PH women's team achieves highest-ever FIFA ranking

MANILA, Philippines, December 22 ------ The Philippine women's football team has achieved its highest ever position in the FIFA rankings, which the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) calls a clear sign of the sport's growth in the country. In the latest rankings released by FIFA over the weekend, the Philippines is now at No. 65, up from its previous best of No. 67 last year.

This, despite not playing in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "We congratulate the Women's National Team for this achievement," PFF president Mariano Araneta, Jr. said in a statement. "Certainly, this is a clear indication that women's football in the country is continuously improving," he added.

PFF secretary-general Atty. Edwin Gastanes noted that women's football "has been on a steady rise" in the past few years as seen in the fourth-place finishes of the national team in both the AFF Women's Championship and the 30th Southeast Asian Games.

While the ranking is certainly a cause for celebration, Araneta stressed that it is also a challenge to the federation to "make sure that the women's team and women's football, in general, is given the support and the platform to succeed." In this regard, Gastanes noted that there are "more opportunities" coming up for women's football in the coming years that the PFF will be sure to maximize.

Source: news.abs-cbn.com/sports