The “Filipinas” – officially known as the Philippine Women’s National Football Team (Philippine WNT) – has broken into the World Top 50 in the newest edition of the International Federation of Football Association (FIFA) rankings, the highest-ever rank for the local booters.
The Filipinas climbed to No. 49 on the FIFA Women’s World Rankings released March 24, 2023, four notches up from its No. 53 rank in the last edition from December 2022 – and a much-improved status since it entered the rankings in 92nd place.
In March last year, the Philippine WNT leaped ten notches to World No. 54 following its historic semi-final finish in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup held in India. The team was previously ranked 64th in December 2021.
The Filipinas are now ranked No. 49 in the world among 188 teams, improved to No. 9 in Asia, and maintained their spot at No. 5 in the ASEAN Football Federation.
The Philippine squad now bears 1496.23 points after achieving historic firsts in the country’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup campaign, which led to a maiden appearance in the semifinals of the regional championship and a ticket to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the nation’s first qualification to the prestigious tournament to be hosted by Australia and New Zealand in 2023.
Filipinas have reached the World's Top 50 Rank @FIFAcom @PilipinasWNFT STORY on @GoodNewsPinas_ https://t.co/5Ml6yJ0bEJ
— Angie Quadra-Balibay (@AngieQBalibay) March 28, 2023
The Philippine Football Federation in a statement credited the achievement to the “importance of collaboration between the PFF, team management, and coaching staff, and the dedication, discipline, and sacrifice of the players”.
“Indeed, the rise of the Filipinas shows that belief, professionalism, structure, organization and technical knowledge and commitment of players can lead us into the right direction,” the PFF stated.
The PFF statement highlighted the players of the Filipinas squad and its supporters for inspiring others with their continued representation of the country.
“Most of all, we are grateful for our national team players who, time and again, have shown their love for our country by representing the Philippines with pride and honor each time they step into the pitch. Indeed, plenty of the work is done behind the scenes – at planning sessions, in camps, and days and hours before matches – and we thank those who have quietly sacrificed their time and effort to ensure that the team continues its progress.
“We hope that the rest of the country, specially the sporting youth, takes inspiration from the Filipinas and their achievements,” the country’s football federation added.
The women’s football team is preparing for its Round 1 match in the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament Paris 2024 Asian Qualification with the following games schedule:
- April 5 Philippines vs Pakistan
- April 8 Philippines vs Tajikistan
- April 11 Philippines vs Hong Kong
The next FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking will be published on June 9, 2023, just a month ahead of the FIFA Women’s World Cup where the Filipinas have the following schedule:
- July 21 Philippines vs Switzerland
- July 25 Philippines vs New Zealand
- July 30 Philippines vs Norway
The Philippine Women’s National Football Team (PWNFT) is led by Australian coach Alen Stajci.
SEND CHEERS in the comments below to the Filipinas Philippine Women’s National Football Team for continuing its rise in the FIFA Women’s World Rankings!
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