Young booters face bright future

The Philippine U15 Men’s National Football Team (PMNFT U15) wrapped up its maiden FIFA World Cup & Festival with a respectable 110th place out of 189 countries in the world’s biggest football tournament held in Baku, Azerbaijan in terms of participation.

“Our U15’s performance tells us that our homegrowns, when given a platform, can compete well against opponents from other continents,” Philippine Football Federation (PFF) president John Anthony Gutierrez said.

The Philippine side had a total of 19 goals in 10 games, highlighted by four victories against Belize (1-0) and Curacao (8-1) in the Group Stage while defeating Macau (2-0) and Aruba (5-2) in the Classification Stage. The Filipino U15s drew Zimbabwe (2-2).

PFF sent a mostly homegrown squad from regional football association (RFAs), schools, and clubs, and several players took part in the 2026 PFF U16 National Championship in Bago City last May. Gutierrez said the results show where the national youth program stands.

“Because of FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s push for a tournament of this scale, we have a clearer vision in building a system that produces world-class youth athletes from our RFAs and domestic clubs who can stand alongside our heritage talents abroad in future international competitions,” Gutierrez said.

He praised the players for their attitude through a demanding schedule.

“The group stage was a litmus test of how far our local talents can go in the global stage,” Gutierrez said.

“These boys never backed down. They faced strong, unfamiliar teams, played five matches in three days, and kept fighting. That attitude is what we want in every Philippine national team.”

Gutierrez was at the FIFA World Cup in June 2026, when Infantino announced the staging of the inaugural U15 World Cup. Gutierrez said an event with 189 participating member associations is significant for young Filipino players.

“Our youth players competed in a global tournament, against teams from around the world. That kind of exposure was out of reach for most Filipinos in the past. We thank FIFA for creating this event because now, we can play against and learn from countries from distant lands,” he said.