Kansas City’s women’s tackle football team is growing — with no signs of stopping
Women’s sports and women’s football are seeing record-breaking growth across the country.
Some of that credit belongs to teams in Kansas City.
The Kansas City Glory, the city’s most notable women’s tackle football team, is in its fifth season in the Women’s National Football Conference, a 16-team league spread across the country.
The team’s season began March 28, with the Glory thrashing the Seattle Majestics 41-2 in front of 794 fans at the Pembroke Hill School, breaking a team-attendance record. The Glory is 2-1 so far this season.
The Glory has always been a community-driven team, reaching fans by holding clinics and camps, talking about the team at the gyms where players train and by reaching out to people they know for support.
It also helps to have a few viral moments.
Ahead of the 2025 season, former Glory linebacker Nana Olavuo hosted 8-year-old Elena Easley at their season opener. Easley, a second-grader from Minnesota, went viral on social media when a male classmate told her girls don’t play football. Olavuo raised money to bring Easley and her family to the game, where the Glory beat the powerhouse Texas Elite Spartans for the first time in franchise history.
Just before the 2026 season, former Glory defensive tackle and eight-time All-Pro Syreeta Gapelu brought even more attention to the team by tackling and apprehending a man attempting to steal her car. Video of the incident received millions of views and nationwide coverage.
For general manager Krishna Lee, these moments are great marketing opportunities for the team, allowing players to show why football fans should pay attention to the women who have been playing for years.
“Since September 2022, we have grown our social media following by over 400%. And I think that has made an incredible difference,” Lee told The Star.
Lee is a former player turned GM in 2022, after an illustrious career with the Glory and its previous team, the KC Titans. She also won a gold medal with the U.S. women’s national football team at the IFAF World Championship in 2022. She was part of a regime change where former Glory kicker Sheila Sickau became president and head coach KeKe Blackmon became co-owner.
Lee credits the players for being the main draws in spreading the gospel of Glory football.
“It’s having, obviously, the visibility, but having the right players on this team that represent the team the way we want,” Lee said.
Women’s tackle football in Kansas City has been a staple for more than two decades, and has secretly been an influence for women in football and sports.
Groundbreaking NFL coach Katie Sowers, the first female and openly gay coach in a Super Bowl, played for the Titans and won a gold medal with the U.S. national team in 2013. Her sister, Liz, played receiver and quarterback for the Titans and the Glory, and went on to represent the country in flag football, tackle football and rugby sevens.
The duo has become leaders in the women’s flag football community, having won five NAIA flag football titles at Ottawa University and getting set to start the University of Nebraska’s program next year.
Sickau was an assistant at Ottawa for its inaugural championship run in 2021 and has been on the Kansas City Chiefs’ staff for nearly a decade. She is currently senior marketing manager in business development, leading the organization’s efforts to establish flag football programs in Kansas and Missouri high schools.
That influence is now reaping benefits from the community, as attendance and sponsorships continue to rise with their social media presence. After spending time working her own connections in the community for sponsorship, Lee said allowing players to be the main drivers of sponsorships helps tremendously.
“There are a lot of companies out there that want to support women and want to support sports,” Lee said. “A lot of what I feel like I’ve run into in years past is ... ‘Oh, girls,’ and I’m like, ‘Women.’ And they’re like, ‘Ooh, we’ll support the kids.’
“We have so many people as a whole that believe in us, but those personal connections, I think, is really what makes that difference.”
‘Making an impact’
A lot of Glory fans stayed through the team’s season-opening blowout win, a rarity not always seen in sports. But the chance to properly thank their supporters after a game, win or lose, is paramount for the team.
Similar to high school games that line the fences with senior players and cheerleaders, photos of Glory players and their sponsors lined the fence where the team enters the field at Pembroke Hill.
Lee handed out permanent markers to players as they walked off the field. They signed autographs for family, friends and new fans donning red and yellow for not just the Chiefs, but also the Glory. Blackmon greeted the girls basketball players she coaches at Olathe East High School.
Running back Maria Fautali signed autographs after she ran for 106 yards and three touchdowns on 12 carries. A college sprinter, she was a two-time All-American for the Pittsburgh Passion of the Women’s Football Alliance before joining the Glory.
She’s become a two-time WNFC All-Pro in Kansas City and leads the league with 395 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
The Akron, Ohio native found her community at her gym where she trains; several of her colleagues watched her dynamic performance. She realized the power of community investment after she gave a young girls flag footballer one of her game-worn gloves last season, and she spoke with the girl’s mother after the game.
“Her mom just told me that she has not taken (the glove) off a single game since she has met me. And that almost made me cry,” Fautali told The Star. “It’s knowing that you’re making an impact like that, whether it’s flag, tackle, whatever, like that. That means a lot to me.”
