The final 23-player roster will soon be named.
The Philippine women’s national football team (PWNFT) is drawing closer to its historic stint at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, and on Saturday, Filipinas coach Alen Stajcic officially unveiled the country’s provisional squad for the prestigious tournament.
The provisional squad is composed of 29 players, most of whom will be with Stajcic in the PWNFT’s pre-World Cup camp to be held at the Western Sydney Wanderers Complex in Sydney, Australia.
Prolific striker Sarina Bolden and midfielder Sara Eggesvik are the headliners of the provisional squad, which also features co-captains Hali Long and Tahnai Annis and goalkeepers Olivia McDaniel and Inna Palacios.
Here is the complete list:
The 29-member provisional squad will be trimmed to 23 for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand.
“We wish the players and staff the best for their final preparatory camp for the FIFA Women’s World Cup. We appreciate all their hard work and sacrifice for the country. They have our full support.” said Philippine Football Federation president Mariano Araneta,“ who, also on Saturday, decried the government’s lack of support for the history-making Filipinas.
The Filipinas will be entering the final phase of their World Cup preparations in high spirits after seeing the Philippines rise to no. 46 in FIFA’s world rankings—seven spots up from the PWNFT’s no.53 ranking at the end of 2022.
Stajcic’s squad will be playing in Group A, where they will be ranged against world no. 12 Norway, world no. 20 Switzerland, and world no. 26 New Zealand. The Filipinas will make their World Cup debut versus Switzerland on July 21 in Dunedin, New Zealand, before facing host New Zealand on July 25 and Norway on July 30.