What started as a routine gathering on a Saskatoon football field quickly turned into a life-changing moment for local athlete Ella Sowden.
The flag football standout was caught completely off-guard Wednesday morning when she learned she had been selected to receive an international scholarship through the RCX Sports Foundation and the NFL, recognizing some of the top young female flag football athletes in the world.
“I was definitely surprised and did not expect this,” Sowden told CTV News moments after the announcement.
The scholarship will help support Sowden as she heads to Kentucky this fall to study sports management and play for the Lindsey Wilson University Blue Raiders flag football program.
The recognition comes after years of dedication to the sport. Sowden has spent the past two years training at the Institute of Saskatchewan Football while also representing Team Saskatchewan at Football Canada’s Elite Flag Nationals in both 2025 and 2026.
For Institute of Saskatchewan Football executive director Brian Guebert, the award comes as no surprise.
“She’s a leader. She’s just a daily grinder. She works hard in the gym, on the field and then provides leadership to our next generation of female athletes,” Guebert said.
That commitment has also stood out to coach Emmarae Dale.
“She’s just always wanting to better herself and learn and grow and improve. You don’t see that in kids often. It’s always having that effort,” Dale said.
The scholarship arrives at a time when flag football is experiencing significant growth across Canada and internationally. The sport continues to create new opportunities for athletes at the collegiate level and is set to make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
Guebert believes Sowden’s success demonstrates what is possible for young athletes in Saskatchewan.
“It’s awesome to have a role model like that and somebody that our future girls can look up to and see that these opportunities are there for somebody from Saskatoon to really play on the international stage,” he said.
Despite preparing to leave for Kentucky, Sowden says she plans to remain connected to the Saskatchewan football community that helped shape her journey.
“During summer and stuff, I’ll definitely come back here and hopefully I can help out at the institute or just around in the football community. Definitely giving back to what brought me to this point,” she said.
Sowden also credits the women who came before her for helping create opportunities for the next generation.
“My coaches, especially my female coaches, seeing them and seeing how good they are and how far they’ve gone. Knowing that I’ve gotten this scholarship and can take this to the next level too, and prove what they’ve taught me has brought me this far, it just makes me really proud to be able to share that with them.”
Dale says Sowden’s achievement is a reflection of years of progress for women in football.
“All of the women in the past who have played football and coached football, that’s not been for nothing. It’s really paving the way and has set the foundation for an opportunity like this for Ella,” Dale said.
Now, with a scholarship in hand and a collegiate career ahead, Sowden is preparing for her next chapter and in the process, serving as an example for young athletes across Saskatchewan.
