MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) will finally have a new home in Carmona, Cavite following the groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the future headquarters of Philippine football last Saturday, 30 July 2022.
Situated on a 4,231 square meter of land that was procured by the PFF through the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President’s Infrastructure Initiative in 2020, the five (5) story building will be located within 900 meters from the FIFA-funded artificial turf pitch inside the San Lazaro Leisure and Business Park of what is currently the PFF National Training Center and is expected to meet the growing demands of football development in the country.
The new headquarters will replace the current PFF House of Football in Pasig City, which was built in 2007 under the former FIFA Goal project.
“We are delighted to finally break ground on the new PFF HQ. This was once a dream for us in the PFF, and now we’re slowly but surely seeing it come to life,” said PFF president Mariano Araneta. “It took years of meticulous planning and collaboration with our partners, FIFA and AFC, to get to where we are today. We are thankful to FIFA for supporting the project through the FIFA Forward Program and the AFC for their help in securing the property where the new headquarters will soon rise.”
The headquarters comes at an opportune time after the Philippine Women’s National Team made history by winning the AFF Women’s Championship 2022 two weeks ago and have qualified to the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Australia and New Zealand.
2022 will be remembered as a special year for @philfootball. It began with the WNT sealing maiden @FIFAWWC qualification.
Foundations are now in place to secure the future of the nation’s ⚽, with a ground-breaking ceremony today for their new HQ, supported by FIFA. 🇵🇭🏠
— FIFA.com (@FIFAcom) July 30, 2022
“The construction of the new headquarters could not have come at a better time,” added PFF general secretary Atty. Edwin Gastanes. “There is a heightened momentum right now for Philippine football, following the success of our women’s national team. The Filipinas’ success story is not only remarkable, it also inspires future players. For those in the federation, it moves them serve the football stakeholders more. A spacious and modern HQ will help us realize our goals, with a more productive administrative and technical staff.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino and AFC General Secretary Datuk Seri Windsor John congratulated the PFF for its groundbreaking of the new headquarters.
“Today is a historic day for the Philippine Football Federation – and I congratulate you as you break ground on the construction of your new headquarters. Your new home will allow your staff to relocate to a modern, spacious and state-of-the-art space,” said Infantino. I am particularly happy to note that you have worked so closely with FIFA to reach the point you arrive at today, and this is exactly the aim of the FIFA Forward Programme: to provide tailor-made support to all 211 Member Associations, with more investment, more impact and more oversight.”
“It gives me good pleasure to congratulate the Philippine football family in the groundbreaking of the new PFF headquarter project,” said John. “Football development thrives on the quality and engaging programs, but it also requires top class infrastructure for the game to truly flourish. I’m pleased to note that the PFF has new base from which stronger development programs can be implemented to further elevate the standards of the game across the country.
Also in attendance were FIFA Regional Director for Asia and Oceania Sanjeevan Balasingam, FIFA Development Coordinator Niko Nhouvannasak, Carmona Mayor Hon. Dahlia Loyola, Philippine Sports Commission Executive Director Atty. Guillermo Iroy, Jr., PFF Board of Governors, and PFF Member Associations presidents and representatives.
