Paul LaPolice guides Canada into key flag football tournament for Olympic bid

Paul LaPolice knows what it’s like to coach under pressure from his time in the Canadian Football League and that experience should help Team Canada at the 2025 IFAF Americas Flag Football Continental Championship.

This is the first official tournament for LaPolice as head coach for Canada’s men’s national flag football team. Under his guidance, Team Canada went 4-0 at an international friendly tournament in June hosted by USA Football in Los Angeles, which included the Red and White handing the United States its first international loss in eight years.

“Everybody was very surprised we were able to beat the United States. We played better than them that day. Did they have all their starters? No, I don’t really get into all that. I know that we beat them 25-21,” LaPolice told 3DownNation. 

What made the win even more impressive was the fact that Michael O’Connor made his first-ever flag football start and threw three touchdown passes. O’Connor was highly recruited coming out of IMG Academy and accepted a scholarship to Penn State University. After one season with the Nittany Lions, he transferred to the University of British Columbia and won a Vanier Cup in his first year with the Thunderbirds in 2015.

The six-foot-four, 230-pound QB was selected in the third round, 20th overall during the 2019 CFL Draft by the Toronto Argonauts. He dressed for 40 total regular-season CFL games with the Argos, Calgary Stampeders, and B.C. Lions and completed 30-of-52 passes for 330 yards with one touchdown, one interception, and one rushing major.

“Live arm, strong, smart, can make every throw on this field. Some guys don’t have the ability to push the ball downfield — it’s only a 50-yard field, but you still want to take shots,” LaPolice explained. “He can take shots. The thing I talked to him about in his first tournament, he didn’t force anything. When the big touchdown plays were there, he took them, but when it wasn’t there he never forced bad decisions.”

LaPolice, O’Connor, and the rest of Team Canada will play the USA again in the preliminary round at the 2025 IFAF Americas Flag Football Continental Championship in Panama.

“They’re a very good football team, I’m sure we’re going to get their best game. That was their first loss in eight years, so we won’t surprise them again with how good of a team we have,” LaPolice said.

The 55-year-old coach has booked the weekend off broadcasting duties with TSN to take 12 players with him to Central America in a tournament that’s important as Canada aims to earn a spot in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The Canadians must finish in the top five to earn a ticket to the IFAF Flag Football World Championships in Dusseldorf, Germany August 13-16, 2026.

“The Olympics only has six teams, so it’s going to be one weekend with six teams in it over two days in 2028. To qualify for the Olympics, you have to go to the World Championships and finish in the top six teams,” LaPolice said. “There’s 11 teams playing in this tournament. You’ve got some talented teams on this side of the continent and I hope we’re part of that conversation going forward.”

LaPolice believes that beating the USA and earning a 4-0 record at the international friendly tournament in June has boosted confidence for everyone involved, but he knows Canada has to perform when it counts in a hot and humid foreign country.

Fans can tune in on IFAF.tv where every game in the IFAF Americas Flag Football Continental Championship will be streamed for free.

The Red and White play Guatemala on Friday at 8 a.m. EDT and Brazil at 11:45 a.m. EDT. Saturday’s schedule has Canada against Colombia at 8 a.m. EDT and the Americans at 4:45 p.m. EDT in a highly-anticipated rematch.