MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is already working on the regulations of its Women's League, which it hopes to relaunch soon.

Initially launched in 2016, the PFF Women's League had served as the de facto top flight of women's football in the country, although it maintained an amateur status. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the PFF has not held the competition for the past two years.

"Before the pandemic, we had our PFF Women's League, continuously for I think, five years. And we saw to it that it will be held every year, because players need matches, not just training," noted PFF secretary-general Atty. Ed Gastanes during a press conference on Sunday.

"The pandemic stopped it for two years, but this year, with Alert Level 2 now, then we can have again, the Women's League for the local players, those based in Manila and nearby provinces. We are now finalizing the regulations of that," he assured.

"We are finalizing that with our schedule on when we can conduct the Women's League, so that our players can have matches, real matches."

• READ: PFF looks to revive Women's League

It's a positive development for the Philippine women's national football team, particularly those who are based locally. Of the 23 players who were part of the squad for the AFC Women's Asian Cup, six are attached to local clubs.

Veteran goal-keeper Inna Palacios, center back Hali Long, and midfielder Camille Rodriguez last played for Kaya FC, while Tara Shelton and sisters Sara and Anicka Castañeda are with the De La Salle University Lady Booters.

A bulk of the team play collegiate or high school football in the United States, while seven play professionally in overseas leagues.

With the relaunch of the Women's League, the PFF takes one step towards addressing a concern raised by head coach Alen Stajcic regarding the level of competition and experience within the Philippine women's national football team.

The Filipinas etched their name in Philippine sporting history by securing a spot in next year's FIFA Women's World Cup -- a first for the country -- but Stajcic acknowledged that they had "punched above our weight" to get to that level.

• READ: Filipinas advance to FIFA Women's World Cup
• READ: Philippines' success can inspire next generation, says Stajcic

"I think the thing that everyone has to remember is, especially when we're playing countries like Australia and South Korea, they're full-time professionals," Stajcic said.

The Australian mentor pointed out that just days after losing in the quarterfinal of the AFC Women's Asian Cup, the members of Australia's national team had all reported back to their clubs. Their star striker, Sam Kerr, featured in Chelsea's Continental Cup fixture against Manchester United on February 3, just three days after a 1-0 defeat to South Korea.

"These are girls who have been playing full-time professional football for the last five or 10 years. And same with all the Korean players," said Stajcic. "So we're punching so far above our weight to get to this level and to get to this point."

"To level the playing field and give ourselves a shot at the World Cup, you have to address that balance, imbalance, somehow. So, that's really the massive challenge," he added.

Stajcic acknowledged that the Filipina players, while already impressive, will have to become full-time professionals for the national team to reach the standard of the world's football powerhouses. He stressed that when they compete in the Women's World Cup next year, they will be up against teams whose rosters are composed mostly of full-time professionals.

"And if you're going with part-time players or semi-professional players, playing at that level in front of big crowds and that much pressure and fatigue, and all the things that happen in a major tournament, it's gonna be really tough," he said.

"We were together (in training) for three months. (But) the issue is, these other players are training 12 months a year, not three months. They're training every day," he stressed. "Barring annual leave for three or four weeks a year, they're training every day, every week."

"And for us to bridge that gap, that needs to be replicated in this team."

The Women's League will be a step in the right direction for the program, especially as Gastanes and PFF president Mariano "Nonong" Araneta have said that there are plans to turn the league into at least a semi-professional outfit.

• READ: Women's pro league in PH still not on the horizon

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