The Bucs organization has long championed the growth of women in football and sports, and that continued over the weekend with its inaugural “She is Football” Weekend.
Our inaugural She is Football Summit, designed to create community and advance careers, empowering attendees to connect and learn with top female leaders. pic.twitter.com/e3IEVab8BY
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) March 7, 2025
The two-day event kicked off Friday at Raymond James Stadium, with female leaders from all industries coming together for a day of networking. The afternoon was highlighted by a live recording of the “Calm Down With Erin & Charissa” podcast, with hosts Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson discussing their careers in sports media and more.
Breakout sessions featuring “audience-driven dialogue” were held around the stadium in behind-the-scenes locations like the player locker room and press box, with participants able to choose between four tracks: Business of Sports, Launching Your Career, Master Class in Leadership and Reinvention & The Entrepreneurial Journey.
The event continued on Saturday with the She is Football 5K Run, Walk & Stroll, which had over 3,000 participants, including Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum.
After the race, the team’s AdventHealth Training Center hosted the She is Football Market & Festival, which was a celebration featuring women-owned market vendors from throughout Tampa Bay, including food trucks, fitness activities, a cheer clinic, and more.
Plus, over the course of the two days, there was also a She is Football Flag Tournament held at the facility, which featured eight of Florida’s top high school flag football teams. Alonso, Harmony, Lecanto, Lennard, Newsome, Robinson, St. Pete and Steinbrenner all competed in a two-day, bracket-style tournament. In the end, Robinson defeated Lennard 21-14 to become the inaugural champions of the tournament.
“We talk to our team often about how they are role models for little girls as the game grows. And it was really cool to see all of these women-owned businesses and community leaders that can be role models for our players,” Robinson head coach Josh Saunders told Pewter Report.
Winners of nine state championships since 2014, Robinson is used to winning. But that didn’t make Saturday’s tournament-clinching win any less special.
“From a football side, for one reason or another, we did not win a tournament this offseason,” Saunders said. “For us to come and win this tournament with the top three teams in the state all present shows us that the process is working and hopefully propels us into the playoffs in a month. To do it at the Bucs’ She is Football event makes it that much sweeter. The trophy is pretty cool too.”
“She is Football” was a great event hosted by the @Buccaneers and @BucsFoundation . We were happy to participate in the tournament with great teams that will be very difficult teams in the playoffs. It was great to win in the first year of hopefully many hosted by the Bucs! #X pic.twitter.com/tb3l3eh5r3
— RobinsonFlagFootball (@RobinsonFlag) March 9, 2025
Bucs Continue To Be At The Forefront Of Supporting Women In Sports
Bucs Head Coach Bruce Arians And Bucs Owner Darcie Glazer-Kassewitz Girls Flag Football
Former Bucs head coach Bruce Arians and Bucs owner Darcie Glazer-Kassewitz – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
As an organization, the Bucs have put both time and funding into supporting women in football. Whether it was the creation of the Girls In Football Scholarship, former head coach Bruce Arians hiring two female coaches to his staff back in 2019, the organization’s continued support ofgirls flag football at the high school level or any number of other efforts, the Bucs have worked to make a difference.
She is Football Weekend was just the latest example of that. The team said proceeds from the weekend will be allocated toward keeping girls in sports.
“The Buccaneers are creating the next generation of female leaders through the power of sports and have a mission of developing 150,000 female leaders annually,” the team said in a press release.
The organization’s support for women in football at the local and national level certainly doesn’t go unnoticed, either.
“The Bucs have been on the forefront of girls flag football way before it was cool to do so,” Saunders said. “We have been so fortunate to be involved with what they have done to support the sport and women.”
The Krewe crushed our She is Football 5K Run, Walk & Stroll! 🏃
Every step helps build the next generation of female leaders, with proceeds going to local programming to keep girls in sports. pic.twitter.com/ukPObVC1gX
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) March 8, 2025