FIFA Rankings & Southeast Asia

This week has been pretty hell for me ~ sobrang toxic sa duty then depressed `cos di pa masyadong nakakapag-blog and I`m really bored out of my skull. There`s nothing good to watch on TV. I am broke. And still, loveless. Hahaha. So imagine my delight when I learned that the newest FIFA Football Rankings is now up! :) As expected, Spain still leads the pack. Then Germany, Uruguay, Netherlands and Portugal complete the Top 5. Oh God, Europe is on the run! *inggit much*

It made me think - how did our Southeast Asian football teams fared on the 200+ nation ranking? Southeast Asians are great football lovers and I guess we did well. OR HAVE WE? 

Vietnam is now the best national squad in the region at the 97th place. Wow! From being tied with the Philippines on the 165th place about 4 years ago to being Southeast Asia's best. Hats off to them!

Thailand at 141st place. 

Indonesia at 151st.

Malaysia at 156th. Together with Yemen.

Singapore at 158th.

Cambodia at 173rd tied with Myanmar.

Laos at 175th. 

Brunei at 202nd. Together with Mauritania.

And Timor Leste at 204th.

Yes, I know what’s on your mind right now - Where's the bloody hell is the Philippines? Don't worry, I saved the best for last. Whaaaat? Hahaha.

Ayun oh. *sabay turo*

BREAKING NEWS: The Philippines is the biggest ASEAN mover in the latest FIFA rankings.

Is it real or we are just being punk'd?

*slaps*

Yes, it is for real. FOR REAL.

The Philippines moved eight places up from 156th to 148th. I know bitters/haters/inggiteros out there would quick to point out "Lang? 148th lang? Sobrang proud ka na? Ambabaw mo naman". (Well, haters gonna hate. That's what they are born to do. Just hate.) Ok, just to piss them more - I.AM.SO.FREAKINNNG.PROUD.  Why shouldn't I? Ever since the world was created billion years ago, this is our highest FIFA ranking evaaar. Fucken lovely, simply fucken lovely!

World Cup 2018, HERE WE COME!

In Defense of the Azkals

Disclaimer: This article is neither written to ingratiate myself with the Azkaleros nor this is written to contribute to the ongoing battle between the fans and the non-fans.

There’s been some bashing and resentment in the Azkals on several fronts. While I can understand both sides, it seems that the side that wants to bash them is starting to get ugly, if not hateful. And as a young man who loves the Azkals as a team, I just can’t shut my mouth and wait for the worst. 

ISSUE # 1: “Di naman Pinoy ang mga yan!” 

It makes me sad that until now there is still this “half-Filipino” vs. “pure-Filipino” debate in Philippine football. It’s not only politically incorrect but also stupid in my opinion. Clearly, there is nowhere in our laws that gives a measure of being a Filipino by blood or by breed. Per Article IV of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, one of the criteria to be considered as a Filipino citizen is “those whose fathers OR mothers are citizens of the Philippines”. Some of the current members of the men’s national football team have either a Filipina mother or a Filipino father, thus qualifying them to be natural-born Filipino citizens. Plus, if we take FIFA’s requirements for a national player, everyone who makes it to the Philippine national football team is definitely a Filipino. To question that, as well as THE Philippine Constitution, is a mark of ignorance. Or stupidity perhaps. 

But still, if you’re going to bash the team because they don’t look like Filipinos, you should carry that out to the other sports organizations that send representatives in international tournaments that do not fit your stereotype. Just to be fair. If you go along the stereotypical way of thinking, why not question Smart-Gilas for sending Chris Tiu (Filipino-Chinese) or Asi Taulava (Filipino-Tongan) to basketball tournaments abroad? Or question the Philippine Olympic Committee for sending 3 Filipino-American swimmers to the 2008 Summer Games? Or Binibining Pilipinas for sending Venus Raj (Filipino-Indian) in Miss Universe? I know it’s not a sport but what the heck. Nobody seems crying about that. Why question only football? Why? Besides, when these half-Filipinos do well in American Idol, we are quick to point out “Proud to be Pinoy!”. Ba’t di natin yun magawa sa Azkals? 

These players have very little to gain compared to the privileges they would receive in Europe. Yet, they choose to wear the Philippine colors. And for that, we should be grateful. The Azkals are Filipinos. They represent the Philippines. Like their looks or not, they are Filipinos.

