The world-renowned Filipino brand of hospitality would be showcased when the country hosts the inaugural FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup in 2025, the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) said on Thursday.
The FIFA Council made the announcement last Wednesday during a meeting in Bangkok.
“This is the first time that the Philippines will be hosting a FIFA World Cup event, so on behalf of the PFF, I thank the FIFA Council for their trust, and look forward to working with all our local stakeholders in organizing a historic event,” PFF president John Guttierez said.
“The PFF is excited to showcase to the world our world-class Filipino hospitality, and we are eager to use this event to inspire millions of children, especially girls, across the country to play the beautiful game.”
The impact of Filipinas’ 1-0 win over New Zealand in last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup continues to benefit the PFF and the women’s program.
More overseas recruitment camps were conducted overseas to find potential recruits and secure a long-term program.
In fact, the Philippines did field a women’s futsal team in the PFF Tri-Nation Futsal Invitational 2023 and it played against Indonesia and New Zealand last October.
The Indonesians came out on top after a 5-2 win of the Philippines in the final.
With futsal being played in courts and a lot more fast-paced than football, Gutierrez assures everybody that it will continue to prosper.
“We are both humbled and honored by the faith and confidence that FIFA has placed in the Philippine Football Federation to stage a historic event not just for football and futsal, but for women’s sport,” Gutirrez said.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said this initiative, along with awarding Morroco the hosting rights of the 2025 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, is to grow the women’s game into something bigger for the future.
