THE Philippine men’s football team will compete in the 2026 Asian Games for the first time in 52 years.
The Philippine Olympic Committee announced that the Philippines made it to the 16-team men’s football tournament following the withdrawal of India.
The Asian Games men’s football tournament is an Under-23 competition with a maximum of three senior players allowed per team.
“We’re next in line so we got the slot,” POC president Abraham ‘Bambol’ Tolentino said.
The PMNT will play in the Asian Games for the first time since 1974 in Tehran, Iran when the Philippines lost all three matches in the group stage.
Since the Asian Games became an Under-23 tournament in 2002, the Philippines has not competed in men’s football until this year in Nagoya, Japan.
The Filipinas, bound for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2027, have already secured a spot in the Asiad delegation.
With the entry of the men’s under-23 football team, the Philippines is in line to reach 700 and suprass the record 524 athletes that competed in the 1994 Asian Games in Hiroshima, Japan.
The Philippines is now set to compete in 38 out of the 47 sports in the Asiad.
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