Issue # 2: “The Azkals are bunch of losers. They should be winning. Otherwise, there is no point in continuing admiring them. Praising a losing team for years and years di’ba?” 

Really? Where were these voices when the Azkals trashed Vietnam 2-0 (AFF Suzuki Cup 2010), when the Azkals entered the World Cup Qualifiers for the first time and beat Sri Lanka 5-1, when the Azkals came second in the Long Teng Cup or when the Azkals whipped former AFC Challenge Cup champs India and Tajikistan and made it to the semis of the AFC Challenge Cup for the first time evaaar? 

I find it totally weird when people are quick to point out, “talo na naman ang Azkals, ang bobobo kasi”, when in fact, they didn’t even bother to watch the game. Hypocrisy at its best. If you know football, you should know that winning is not easy as that. We have just rediscovered our love for football two years ago and some people expect na panalo agad lagi. Sorry darling but things don’t happen overnight. But by looks of the games the Azkals are playing now, the team improved by leaps and bounds. It is a far cry from the days when we used to score 0 against the opponent’s 15 (Philippines 1-13 Indonesia, Tiger Cup 2002).

And I dare say, the Azkals are worthy of being idolized. Because, hell, why not? The Azkals have given us something to start with. They may not be up to world standards (or your standards) but what’s more important is that they inspired a new generation of kids to play “the beautiful game”. In fact, there is now a long-term plan in football. There is already a U-13 homegrown team that has recently tied against its Malaysian counterpart. Lovely! Super freakin’ lovely! 

Let the Azkals do their job and let them achieve whatever success they can. Allow them that. 

Issue # 3: “Mga rapist naman yang mga yan.” 

All these are accusations that haven’t been proven in court. There was a past accusation and it didn’t go anywhere simply because it wasn’t true. And this new accusation is still being investigated and still unproven. Like all of us, they deserve due process, not public judgment. And like any other citizen, one is consider innocent unless proven guilty by a court of law. 

“Hindi ko kayo ka-kultura. Kasi wala dito (pointing to his chest)… at wala dito (pointing to his head)…”

“Hindi naman kayo Pilipino. Nagpapanggap lang kayong kayumanggi. Hindi kayo dito lumaki”… 

I have no idea what prompted Mr. Clavio’s kayumanggi rant. Moy and Guirado might have had their faults, but if we we’re talking about the alleged sexual harassment case, does it really need mentioning a person’s race, lineage or cultural upbringing? Hell no! 

“Alam naman nila yung mga sexcapades nila sa isa’t isa eh, di ba? Sino ba nag-penicillin.. Alam naman nila yun.”

“Akala siguro lahat sila gusto silang matikman siguro… makasama…Diyos ko.” 

O.O Seriously Arnold, seriously?

I see nothing wrong with expressing your opinion in front of national television because everyone (including tv personalities) has the right to speak themselves (Article III, Section 4, 1987 Philippine Constitution). However, I can’t and will never understand statements made by individuals that reeks bigotry and discrimination. What Mr. Clavio did and his sniping remarks were way too much and totally unnecessary and unprofessional for a journalist. There are so many way to express your displeasure without being uneducated and overall stupid.

We need to make the guilty pay for their mistakes. If Moy really said those things while referring to the accuser, he should be by any means, punished by the virtues of the law. But not until Moy is proven guilty. Due process dude, due process.

We Filipinos should think twice when we say something bad about our fellow Filipinos. It reflects the kind of attitude we have towards each other. Our attitude towards the Fil-foreigner players of our men’s national football team is one of the reasons why our nation is not only geographically divided but also morally worlds apart. 

And puh-lease let us stop this Azkals vs. (insert name of sports team here) thing. This is not football vs. basketball. Or dragonboat. Or boxing. These sports can co-exist. Wag hilahin pababa ang isa para itaas ang isa. We need to support our sportsmen and women, whether they performed well or not.

Let us kick discrimination, bigotry, hatred and crab mentality in Philippine sports. I’ll look forward to the day when the 95 million Filipinos could shout in unison: GOAAAAL! 

Go Philippine Azkals! TEAM PILIPINAS # 1!

