The Philippine women’s national football team will be battling the same preliminary foes in the 2025 SEA Games as they did in the 2023 edition in Cambodia.
Redemption will be on the minds of the Philippine women’s national football team as they vie for better results at the 2025 SEA Games in Chonburi, Thailand.
Having been drawn with the same exact group that they had in the 2023 edition in Cambodia, the Filipinas will be out for revenge and hopefully move on to the knockout rounds this time.
With only two SEA Games bronze medals in their program history, the most recent coming in 2022 in Vietnam, the Filipinas will be determined to get a good outing in preparation for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in March 2026.
“Yes, SEA Games is always such a fun tournament to go to. We randomly have the same exact group as last time. So you know, we have a good amount of the core girls who are able to go this time,” said Chandler McDaniel after scoring a goal in a 2-2 draw against Uzbekistan at the Rizal Memorial Stadium last week.
“So we’re super excited to go and see how we play against those teams because you know, like I’ve said before, it’s all prep for qualifiers in March,” she added.
Bounce back mindset
The Filipinas looked poised for a 2-nil victory to cap their October FIFA window in front of home fans, before the determined Uzbeks scored twice in the last 30 minutes of the fixture to force a draw.
[RELATED: Filipinas battle to draw with Uzbekistan in SEA Games build-up]
In what was just their second match at home since winning the AFF Women’s Championship in 2022, skipper Hali Long said that they’ll be using the frustrating result against Uzbekistan to their advantage.
“We always bounce back. We always face adversities like this. It’s unfortunate how they got their goals. But I mean, just things to work on going into our November camp and going into SEA Games,” she said.
Meanwhile, McDaniel underscored the bigger picture of the Women’s Asian Cup where the Filipinas will try to reach for the semis anew, which would mean a return trip to the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The Filipinas narrowly beat Chinese Taipei in penalty kicks, 4-3, in their quarterfinals match back in 2022 to make the historic qualification for the 2023 World Cup in New Zealand.
“[I’m] really proud of the girls. You know, it was a tough week, and not everyone was at AFF, so it’s good to have the core group here,” said McDaniel.
“We didn’t get the win but you know, it’s still progress and we’re just going to keep working for AFC which is the ultimate goal,” she added.
Meryll Serrano was the other goal scorer for the Filipinas against Uzbekistan.
The Filipinas will face Vietnam, Myanmar, and Malaysia in the group stage of the SEA Games beginning December 5 in Chonburi.
In 2023, the Filipinas narrowly missed out on the knockout stage due to goal difference.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.