Jim Gomez
Associated Press
9-year-old Jessica Miklat of the Philippines and Kim Min Lee of South Korea make a jumper during the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup Asian Cup match in Pune, India, Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022. The Philippines’ female-member soccer team recently made local history by securing the country’s first-ever World Cup berth, but comments from some fans on social media said most players of mixed-American ancestry were “not Filipino enough.” (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakad, file)
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Members of the Filipino women’s soccer team that recently qualified for its first World Cup played down comments on social media that most players of mixed-American ancestry were “not Filipino enough.”
The Philippines beat Taiwan 4-3 in a penalty shootout after finishing 1-1 in the Women’s Asian Cup hosted by India recently.
The landmark victory added to football’s growing interest in the basketball and boxing frenzy of the former American colony.
An online video of the winning kick posted on Twitter went viral, garnering 168,000 views, 5,700 likes and over 1,000 retweets.
The question then turned to criticism online, which cast a shadow over the American ancestry of many of the Filipino players.
“We are all Filipinos, there is nothing that we are not Filipinos enough,” online news site Philstar.com quoted U.S.-based Kiara Fontanilla as saying at a news conference in Manila. “I think people who say that are wrong. … We’re here to make a difference.”
Olivia McDaniel, whose penalty shootout against Taiwan gave the Filipino its first World Cup berth, said the issues hurt her, stressing that the Filipino-American player was sure he was Filipino.
“Some people don’t really take it . . . but I think when you’re Filipino, you’re Filipino,” McDaniel said.
Stajic said he was disturbed by the criticism, witnessing the hard work, passion and sacrifice of the players.
“How can you doubt that?” he asked. “How can you doubt how many Filipinos they are?”
As part of the 18-month preparations for the World Cup, the Philippine women’s team plans to compete in the Southeast Asian Games, the AFF Women’s Championship and the Asian Games.