Lessons I Learned From the Azkals

We are a basketball-insane archipelago! We all know that so don’t argue. We claim that game as ours. It’s in our culture. A religion for hard-boiled disciples. But in 2010, a team called Azkals, purporting to be our men’s national football team, made us forget about slam dunks and three point shots for a moment and (from out-of-nowhere) created a one-of-a-kind football revolution. Since then, the team inspires more and more hoop zealots to follow the “beautiful game” as well.

But more than the inspiration and the pride, the Azkals taught me and continues to teach me sensible lessons in football and in life. And please allow me to share some.


1. Not all zeroes are as bad as it sounds. Following and watching the Azkals is for me like watching and awaiting the results of a Pacman match. The excitement. The intensity. The madness. The game is long because the struggle is hard. But never ever boring. Even a scoreless draw is full of excitement because passion and determination prevail. One goal would have the same effect as a 20-nil in the first quarter of a basketball game. And in a country weaned in instant gratification, we are starting to appreciate low scores earned with great difficulty.

2. It’s not how you fall. It’s how you bounce back. The Azkals’ pride to play is tarnished for it has felt defeat, not only once but many times. A nil score is part of our men’s national football team’s history. After all, a whipping boy is not a whipping boy if he always wins. But no matter how many 3-0s or 5-0s it suffers, it keeps on fighting. Despite the odds, it still manages to give good results and deodorizes whatever failures our government has had in many years. If determination has a face, we will surely find the Azkals next to it in the dictionary.

3. Not all bad seeds came from the same fruit. A Thai-Belgian blogger once argued that foreign-trained Filipino athletes played for the country mainly due to sponsorships. But the Azkal players beg to disagree. Considering that they have better paying jobs abroad, one would truly find it remarkable that the Azkal players choose to come home and wear the Philippine colors, even if the monthly allowance of our athletes is “barya-barya lang”. I read a comment someone posted on the Azkals’ fan page that said “sometimes those half-breeds love our country even more” and I agree.

4. Take chances. Remember, there is no harm in trying. Football is too short. In this game, nothing happens to a coward. Seize every moment, every opportunity. Don’t be afraid to take risks, chances. Don’t be afraid to fail because failure is inevitable throughout the game. We are humans, after all. Prone to errors; never exempt from failures. So when you meet shattering number of near-makes and misses, you are left with only two choices. It’s either you continue to strike for a goal, more driven than ever and discover how far your passion can take you or just fold and give up.

5. Sport unites. I am a sports fan. I know that sports unite us, with what Pacman has done for us over and over again. I know that sports can bring a divided nation together and can be a source of pride among us. I am so amused by the support and adoration the Azkals has been getting from the Filipinos – it is impassioned, it is amazing, it is crazy. Others have gone to the extent of professing their undying love to the players. And I have a feeling that such sentiment will truly last. Why not? The Azkals sparked a national bayanihan movement. You see not all national teams get the same level of adoration accorded to the Azkals. To get the love and support of a nation is like winning half the battle.

And the biggest lesson I learned (and the simplest actually) is…

6. Never doubt your own. As cheesy and mushy as it may sound, this is one simple lesson we deeply needed to relearn. Many times, we doubt our abilities as Filipinos. We became fearful and coward. And worse, we feel being inferior to somebody else. We always think of what we cannot do. Rather think of what we are capable of. The Azkals showed what Filipinos can offer the world – our talent, our passion, our determination, our heart and our soul. In the few months that we displayed our love and respect to the Azkals; we had also, unconsciously, displayed our love and respect to our country and its people.

I know the Philippines is broken-hearted. We have been dreaming of Brazil for days. We dream of cheering our own team from the stands of Maracana. It only took an opponent’s victory to author the death of our World Cup dream (at least for now). And it was enough to break our hearts. There are a lot of things I could say that would probably make me feel better. I could whine about how poor the Azkals’ offense was. I could whimper on how Etheridge seemed out of it. I could snivel on how Coach Weiss miscalculated everything. I could sulk in and sour grape for days. But to tell you, I won’t. Should the team apologize for not conquering Kuwait? Of course not.

I don’t defend them just because I'm a fan. I defend them because I'm Filipino. Maybe this is what I learned growing up cheering for and supporting teams which don’t win all the time. No matter how hard we wish, the Azkals can’t have it all. Sometimes we win, sometimes we lose. No matter how ready, no matter how competitive we are, if we are not destined to win, we will not. And that’s the bitter reality: aiming for things that seem too easy to achieve yet very difficult to pursue because it is not meant for us.

