Department of Sports and Tourism?

There is no doubt that the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) has had resounding successes in hosting major international tournaments.

After enjoying a banner year in 2025, during which it hosted world-class events in volleyball, futsal, surfing, and gymnastics, the PSC opened this year with a bang when it organized the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open and the ongoing Philippine Golf Championship — the first leg of the prestigious Asian Tour.

Although the agency’s mandate, according to Republic Act 6847, is to develop and support Filipino athletes from the grassroots up to the elite level, this is no longer sufficient. Lately, sports is no longer just about winning medals — it has become a powerful engine for economic growth.

Around the world, various countries have already recognized the importance of sports in stimulating their economies. South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism serves as the gold standard, while Southeast Asian superpowers Thailand and Vietnam have successfully aligned their sports and tourism programs, allowing them to host major sports events that attract high-value markets.

With this, don’t you think it’s time to call for the merger of the PSC and the Department of Tourism (DoT)?

The Marcos administration has already recognized the importance of aligning sports and tourism. In fact, it created the National Sports Tourism Inter-Agency Committee (NST-IAC), headed by PSC Chair Patrick “Pato” Gregorio, last year after realizing that hosting international events can attract thousands of foreign visitors who spend on hotels, food, transportation, and local services.

Still, the approach remains fragmented. In this setup, the PSC focuses on athletes and event organization, while the DoT handles destinations and branding — a separation that limits the program’s scale and impact.

By fully merging the PSC with the DoT, the country can finally align athletic excellence with destination development, turning sporting events into long-term tourism products rather than one-and-done spectacles.

The DoT already understands this logic. Under the leadership of Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, it created a dedicated golf tourism department to promote golf courses not merely as venues but as premium destinations that can attract high-spending visitors.

But if golf deserves a focused, tourism-driven approach, why stop there? Why not apply the same framework to other popular sports such as basketball, football, volleyball, boxing, combat sports, and emerging adventure sports across the country?

Merging the PSC with a larger department also addresses a practical issue: scale and resources. As a Cabinet-level agency, the DoT has stronger institutional reach, marketing expertise, and international networks. It works closely with stakeholders such as local governments, airlines, hotels, and private investors — all essential to a successful tourism program.

With a possible merger, the PSC would gain access to bigger funding, better infrastructure, and integrated planning, allowing sports programs to grow beyond training facilities into full-fledged tourism ecosystems.

A PSC-DoT merger would not diminish athletic development — it would strengthen it. Filipino athletes would be able to compete more frequently in major international events by virtue of being the host country. They would gain a ringside view of how elite athletes from other nations train, compete, and win medals, similar to what happened in 2000 when the country hosted the FIVB World Grand Prix, which sparked the growth of Philippine volleyball.

More than that, Filipino athletes would also compete at world-class venues with better facilities and equipment, provided either by the national government or international federations.

In short, winning medals and hosting world-class events should not be competing goals — they should reinforce each other.

Times have truly changed. Countries with successful sports programs no longer isolate athletics from economic planning. They treat sports as culture, business, entertainment, and tourism all at once.

With its passionate sports fans and world-class venues, the Philippines is in a strong position to become a sports tourism powerhouse — if it makes the right moves.