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NFL Legend Drew Brees Receives Good News on Tuesday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Kevin Matthew Borba | Last updated Oct 21, 2025 4:28 PM ET

New Orleans Saints legend and Pro Football Hall of Fame nominee at quarterback, Drew Brees, retired from the NFL in 2021. Despite walking away from the game, he has found multiple ways to stay involved with football.

Brees, 46, departed the NFL as a Super Bowl champion, seven-time passing yards leader and was named to 13 Pro Bowl teams during his 20-year career. Upon retirment, Brees had a one-year stint as an analyst with NBC in 2021, and will make his return to the booth this season for Netflix on Christmas Day.

Brees has also been heavily inolved with one of the fastest-rising sports in the world, and no it's not pickleball, it's flag football. Before calling it an NFL career, Brees co-founded a flag football business called Football ‘N’ America (FNA).

On Tuesday, Front Office Sports' Ben Horney reported that Brees' company was purchased by Unrivaled Sports.

"Unrivaled Sports, the youth sports holding company of private-equity veterans Josh Harris and David Blitzer, has taken notice," wrote Horney. "On Tuesday, the company announced it has bought Football ‘N’ America (FNA), a flag football business co-founded by former Saints quarterback Drew Brees in 2017."

Former New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees.Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

Horney revealed that Unrivaled has moved quickly since opening its doors last spring, as it they own 20 entities, four of which are in the flag football space. While this move may come off as a massive payday for Brees where he no longer has to be involved, the company still envisions him being the face.

“The impetus for this combination was really a long-term partnership with Drew,” said Unrivaled's CEO to FOS. “We think he’s one of the foremost ambassadors for the sport.”

Brees' FNA has created 24 leagues around the United States, and can be found in places such as California, Louisiana and Texas. With flag football having nearly 3 million participants under the age of 17, accoridng to the NFL, it is very clearly going to be integral part of the sport's continued growth.

With a reported net worth of $160 million and a clear passion for youth sports with four kids of his own, Brees seems to be the perfect advocate for the continued rise in flag football's popularity.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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