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Football: Right leaders, investment crucial for Filipinas' continuity

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Levi Joshua Verora Jr.

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Camille Rodriguez, a longtime Filipinas player, celebrates at the FIFA Women" s="" World="" Cup="" watch="" party="" in="" Quezon="" City="" after="" the="" first="" win="" of="" Philippine="" Football="" Team="" against="" New="" Zealand="" on="" July="" Mark="" ABS-CBN="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/sports/07/26/20230725-filipinas-watch-party-md-10.jpg"/><figcaption>Camille Rodriguez, a longtime Filipinas player, celebrates at the FIFA Women&#x27;s World Cup watch party in Quezon City after the first win of the Philippine Women&#x27;s Football Team against New Zealand on July 25, 2023. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA -- Sustaining the Philippine women&#x27;s football national team program will be a matter of electing the right leaders and having more supporters investing in the squad, according to former player Camille Rodriguez.With the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) assembly coming up in November, where the governing body will hold its election for its next leaders, Rodriguez mentioned how crucial the event will be for the local football landscape.&quot;The elections [are] coming up in the PFF, and we need right leaders who believe in the power of the Filipinas,&quot; Rodriguez said Tuesday, following the Filipinas&#x27; historic FIFA Women&#x27;s World Cup 2023 win over New Zealand.&quot;Not just with words, but with actions and right programs that help support the team. I believe that a stage like this, the Women&#x27;s World Cup, it&#x27;s just a magnitude of all the little things we do on a day-to-day basis,&quot; Rodriguez added.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/07/25/23/filipinas-stun-new-zealand-for-first-ever-world-cup-win">Football: Filipinas stun New Zealand for first-ever World Cup win</a></li></ul>&quot;It shouldn&#x27;t just be in this World Cup that we do things right, but in the days after the World Cup.&quot;The PFF President who will be elected in November shall succeed Mariano &quot;Nonong&quot; Araneta, who has served three terms of four years since 2010.Under his tenure, both the men&#x27;s and women&#x27;s squads reached historic feats, with the Azkals making the 2019 AFC Asian Cup and the Filipinas qualifying for the 2023 FIFA Women&#x27;s World Cup.Araneta also serves as one of the AFC&#x27;s representatives to the FIFA Council.Rodriguez also urged sponsors to keep on investing in the Filipinas to make sure their World Cup appearance would not be just a one-off moment.Given that the squad has already shown results, the midfielder said that in continuing to sponsor the program, the future iterations of the team will likewise benefit.&quot;We were right, we’ve been right all along, and I hope we can continue to prove you right in investing in women’s football because what we’ve seen is historic, but it also is a sneak peek of what we can do more for Philippine sports,&quot; Rodriguez explained.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/07/25/23/sarina-bolden-scores-phs-first-ever-world-cup-goal">Sarina Bolden scores PH&#x27;s first ever World Cup goal</a></li></ul>In the lead-up to their first ever World Cup, the Filipinas -- be it as a whole or selected individuals -- received generous support from various sponsors, from hydration partners to e-wallets and payment solutions. Most notably, their current outfitter, adidas, inked a long-term deal with the team last February.&quot;With the right investment, with the right partners, we can take the Filipinas to the next World Cup again and again and keep pushing ourselves because that’s what sports is all about,&quot; Rodriguez said.The Filipinas upset co-host New Zealand in their second match of the World Cup, 1-nil behind Sarina Bolden&#x27;s first-half goal to pick up their first ever victory in the prestigious event and keep themselves alive for the Round of 16.The debutantes will face Norway on Sunday, July 30 in a match that could decide the fate of all four nations in Group A.&quot;You saw, everyone showed up. Ito ang importante sa journey na ‘to. People keep showing up,&quot; Rodriguez said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/multimedia/video/07/25/23/filipinas-panalo-sa-fifa-womens-world-cup">Filipinas, panalo kontra New Zealand sa FIFA Women&#x27;s World Cup</a></li></ul>&quot;Opportunities like this are big, it’s huge, especially for homegrown talent. I personally want to see more homegrown talent to aspire to get there. I personally believe they’re just here to raise the bar but also bridge the gaps so more girls from back home can shine.&quot; After the World Cup, the Filipinas will play Australia, Chinese Taipei, and Iran in Perth from October to November in the second round of the AFC Women&#x27;s Olympic Qualifying Tournament for Paris 2024, where it looks to etch even more milestones.<div>RELATED VIDEO</div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7ah2iTzguSk?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

'We need right leaders who believe in the power of the Filipinas,' said former player Camille Rodriguez.