PFF on PH's hosting of FIFA Futsal Women's World Cup: 'I think we'll do well'

There’s probably no one happier than Philippine Football Federation president John Gutierrez when the country won the bid to host the inaugural FIFA Women’s Futsal World Cup.

 To say that landing the gig is a big deal is an understatement.

 This being the first major FIFA event in the country, Gutierrez said that the 16-team tournament is history in the making.

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“It’s tremendous. It’s very big. Simply put, FIFA has only four quadrennial events. Before this one, they had three. They had the men's and women's football every four years. They had men's futsal every four years. And now for the first time, they will have futsal for women,” he told One Sports Thursday during Globe’s quarterly Blue Print event in BGC.

 “So, this is history in the making. Everybody remembers where the first quadrennial events were.”

 Winning the bid against football nations like Spain, Brazil and Portugal also signals that the world’s football governing body is truly embracing diversity and inclusivity, according to the PFF chief.

 After all, the country has shown its ability to host the biggest sports spectacles in recent years with the staging of the 2023 FIBA World Cup and the recent FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship here.

[RELATED STORY: FIFA lauds PFF’s strong commitment that led to Futsal Women’s World Cup hosting]

“We bid against countries like Spain, Italy, Portugal, Brazil and the Lithuania. And we are very fortunate to have been given rights to host the event. So I guess FIFA has trust in our capability,” Gutierrez said.

 “FIFA is also very much into diversity and inclusivity. There's never been a quadrennial FIFA event in Southeast Asia, so maybe they decided it was time. Really fortunate that it was the Philippines that will be hosting the first FIFA World Cup for the women's futsal.”

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 The event is set from Nov. 21 to Dec. 5, with the Philippines bunched together with Poland, Morocco and Argentina.

 “These are all powerhouse teams that earned their way through qualifiers to be in the World Cup. So, as far as our chances are, I believe that we belong to the world stage. We've been preparing since we got the hosting rights. I think we'll do well,” said Gutierrez.

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Like most sportswriters, Jan Ballesteros once dreamed of becoming a professional hooper. But he learned the hard way that it’s not for everyone.

He continues to be involved in the sport he loves, but this time as a member of the PBA Press Corps. Aside from primarily covering the PBA, he is also assigned to cover Gilas Pilipinas.