Tom Brady to Come Out of Retirement for Saudi Arabia Flag Football Tournament in 2026

Tom Brady has always joked around about returning to play in the NFL, but has remained in FOX's broadcasting booth.

Tom Brady to Come Out of Retirement for Saudi Arabia Flag Football Tournament in 2026

Tom Brady to play flag football in Riyadh (Image via Imago)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Tom Brady last played football in 2023, after which he finally decided to hang up his cleats, even though he had the desire in him to continue playing at the highest level.

Since then, there have been enough rumors of him wanting to attempt a comeback, with fans linking him to several teams. Many felt the father of three still had it in him to excel despite his age.

He signed a mega $375 million contract with FOX Sports, but there was still hope that a prospective situation could tempt him to leave the broadcasting booth for one last swing of the ball.

Then he became a minority-owner in the Las Vegas Raiders, and their QB struggles saw their fans petition the 7-time Super Bowl winner to come out of retirement.

The now 48-year-old loves to play along with those rumors and has a smile on his face whenever he brings up any topic of a return. Now, finally, it seems he is going to lace up again.

Tom Brady is coming out of retirement, sort of, to join Saquon Barkley, Christian McCaffrey, CeeDee Lamb, Maxx Crosby, Rob Gronkowski, Sauce Gardner, Myles Garrett and others for the Fanatics Flag Football Classic – a competitive flag football tournament taking place during Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia on March 21, 2026.

Adam Schefter revealed on X

The wording of this tweet was enough to send the post viral, as fans would usually see the first line on their phones. However, it would not be a full return from retirement. Rather, it would be just for an exhibition tournament to promote flag football.

Tom Brady does his part to add fuel to return from retirement rumors

Brady loves to joke around about the possibility of him returning to the game he has loved for nearly his entire life. A while after Adam Schefter’s tweet blew up, the former New England Patriots great decided to chime in and have some fun.

I’m very excited to unretire and come back and play in another incredible flag football game in Riyadh, March 21st, 2026, for Riyadh Season. I’m here with my partner and friend, His Excellency, and I’m ready for this.

Tom Brady said on Turki Alalshikh’s official X account

The 3-time league MVP again followed a similar pattern and first talked about unretiring and coming back to play football. Only then did he reveal that it would be a flag football game at Riyadh Season.

Tom Brady will play alongside some top-tier talent

As per Adam Schefter’s tweet, Tom Brady is not the only top-tier talent that will lace up for this flag football game in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In the NFL’s attempts to market the sport, they have lined up some top players to aid its greatest of all time.

NFL is doing everything to promote flag football
NFL is doing everything to promote flag football (Image via NFL/X)

The top two running backs, Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey, Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb, Raiders’ star pass rusher Maxx Crosby, Brady’s former teammate Rob Gronkowski, and defensive stars Sauce Gardner and Myles Garrett will be a part of this exhibition game.

They will be split into 3 teams, which will be coached by Pete Carroll, Sean Payton, and Kyle Shanahan. NFL fans would have liked it if flag football ambassador Jalen Hurts, or other players who have shone in that game, Tyreek Hill, and Ja’Marr Chase, were also part of it.

The league is aiming to create as much buzz before the game makes its Olympics debut in 2028. It will have a simultaneous impact on their primary game. That explains why they have lined up all these players and coaches for this exhibition tournament.

Also Read: