Pop Warner Kicks Off the Start of the Season
with the 2009 Nationwide Kickoff

Pop Warner officially kicked off its season on Monday, August 24th with Ravens All Pro Jonathan Ogden serving as the Official Nationwide Kickoff Ambassador. Various Baltimore-area Pop Warner programs took part in the annual event, held this year at M&T Bank Stadium prior to the nationally televised preseason game between the Ravens and the New York Jets.

To celebrate our 2009 Nationwide Kickoff, Pop Warner players took the field before kickoff and lined up alongside the Baltimore Ravens for the National Anthem, and a scrimmage was held at halftime between two Pop Warner Jr. PeeWee (8-10 year-olds) programs. Complimentary game tickets for local Pop Warner organizations were also distributed by the Ravens. This year's Pop Warner Nationwide Kickoff also involved more than 20,000 children (ages 5-15) taking part in ceremonial kicks across the country.

Another Successful Year of Pop Warner Days
Held at Modell's Sporting Goods Stores

Modell's, an official sporting goods retailer of Pop Warner, in conjunction with Russell Athletic, hosted several tailgate parties for Pop Warner programs across the Eastern and New England regions to help kick off the Pop Warner season. Several former and current NFL players such as Carl Banks, DeSean Jackson and Ben Watson, attended the events and took time to speak with Pop Warner players, sign autographs and take pictures for all the fans in attendance.

> Get a Complete Recap of this Year's "Pop Warner Days"

Peyton Manning Launches "Peyton's Picks" for Pop Warner Participants on Weplay.com

Hundreds of thousands of kids participate in Pop Warner football, cheerleading and dance each fall, and many of these budding NFL football stars aspire to be the next Peyton Manning. Now any Pop Warner football, cheer or dance group registered on Weplay.com, the online home for youth sports and Pop Warner’s official social networking community, will have a chance to actually meet one of the NFL’s all-time greatest quarterbacks.

> Register Today for a Chance to Meet Peyton Manning

The 2009 NFL Grassroots Program:
A Community Football Fields Program

The NFL Youth Football Fund Grassroots Program is a partnership of the National Football League Youth Football Fund (NFL YFF) and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) to provide non-profit, neighborhood-based organizations, middle schools and high schools with financing and technical assistance to improve the quality, safety, and accessibility of local football fields.

> The 2009 NFL Grassroots Program

Official Pop Warner Cheerleading Instructional Video Available for Purchase Soon

The first official Pop Warner Cheerleading instructional video will soon be available for purchase through popwarnershop.com. The video features expert advice and teaching from Jen Fuller, a Pop Warner cheer coach. Discover over 30 stunts in Basic, Intermediate and Advanced areas, learn to get your best stunters in the best positions for each stunt, and discover many other secrets that add additional creativity to your routine.

This instructional video, which sells for $19.99, was filmed right at an official Pop Warner coaches clinic, and will help your squad build off the basic elements and create rock-solid stunts and extra style points for your squad. Look for this video soon exclusively in PopWarnerShop.com.

Pop Warner Welcomes New Leagues for 2009

As we begin the 2009 season, Pop Warner would like to extend a warm welcome to all of the newly chartered leagues in the Pop Warner family:

Great Plains Pop Warner (Omaha, Nebraska), Southwest Ohio Pop Warner (Cincinnati/Dayton, Ohio), Ocean State Pop Warner (Rhode Island), Portland Pop Warner (Portland, Oregon), Southern Colorado Pop Warner (Pueblo, Colorado) and Southern California Pop Warner (Los Angeles, California).

To start a Pop Warner league in your area, please contact the Pop Warner National Office at 215-752-2691.