MANILA, Philippines – Thirty-two nations, one host.

That was the eyebrow-raising opening spiel the Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) rolled out more than a year before the country’s ambitious hosting of the 2025 FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship, the sport’s top event and biennial spectacle.

Emboldened after the landmark hosting of the 2023 FIBA World Cup in basketball, Philippine sports officials further pushed the limits of Filipino hospitality and challenged stakeholders by bidding for three more world-level events — the FIVB worlds being by far the biggest one.

Two other hosted tournaments also carried historic significance later in the year: the 2025 FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup and the 2025 FIG Junior World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.

On the surface level, the events were hailed as massive successes and looked the part as well.

Though not without a heartbreaking finish to its underdog run, Alas Pilipinas proved it could hang with the utmost best in the FIVB worlds, as Italy eventually ran away with the world championship in a fantastic knockout final and emotionally-charged closing ceremony.

The Filipina5 lived the dream and nearly gave nightmares to their much established opponents in a picturesque promotion of futsal’s global growth, as FIFA powerhouse Brazil eventually won the inaugural gold medal in the 16-nation tournament.

Meanwhile, rising star Eldrew Yulo breached the podium twice in the FIG junior worlds, proving he is no mere poster boy of the 74-country, 750-athlete event, nor just the younger brother of double Olympic champion Carlos Yulo.

With the 2025 sports calendar coming to a close, however, the important retrospective question must be asked if Philippine sports were to further evolve at the juncture of the decade’s second half:

Was it all worth it?

The power (and privilege) of investment

As Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Patrick “Pato” Gregorio succinctly put it before the FIG worlds, hosting world events and supporting Filipino athletes is an “investment.”

Time and, most importantly, money, will inevitably be poured in copious amounts – reportedly in the multibillion-peso range combined for the FIVB, FIFA and FIG – just to pull off one of these international tournaments.

And with great spending comes great scrutiny.

Without undermining the efforts of those who tirelessly worked to make these events happen, the negatives must still be put into light to pave the way for smoother future hostings, as there will always be room for improvement if egos of those in charge can be set aside.

Ticket pricing, in particular, rises as a top sore point, especially after the 2023 FIBA World Cup and 2025 FIVB worlds.

While not an issue for niche sports like futsal and gymnastics, volleyball fans winced in financial pain as ticket prices initially soared to the five-digit range, peaking at around P18,000 for courtside and ranging from P4,000 to P8,000 a pop in the higher sections.

Decent seats, ticketed once every two regular games and once per playoff game, at first cost more than the average one-day concert of world-class artists — a problem that even reached the attention of the Senate.

No matter how former PNVF president Ramon “Tats” Suzara spins it, one-game ticket costs near or even above the country’s monthly minimum wage are not price points meant to attract Filipino fans, and the federation eventually folded with massive discounts until the final day.

After all, even in international events, Filipinos simply must come first when in the Philippines.

Hospitable hosts, inhospitable areas

As locals struggled with venues’ ticket hubs, foreigners, meanwhile, grappled with the venues themselves.

In both the FIVB worlds and the FIFA Futsal World Cup, shortcomings in arena sanitation — though long normalized by Filipinos — were small, but noticeable stains in what were otherwise world-class venues like the Araneta Coliseum and PhilSports Arena.

While corrective measures were eventually made to uphold reputations inside the gates, damage was still being done outside the premises, as locals and tourists alike all suffered through inevitable, world-infamous Metro Manila traffic just to get to the venues.

Even the Gymnastics Association of the Philippines (GAP), which actually hit a home run by choosing the Marriott Grand Ballroom as a practical event and athlete training hub for the FIG junior worlds, still could not fully combat the logistical burden of easily ushering fans into the airport-neighboring venue.

Interestingly, both the PNVF and Philippine Football Federation (PFF) nailed the lone, long-term solution to combat city traffic, but both somewhat failed to stick the landing.

The organizations flexed the Philippines’ mass transit options LRT and MRT by integrating them in pre-event promotional campaigns, and even provided unlimited free rides, but then gatekept them just for accredited athletes, media, and utility personnel, not ticket-holders.

In fact, this practice was already in place even during the 2023 FIBA World Cup, with free train rides also limited to individuals with official event IDs.

With PSC chairman Gregorio continuously hawking the idea of “sports tourism,” small gestures like free train and bus carousel rides to paying fans can certainly go a long way in making the hopelessly grim image of Metro Manila — to date still the only viable city to host such big events — just a tad bit brighter.

Love the Philippines, forget Manila

Should the Philippines continue to bid for world sports events, like the upcoming 2029 FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship, more major steps can be taken to further improve the country as an international sporting hotbed.

Incrementally moving tournaments away from Metro Manila is a great start, as it theoretically forwards the PSC agenda of “sports tourism” and encourages urban growth in other provinces around their own arenas.

Provided there would be efficient transportation to and from the airports and city centers, bustling areas like Bulacan, Cebu, Ilocos Sur, Davao, General Santos City, and many other places are already on their way to being capable of treading international sporting waters.

The FIVB considered the Philippine Arena in Bulacan for the World Championship, while FIFA already greenlighted the Victorias City Coliseum in Negros Occidental for the Futsal World Cup, but both plans ultimately fell through, likely due to accessibility issues.

Regardless of where future international events would be hosted, organizers should always look back and reflect on wrongs more than rights. It is foolhardy to solely focus on the positives and expect issues will eventually self-correct, most especially when taxpayer money is involved.

In a country poisoned by incompetence, corruption and social division, sports is one effective, albeit temporary, antidote to these ills.

Seeing the same societal problems in Philippine sports while inviting the world to watch does not do anyone any favors. – Rappler.com