One of the most sensitive discussion points in Philippine sports is the utilization of Filipino-Foreign players. Since the country adheres to jus sanguinis, meaning that citizenship is passed on from birth parent to child, along with the worldwide Filipino diaspora – the talent pool for the country’s sporting programs has widened.
The sport that this phenomenon has been closely associated with recently is football. As the country’s grassroots development program is in dire need of funding, planning, and infrastructure, Filipinos of foreign descent have been recruited to bridge the gap in international competitions, much to the disappointment of some fans especially when results go south.
The unexpected rise of the Philippine Women’s National Football Team in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 has revived these arguments in social media. As the country celebrates securing a ticket to the FIFA World Cup 2023 while gearing up for a semi-finals clash against South Korea, it is high time once again to try and bridge the cultural gaps.
“I know I’ve said it before but it’s just like passion,” said Sarina Bolden, whose mom Sherry Calpo hails from Pangasinan. “Filipinos, our resilience is legendary… No matter what, you’ll see Filipinos working so hard and putting their hearts, their souls into everything that we do and I think that’s what you saw that day (against Chinese Taipei).
“You saw girls over-communicating, yelling, screaming no matter where they were because that’s just how Filipinos do it. We’re loud, we’re proud. Like I said, we’re gonna work hard. We’re gonna go all the way to the end. We’re never going to give up and just being able to communicate like that on the field just shows… the type of team that we are.”
Indeed, Bolden is a good example of Filipino resilience.
From being omitted in the team’s first game against Thailand because of COVID-19 protocols to missing an early penalty against Indonesia, the 25-year-old goalscorer found the back of the net against Chinese Taipei in the penalty shootout to seal the historic win for the Filipinas.
Another player who also demonstrated her Filipino heart was definitely goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel, who literally saved the Philippines in that same match with two saves in the shootout and then converted her own spot-kick to provide Bolden the chance she needed to do her job.
(C) AFC
“For me, I think, growing up in a Filipino household, it was always loud all the time… Not even just that being loud but it’s the fight and the grit that I think we as Filipinos have,” said McDaniel, whose mom Lindy Isip traces her roots to Pampanga and Davao City.
“The ‘laban’ we have is just… it’s insane.
“We did not stop and I think that’s truly a part of our character and personality of this team and I think it rang true for us last night,” she continued.
Perhaps this debate about whether or not using Filipinos born and raised abroad will not end until the country can produce its own world-class stars within its own territory.
However, the least that the likes of Bolden, McDaniel, their teammates from the PWNFT, and other Filipino-Foreign players deserve is the full support from their countrymen since they are sacrificing so much just to bring sporting glory to the Philippines.
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