Coca-Cola Philippines reaffirms commitment to women's football in the Philippines

c/o Philippine Football Federation

Coca-Cola Philippines remains committed in its support for women's football in the Philippines.

Having served as a sponsor for the last edition of the PFF Women's League, the firm will serve as the title sponsor for the PFF Women's Cup, a six-team tournament which includes some of the best players in the country, and is considered as a pathway for eventual participation into the PFF Women's League, which is set to take place in 2025.

In re-establishing their partnership, Coca-Cola Philippines Vice President for Philippines Franchise Operations Pablo Medina Noriega says, "At Coca-Cola Philippines, we believe in the power of diversity and are passionate about empowering women to reach their fullest potential. Our partnership with the Philippine Football Federation Women’s Cup reflects our commitment to creating opportunities for growth and success. We believe in creating a future where everyone can thrive, free from bias and inequality."

He adds, "Coca-Cola has always been a strong supporter of women's sports. And in this case, we are very passionate about nurturing the future of sports by supporting the football clubs composed of young female athletes."

On the federation's end, President John Gutierrez shares, "We are really excited for this year’s women’s cup. We’ve got a number of the top women’s teams playing in the league, which is something we should all look forward to."

He also emphasizes, "Now is the time for our women football athletes to showcase their skills, and inspire the new generation of aspiring football players. As we have already seen with the Filipinas, the Philippines is capable of producing world-class talents, and we hope that the league could also bring forward locally developed players to represent the country in the future."

Attending the official unveiling of this renewal of partnership are officials from both parties, with the PFF's contingent comprised of General Secretary Angelico Mercader, National Teams Director Freddy Gonzalez, Competitions Committee Chair Lovely Tababa. Also present are members of the participating teams, which includes recent Senior Women's National Team call-ups.

League stalwarts Kaya FC leads the cast, as well as Tuloy FC, joined by two teams who made major offseason build-ups in Manila Digger FC and Stallion Laguna FC. Completing the cast are Beach Hut FC and UMak-Azzurri SC.

For this iteration of the PFF Women's Cup, a single round-robin will take place, with the top four teams advancing into the semifinals, with the winners facing off for the title and losers into the third place game.

Action has already commenced last October 13, with a couple of playdates already concluded: Manila Digger defeating Stallion, 2-1, and Beach Hut dispatching Azzurri, 5-1. It was then followed by a doubleheader on October 18, with Kaya FC winning over Tuloy FC, 6-3 and Stallion issuing a 9-0 shutout over Beach Hut.

Gonzalez notes about the importance of this competition, "We have a lot of the players who were part of the last World Cup squad coming back to the country and playing for the local clubs. It’s really important to get regular games week in week out so that they can be ready when they represent the Filipinas in international competitions."

Kaya FC defender and Philippines international Hali Long agrees, "It's really important to have leagues like this to push football here and to see the sport grow."

Mercader highlights that the Women's Cup is part of the PFF's plans. "It's going to be exciting because there are a lot of tournaments and games for women's football. This coming November, we have the AFF ASEAN Women's Futsal Championship which will kick off our campaign for the FIFA Women's Futsal World Cup which we will host in November 2025."

Tababa concludes, "We hope to work together as a community where we create more opportunities for our Filipino football athletes and for others to support these endeavors."