Filipinas in FIFA Women’s World Cup at home away from home

MANILA, Philippines — As they take the long, challenging road to the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the Filipinas are drawing extra strength from countrymen showering them with love everywhere they go.

The “Filipino connection” in WC site New Zealand and other faraway cities they’ve spent their buildup in has been a huge boost for the lady booters, according to team administrator Belay Fernando de la Cruz.

“Sobrang nakakaiyak and sobra yung pride ng the team that they have these people supporting them whether they know them or not,” Fernando-De la Cruz said in The Game on One Sports.

The Filipinas had goosebumps when they arrived in Auckland for the final stretch of preparations as flag-waving kababayans welcomed them warmly at the airport while singing “Ako ay Pilipino” and shouting “Mabuhay!”

“This (Pinoy) connection is always there. A lot of them are doing it for the pride of the motherland of their nanays, tatays, lolos and lolas. It just gets amplified when they see the all-out support of the Filipino communities who weren’t even football fans before and now coming out to support a Philippine football team,” she said.

“That just warms the heart of the girls and every bit of support every time they see people waving the flag and coming out for them makes them so happy and so proud.”

Filipino supporters who can’t be there in New Zealand can still be with the lady booters every step of the way and witness their exploits on free TV and other devices, courtesy of Cignal TV, Inc.

Fans back home can catch the Philippines’ Group A games against Switzerland on Friday at 1 p.m. (Manila Time), host New Zealand on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. and against Norway on July 30 at 3 p.m. on free-to-air via One Sports (free-to-air Ch. 41 and Cignal Ch. 6).

The fixtures will also be available for free via Cignal’s newest OTT platform, Pilipinas Live. Sports fans can download the app via Apple Store and Google Play Store to have the chance to watch all the matches of the Filipinas anytime, anywhere on any device.

“Cignal is very happy to be able to provide the much-needed coverage for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup on our platforms. We recognized the demand Filipinos have for this quadrennial event and we at Cignal TV always want to be able to bring the best experience to all our viewers,” said MediaQuest Holdings Inc. and Cignal TV President and CEO Jane Jimenez Basas.

The Alen Stajcic-mentored Pinay booters are priming up for a historic debut in the football spectacle beginning tomorrow against the Swiss in Dunedin.

The team has undergone camps in Australia, Tajikistan, Spain, Chile and the United States over the last 18 months to get ready for the biggest battle of their lives.

“Emotional ang journey na ito in terms of having that flag everywhere and having the faces of the girls on the social media and World Cup (materials), nakaka-proud talaga to see how far they’ve come,” said Fernando-De La Cruz.