age and size. Pop Warner enforces strict age guidelines to reduce the risk and reality of injuries at the National and Regional levels. 

WHY THERE ARE NO PERSONAL STATISTICS: Pop Warner exists to use football, cheer-leading, dance and a respect for education to develop strong, smart, responsible, healthy young men and women. We give them experiences that build their appreciation for and understanding of leadership, teamwork, and discipline.

While individual statistics may be more common, particularly among older football players, Pop Warner only recognizes the athletic accomplishments of the team, not the individual. We don't track personal tallies of touchdowns or yards rushing per game. We don't count sacks or blocked kicks. We applaud the athletic efforts of the team to reinforce the importance of teamwork, with each member.

We don't try to build stars. We don't want to over-inflate a young ego, nor do we want to risk injuring the self-esteem of a young person. Whether our kids have good days or bad, they are still an integral part of our team…and always will be.

In an effort to make sure all participants have a chance to play, Pop Warner has established a Minimum Play Requirement for each level of play. Players are required to play in a set number of active plays prior to the end of the third quarter of each game.

Pop Warner Spirit teams have participated for several decades on the football sidelines (Pep Squads, Majorettes, etc.); however, cheerleading was not officially introduced until the 1970’s. Today, thousands of youth participate in Pop Warner Cheerleading and Dance teams around the United States.

The Cheer and Dance Program offers teams a wide range of opportunity for young athletes at all skill levels: Novice, Intermediate and Advanced. Pop Warner has established one set of spirit rules along with JAMZ, the Pop Warner Education Development Partner and the original developer of the Youth Cheer and Dance Alliance (YCADA).  

Together with YCADA, Pop Warner is able to provide online educational courses for its coaches, administrators and judges on team skill levels for Cheer Teams (Core Cheer, Show Cheer PW 1-4) and for Dance Teams (Pom Performance, Theme Dance & Hip Hop). Pop Warner also offers additional competition opportunities in Sideline Performance Cheer.

With continued education, the Pop Warner Coaching Staff provides basic instruction, training and conditioning for both football games and competition. Teams participate on the sidelines at football games for home and most away games through to the Pop Warner Super Bowl. In addition to Game Day, teams participate in qualifying spirit events (League and Region) through to a Pop Warner National Championship.

The Pop Warner National Cheer and Dance Championships (started in 1988) are currently located in Florida and occur in early December.

Why Choose Pop Warner?

More than just athletes! – Pop Warner is the only national youth sports organization in America that requires its participants to perform adequately in the classroom before permitting them to play.

Little Scholars Program – Pop Warner is the only national youth sports organization in America that rewards its members for their outstanding performance in the classroom.

Stability – Pop Warner is the oldest national youth football and cheerleading organization in the world. Founded in 1929 by Joe Tomlin, we now have over 120 leagues and over 325,000 members.

Pop Warner National Championships – Each year, Pop Warner hosts the Pop Warner Super Bowl and National Cheer and Dance Championships. For the past 11 years, the event has taken place at ESPN's Wide World of Sports Complex™ at Disney World. More than 300 cheer and dance squads and 72 football teams compete for the right to be crowned Pop Warner National Champion.

College Scholarships - Each year, we award scholarships for higher education to the most deserving students in our highest grade levels. Pop Warner is proud to have awarded over $1.35M in scholarships since 1993!

Mandatory Play Requirements – Everyone participates under mandatory rules of play, so every child is guaranteed to play.

Team Structure – Leagues have options with how to structure their program. While leagues can continue the current structure where a player is placed in a division based on his or her age and weight they may also instead choose to register players based on age only. Currently, an estimated 75-80% of youth football nationally follows an age-only structure.

Volunteers & Coaches – We have over 40,000 volunteers and coaches that are being trained every year to offer the best and safest programs for you and your children.

It all starts here – The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) estimates that between 60% and 70% of all NFL players began their careers playing Pop Warner Football.

Background Checks – Pop Warner programs nationwide are required to annually conduct a background check of Coaches, Board of Directors members and any other persons, volunteers or hired workers, who provide regular service to the league and/or have repetitive access to, or contact with, players and/or spirit participants. The purpose of these background checks is, first and foremost, to protect the children.

Concussion Prevention & Awareness – In addition to its more stringent return to play concussion rules, Pop Warner took the lead in youth sports by creating a Medical Advisory Board. The Board was created to ensure Pop Warner remains proactive on all medical issues that affect youth sports, particularly football and cheerleading, with a primary focus on prevention and proper identification and treatment of concussions, hydration awareness, proper nutrition guidelines, and general health and safety issues.

Coaching Education Programs –The safety of our athletes is always the top priority and that is why we provide extensive training for all our football and cheer & dance coaches.

National Rule Book – Each Pop Warner Region, League and Association receive free National rule books for their organizations.

Administrative Manual – Each Pop Warner Region, League and Association receive free National Administrative Manuals, designed to keep each League and Association current on all administrative matters, as well as to facilitate the daily operational management of those local organizations.

Coaches and Adult Codes of Conduct – All coaches, football and spirit participants must abide by a Code of Conduct which includes several provisions. If any of these rules are broken, the League shall have the authority to impose a penalty.

For a full list of Pop Warner program benefits, please Click Here.