MANILA, Philippines – The new Women’s Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (WMPBL) aims to harness the “Caitlin Clark effect“— the wave that boosted the popularity of the WNBA and US women’s basketball the past year — when the new local league tips off in January 2025.
According to WMPBL commissioner Haydee Ong, the league hopes to lean on the ever-evolving play of women’s basketball in the country for its first-ever tournament.
“We want to bring over the Caitlin Clark effect here. I think women’s basketball now has evolved into a more exciting brand compared to the previous era,” Ong said in Filipino at the league’s introductory press conference on Sunday, November 24, at the Winford Hotel in Manila.
Clark, the US women’s basketball superstar known for her sharpshooting skills, brought in the crowd and the TV viewers from her stint in the NCAA to the WNBA the past year.
Ong believes that Philippine women hoopers can also spur excitement among casual fans, citing numerous breakthroughs not just at the local collegiate level but also in the international scene.
“I’ve seen and felt it in the UAAP. I think that is where the boom of the WNBA started too, [at the collegiate level], so we want to use that and give the sport a boost here in our country,” said Ong, a champion coach with the UST Growling Tigresses in UAAP Season 86.
“The women now have proven that they can do what men have been doing in the sport. We have seen alley-oops now and players who are shooting long three-pointers. So when fans see that, I think they would be interested in watching women’s basketball,” she added.
From the initial eight-team plan for the inaugural tournament, the league increased the participating teams to 14, of which five will be from the collegiate ranks, and nine from commercial and local government teams, as they remain an amateur league, at least for their first tournament.
The teams will be divided into two groups of seven, where the topnotchers of each group will fight for the inaugural WMPBL championship.
Among the participating teams are the Imus Lady Magdalo, Cavite Tol Patriots, Go for Gold-Philippine Navy Lady Sailors, Galeries Tower, PSP Gymers, San Juan Lady Knights, Solar Home Suns, Pilipinas Aguilas, Relentless EZ Jersey, Discovery, New Zealand Blue Fire, CEU Lady Scorpions, FEU Lady Tamaraws, and UST-Cafe Aurora
The league is set to tip off on January 19 at either the Paco Arena in Manila or the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
WMPBL will also allow one foreign player for each team in the inaugural tournament while limiting the number of Filipino-foreigners to just two.
The league also imposes a maximum of two national team players for each squad, aiming to spur parity in its tournaments.
“Just like in the UAAP, we want to give them the unpredictability in games. We want them to see that we are serious about making this league competitive,” Ong said.
WMPBL plans to be a professional league in mid-2025, hoping to run their first regular season from June to December.
“We want to test the waters first this January, before we go pro,” she said.
Ong has been a tenured coach in various women’s teams in the country, calling the shots for the national team, the Ateneo Blue Eagles, Enderun Colleges, and UST.
She has also been a longtime advocate of women’s sports in the country.
This desire to uplift women’s basketball, Ong said, was the backbone of her decision to take the commissioner role.
“This is a dream come true. From being just an athlete, then a coach, and now a commissioner of a women’s league,” Ong said. “I am just very humbled right now because it feels like a full-circle moment for my career.” – Rappler.com
