Gilas Pilipinas is facing a tall order after being in the same group as Oceania powerhouse countries, Australia and New Zealand, along with Guam for the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers.
Tough Road Ahead of 2027
Before securing a spot in the FIBA World Cup 2027 to be played in Qatar from August 27 to September 12, Gilas will have to face such great adversity as they must beat higher-ranked Australia and New Zealand, as well as sneaky Guam.
This will be a tough task for Coach Tim Cone and the rest of the coaching staff of Gilas, but this would only mean that the true test of how good the Philippine National Team under the multi-champion coach would be displayed against the best of the best.
Coincidentally, Gilas is also grouped with New Zealand, Group B, in the upcoming FIBA Asia Cup to be played in Saudi Arabia this August 2025. And in the recent FIBA Asian Cup Qualifiers, the Philippines also faced the No. 22 Tall Blacks twice, wherein both squads won a game against one another.
No. 7 ranked Australia, also known as the “Boomers,” will face Gilas again after their infamous brawl in the previous FIBA 2019 World Cup Asian Qualifiers last 2018. 7 years later, they will meet again. In the recent FIBA Asian Cup Qualifiers, Australia went 6-0 as they dominated all of their opponents in lopsided wins.
No. 88 Guam may look like a “sure win” for the Philippines, but I promise you, they are not, considering that their team is headlined by the San Miguel Beermen guard, Jericho Cruz. After surviving the “Battle of Top 3’s in all of the Groups” during the previous FIBA Asian Cup Qualifiers, Cruz and his squad also booked a ticket in the upcoming FIBA Asia Cup this August.
Target: Finist Top 3
Gilas will first start their campaign for the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers this November 2025, with dates and opponents yet to be announced.
The good news is, Gilas needs to finish in the top 3 to advance to the next round in a home-and-away format, which would mean to at least win 3 or 4 games out of the total 6 games.
A record of 3-3 or 4-2 may just secure them a Top 3 finish…just maybe.
The top 3 finishers of Group A will face the Top 3 finishers of Group C, composed of Iran, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, which will then form a new Group called “Group D” for the second round.
On the other hand, the Top 3 finishers of Group B will face the Top 3 finishers of the current Group D. Group B has Japan, China, South Korea, and Chinese Taipei, while Group D has Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, India, and Qatar. The new group will be called “Group E” for the second round.
It’s also worth noting that the win-loss record of all the teams from the first round will be carried over during the second round.
The Top 3 teams in both Group D and Group E in the second round, together with host Qatar and the best fourth placer among the two groups, will qualify for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027.
