Manila: Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino on Monday announced that the Women’s Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (WMPBL), the Philippines’ inaugural women’s professional basketball league, will open new opportunities for female athletes. Tolentino emphasized that the WMPBL will play a significant role in national sports development, describing it as a “breakthrough” for women’s basketball in the country.

According to Philippines News Agency, Tolentino expressed his hope that the league would serve as a platform for women empowerment and promote national unity through sports. He highlighted that the league plans to hold games in selected provinces, which is expected to attract more aspiring athletes nationwide.

Tolentino extended his gratitude to former Senator Manny Pacquiao for organizing the league, which Pacquiao described as a “revolution that brings women’s basketball to the forefront.” Pacquiao, during the opening of the tournament’s inaugural invitational at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion on Sunday, expressed his honor in being part of the WMPBL. He hoped that Filipina basketball players would inspire young girls from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao to dream of becoming athletes.

The inaugural invitational event will serve as a prelude to the first official season of the WMPBL, which is anticipated to commence later this year. Pacquiao remarked that the league is “more than a competition,” but rather a platform for “empowerment and a celebration of excellence from Filipinas who dare to dream big.”