Football has been played in the Philippines for over a hundred years, but it is in the last twenty years that interest has really taken off. The men's national team is nicknamed the Azkals - short for 'asong kalye', which means 'street dogs' in Filipino - because they were once the underdogs, and the name stuck even when they got really good.
The women's team, the Filipinas, made the country proud in 2023 by qualifying for the FIFA Women's World Cup for the first time in history. They even won their first match at the tournament. The team's success has inspired thousands of Filipino girls to start playing football at school.
Lots of Philippine schools now have football pitches and after-school clubs. In big cities like Manila and Cebu, there are youth leagues where kids of all ages play matches at weekends. Some schools play on full grass pitches; others play five-a-side on small concrete courts.
Football and basketball both have their fans in the Philippines, and many children play both. The country's love of teamwork - and of getting outside in the warm weather - fits both sports perfectly.