The absence of domestic women’s football competitions since July’s cup final has exposed systemic failures within the national sporting structure. When the national team coach announced preliminary selections on October 20th, local leagues had been dormant for over three months, resulting in zero representatives from domestic clubs making the cut.
This development highlights a recurring pattern where athletes from local clubs consistently underperform in regional competitions, with lack of match fitness and rhythm routinely cited as contributing factors. Despite these persistent issues, no club has publicly expressed concern about continuously subjecting athletes to humiliating defeats, nor has there been any indication of strategic changes to improve preparedness.
The introduction of professional sport passports has accelerated the transition toward fully professional women’s selections. What began as a combination of local amateurs and professionals has now become exclusively professional, completely excluding domestic amateur players. Local clubs failed to advocate for necessary structural reforms, including realigning domestic competitions with regional calendars and establishing a professional women’s league to better prepare athletes for international competition.
Administrative inertia has reached critical levels, with the governing body spending thousands of dollars on delegations while maintaining a laissez-faire approach that has left athletes fundamentally unprepared. The current trajectory suggests women’s football has reached an impasse, with the sport facing existential threats if policies remain unchanged.
The core issue lies not with professionally licensed players but with the fundamental approach to sports development. Had domestic sports cultivation reached higher standards, local players would undoubtedly have secured places in the national selection. This situation demands immediate structural overhaul before the entire women’s football program becomes unsustainable.