When the Philippine women’s football team fought Norway on Sunday, July 30, 2023, my son and my wife watched the coverage on television. I must admit football is not my cup of tea so I did other things. But not before she commented that team Pilipinas does not look physically like a homegrown one. A recent article I read described the team as a mini United Nations. Sarina Bolden, who scored when the Filipinas upset a New Zealand team, grew up in the United States.
The Filipinas are the first Philippine football team, male or female, to reach the World Cup. They were deservedly the underdogs against Norway, who won the World Cup in 1995, and lost by a score of 6-0. But the feat should further boost the sport in the country, which is behind basketball, boxing and billiards in popularity. Even volleyball is on a resurgence of sorts, propped up by the popularity of some women volleyballers.
With the loss, Pilipinas ended its World Cup stint, hopefully putting to rest questions on the Filipinas’ physical appearance. I have long been in favor of the country reaping the fruits of the diaspora. Fil-foreigners in basketball have long been a thing. It’s time for other sport disciplines to allow talented Filipinos and children of mixed parents to represent the country in international competitions. Fil-foreigners, too, have invaded even international showbusiness. The recent report is that singer Bruno Mars sang a song with Tagalog lyrics in a concert.
Being homegrown is good, but why shouldn’t we avail ourselves of the advanced training other countries provide to its talents? Good swimmers, for example, have represented the country in the Olympics. The athletes carry foreign sounding names, but who are we to question their loyalty to the country? Jordan Clarkson, for example, has spoken against the spreading of hate against people with Asian blood in the US.
Globalization has slowly changed previous perception on patriotism. What is wrong is when athletes take foreign nationality instead of offering their services to the country. Some members of the Philippine women’s football team may have selfish reasons to join the team but I believe they soon will develop the same sense of patriotism that homegrown athletes possess.
Incidentally, two homegrown talents that have made us proud in international sports are either in their waning years or have retired. I am referring to Manny Pacquiao and Efren “Bata” Reyes. The search for the next Filipino to bring us international glory in sports is on. My wish is that in that search, we should drop the distinction of whether they are homegrown talents or not.
As a basketball lover, I have been following Kai Sotto’s attempt to become the first homegrown Filipino to play in the National Basketball Association or NBA in the US. But in so doing, we have overlooked the Filipino-Americans who are already making a name in the NBA like Clarkson and Jalen Green. Anyway, Sotto is on the verge of making his dream come true and we must urge him on. Still, there are Filipinos who are acting like crabs pulling Sotto down.