After two years with Filipinas, head coach Mark Torcaso finally made a historic breakthrough with the team in SEA Games 2025.
BANGKOK — Philippine women’s national football team head coach Mark Torcaso clinched his biggest victory with the team, leading them to a historic SEA Games gold at the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand, with the team beating four-time defending champions Vietnam in Chonburi on Wednesday.
More than two years since taking the job from compatriot Alen Stajcic, Torcaso had dealt with some ups and downs as the Filipinas tried to ride the momentum of their campaign at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
But taking on tougher competition has proven challenging for Torcaso and the players, especially as they took time to get used to his system after a couple of years under Stajcic’s tenure.
With the SEA Games ending the way they did, with the Filipinas winning via penalty shootout, Torcaso couldn’t help but bask in the success brought about by his girls.
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“Emotional. I think the biggest milestone [for me] was getting the job first with the Philippines. That was something that I was privileged, proud to take on,” Torcaso told POC Media.
“This is definitely one of those moments where you definitely feel the excitement. For me, it's all about the girls. It's all about the time and effort that they put in for our country. I'm just proud of them and proud of every one of their family members and all our friends and family that are back home in the Philippines as well,” he added.
Bigger picture, and then some
Despite the historic nature of their fate, there will be little time for the Filipinas to actually reap the benefits of their hard work, with the AFC Women’s Asian Cup looming for the team in three months' time in Australia.
Even going into the SEA Games, Torcaso and the team were well aware that the SEA Games is part of the bigger picture of getting ready to qualify to another FIFA Women’s World Cup with the tournament down under in March.
Still, it was exhilarating for Torcaso that his team was able to get invaluable experience and do something historic at the same time.
Not one to sell themselves short, Torcaso said that it was a good experience to be able to win gold.
“We always said that this tournament was about our preparation for Asian Cup because we knew we were playing against some good teams. There's a lot of teams that are playing in the Asian Cup that didn't get a chance to prepare like this,” he said.
“We wanted to use this tournament as an opportunity to use it to prepare, to play against good teams, but also along the way to win a medal.”
Even as they managed their expectations prior to stepping into the pitch in Chonburi, Torcaso did admit that there was something in the air when the Filipinas first started to prepare for the biennial tournament.
Used to being history makers, the Filipinas were primed for success.
“I think I might have said it to a couple of you a couple of months ago that I feel something special about this group coming into these SEA Games,” Torcaso said.
“Even a few people, when we were training in Manila not long ago, a couple of weeks ago, a few people came up to me and said, we've got a feeling we're going to win this gold.”
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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.