Though we didn’t soar as high as we wanted to, I cannot help but feel happy and proud of our football team. Why wouldn’t I? I witnessed how our boys shocked the field. How they jostled it out with the region’s best. How they turned skeptics into believers and believers into fans. How they earned the salutation of the opponents. And most importantly, how they united the country. And for me, that’s more than enough. Even if the Azkals lose, they sort of win.

When the dusts settle and the hullabaloo is gone, it’s easy to see who are the fair-weather friends among the die-hard fans. Because anyone can support a team that is winning - it takes no courage. But to stand behind a team, to defend a team when it is down and really needs you, that takes a lot of courage.

The Magic of the Azkals!

BREAKING NEWS: A few minutes from now, I would take that long (and flashy!) walk to the podium to grab with my splendid right hand the piece of paper that I worked hard for the past four years.

...

While the Azkals was battling it out against the Bengal Tigers last Friday night, I sent an SMS to some of my friends who may have the smallest hint of sports lovers’ blood running through their veins: OMG! Lamang tayo, 3-0. Woooooh! Stay tuned, a historic win is coming!

One of the replies I got was: Tapos? Fad much.

Oh, it completely ruined my night. Boo.

...

I still can't get over it! The Philippines made it to the AFC Challenge Cup for the first time evaaaaar.

Sorry but this post is not so much of the Azkals as this is more about the symbol that they represent in a basketball-mad archipelago where kids first learn to dribble a ball than to memorize the alphabets. I wrote this to show my appreciation to the passion and love expressed by most Filipinos (I wish I can say all) to our national football team.

FIFA homepage, baby - TWICE.

The Azkals is, I believe, the most talked about national football team in forums, in Facebook and in Twitter today – I cannot even count on my fingers how many times the Azkals made it to the top-trending topics on Twitter. It can be remembered that their popularity skyrocketed only after their historic 2-0 win against Vietnam and that’s just merely five months ago, just freeeeaking five months ago. In the year-end report of Sports Illustrated, their match against Vietnam made it to the “Top 10 Soccer Stories of 2010”. And if you think that’s all, the Azkals even got a worldwide exposure when they were featured in the FIFA homepage not just once but twice. Wow, that’s pretty amazing for a football team which a few years ago was tagged as the whipping boys of the region.

Fame is not fame without the controversies – and tons of it. The Azkals suddenly become the object of scrutiny. The Azkals has been criticized for having players who are half-Filipinos and half-something else. On this, I have a few words. If you’re going to bash these half-breeds because they are not are pure-blooded Filipinos, you should carry out that to other countries who simply naturalize international star players to make them their own. Indonesia’s El Loco comes to mind.

Others also make an issue *cough cough Angelica cough* of the players entering show business. Oh c’mon! Considering that they have better-paying jobs abroad, one would truly find it remarkable that the Azkals chooses to come home and wear the Philippine colors, nevermind the fact that the monthly training allowance for our atheletes is “barya-barya lang”. Now that’s showbiz offers and endorsements are mobbing the team, I hope none of us will refrain them from savoring their success, their well-deserved success.

Regardless of what others think or say towards the Azkals, I’m proud of them as all should be of their country’s representative. They have worked hard to get to where they are now. Like an askal, they are survivors and hardworkers. No matter how many fat 0’s they get, they keep on fighting.

What amazes me more is the support they’re been getting from the Filipinos. I must say that the kind of fiery support the Azkals has been getting is very strong. When the Suzuki Cup came to a close, the pessimist in me said: "you're just keeping your hopes high, Azkals’ efforts will be easily forgotten as soon as the media stops reporting them". Of course, media won’t pick this up much because they are more interested in the president’s lovelife. But the heck, I was proven wrong. Indeed, the Azkals sparked a major football revolution. And it taught me two things: 1) Homegrown stars can be as charismatic as the half-breeds and 2) Filipinos love their national team that we care enough to include them in our prayers (oh yes, I do).

The Azkals are worthy of being idolized! And Mizuno too. They were there when the Azkals were still on sh*t.

The Azkals generate so much intensity, so much passion from the Filipinos, never mind if not all understands what a red card means. Such is the love and adoration of the Filipinos to their national football team. People who do not know any better would repudiate such love and adoration as a passing fancy, a pure fanaticism if I may. Well, to tell you, it is fanaticism but it is one of a kind.