PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Ignatius Michael D Ingles and Daphne Marie M Gomez, Law Firm of Ingles Laurel Calderon
defence of lack of jurisdiction whenever a case is filed with the Labour Arbiter. A noteworthy case is the 2012 Supreme Court Case of Negros Slasher, Inc v Alvin Teng , where the Supreme Court ruled that a player-employee was illegally dis - missed by his professional basketball team after he had refused to play a championship game. The Supreme Court recognised the player as an employee and ruled that his dismissal was too harsh a penalty. 7.3 Free Movement of Athletes There are no specific laws capping the number of foreign athletes competing in a sport tournament or competition, as these “caps” are normally set by the league or association conducting the competition. There are, however, visa, immigration, and labour law considerations that foreign athletes or coaches must consider before playing or working in the Philippines. In particular, foreign athletes or coaches must secure a pre-arranged employee commercial visa (9g visa) and an alien employment permit (AEP) before working in the Philippines. One of the substantial conditions to secure an AEP is the prior determination of the non-availability of a person in the Philippines who is competent, able, and willing to perform the same services which the for - eign worker will be engaged to provide. This was the main issue in a 1991 Supreme Court case involving an American basketball coach employed by a pro - fessional basketball team. In that case, the Supreme Court ultimately cancelled the American’s AEP after it found that there were other local coaches who were available to do the same job. 8. Women’s Sport 8.1 Development and Growth of Women’s Sport The Philippine sports landscape has historically been male-dominated and basketball-centric. However, recent trends have swayed the pendulum towards women’s sports. Collegiate and professional wom - en’s volleyball bring in crowds of nearly 25,000 to big games, which is significantly more than the attend - ance for a typical professional basketball game. The
success of women athletes on the international stage has also shone a well-deserved light on women’s sports. Olympic Gold Medalist Hidilyn Diaz lever - aged her success by starting a weightlifting acad - emy for children and signing lucrative endorsement deals. The Philippine National Women’s Football Team made waves in its first appearance in the FIFA World Cup and won the Philippines’ historic gold medal in the 2025 Southeast Asian Games. Their success has driven more grassroots development throughout the country and also earned the team an enviable kit deal with Adidas. International athletes such as Maxine Esteban and Junna Tsukii have also found success in other sports such as fencing and karate. In 2025, Alexandra Eala’s dramatic jump in world rankings from No 147 to No 50 created a spike in interest in tennis in the Philippines, just in time for the country’s hosting of the World Tennis Association 125 Tournament. Similarly, the Philippine Women’s Futsal Team’s appearance in the inaugural FIFA Fut - sal Women’s World Cup saw an increase in viewership from match day one to the final, with the final match drawing a record attendance of 5,087. The World Cup also inspired young girls to join futsal training camps, with roughly 1,500 girls participating in the grassroots and development activities organised by FIFA and the Philippine Football Federation. Women in esports are also on the rise. Since 2022, the Philippines always had a team place third runner-up or higher in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Wom - en’s Invitational (MWI) 2025 during the Esports World Cup, including a team championship and an Individ - ual fFnals Most Valuable Player in 2024. In 2025, two Philippine teams had dominant starts and reached the playoffs, where one team eventually ranked third runner-up. The Philippine Women’s MLBB team also won silver in the 2025 South-East Asian Games. 8.2 Organisations and Initiatives to Promote Women’s Sport The Philippine Sports Commission has created a Gender and Development Programme to hold tourna - ments, and share updates and news about women’s sports and female athletes. Other private organisa - tions, such as Girls Got Game, have also been estab - lished to promote different sports in the youth sector.
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