They proved beyond a shadow of doubt what football or soccer is all about, the world’s most popular sport which many present-day sportswriters, television people and columnists have virtually ignored, even laughed at.

But their perception about football has suddenly changed following the Azkals’ string of totally unexpected victories, including their upset win over defending Suzuki Cup champion Vietnam, their triumph over Mongolia on aggregate scores, and their lopsided 3-0 humiliation of Bangladesh, to earn a slot in the main tournament of the AFC Challenge Cup.

Now, football diehards and officials of the Philippine Football Federation, led by PFF president Mariano “Nonong” Araneta and Azkals team manager Dan Palami, are keeping their fingers crossed, anticipating better days for the national shin-busters.

The Azkals kick off their lofty ambition to reach the 2014 World Cup in Brazil by undergoing several tough and demanding tasks. For a start, the Philippines takes on underrated but unpredictable Sri Lanka in the first round on June 28 in the Sri Lankan home turf.

The Philippines hosts the return leg five days later. Kuwait battles the winner of the Philippines-Sri Lanka duel in the next phase.
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Recently awarded by the Philippine Sportswriters Association as “Executive of the Year” for his tireless effort in supporting the then little-known team, Palami said the team’s focus is to reach the third round of the World Cup Qualifying.

“Reaching the third round will be like surpassing the achievement of making the semifinals of the Suzuki Cup,” said Palami.

Also seeing action in the first round are Laos, Myanmar, Chinese-Taipei, Macau, Palestine, Timor Leste, Pakistan, Mongolia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Nepal and Malaysia.
There will be eight matches in the first round of the home-and-away series, with the winner joining 22 other teams in the next round, where teams will be drawn for another set of home-and-away duels.

Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Oman and United Arab Emirates are already seeded in the second round. The 15 winners of this second round will advance to the group stage qualifying where Japan, North Korea, Australia and Bahrain are already seeded.
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The Azkals are now the new rage in town. But, I’m worried sick. What happens, months later, when the rage has died down? Do we honestly care about the sport of football? Or is it just a passing fancy?

Indeed, the Azkals’ road to football glory is not a picnic. It’s very difficult, to put it bluntly. It’s like passing through the eye of a needle. And, by the way, this does not include the prohibitive cost of maintaining overseas-based players with Filipino roots and hiring a foreign coach, in the Azkals’ case, Hans Michael Weiss of Germany.

But despite these tremendous odds, the Azkals are determined to leave a lasting impression in the country’s campaign in the 2014 World Cup Qualifying that starts in June. For the record, the Philippines last competed in the World Cup qualifying series in 2002 in South Korea.

Manolo Inigo, Inquirer.net