Inna Palacios: 'It's my life mission now to help grow the game in the country'

Inna Palacios in action for the Philippine Malditas. Photo: Mia Montayre

Ice-cold under pressure and endowed with tremendous reflexes, Philippine women’s national football team captain Inna Palacios is one of the most exciting and talented names in women’s football having enjoyed success playing international football at youth and senior level. 

In an interview with KICK OFF PH, the former DLSU standout talks about her football journey, decorated collegiate career, and her hopes for women's football in the country.

At what age did you first start playing sports, and what made you keep playing all of these years? 

I grew up playing different sports for as long as I could remember. I loved and enjoyed being out on the streets playing all sorts of games and sports and then I decided to stop Taekwondo and stick to football at the age of 13 but of course still playing different sports on the side for fun.

What is it about playing sports that you think is so important for girls of all ages? 

I think being able to play is so empowering because you just feel free. It’s not just football but all sports. It’s important for girls and women to play because it’s an integral part of social development where values are imparted for us to become better individuals in the society. It shouldn’t just be the men who benefit from this because we also have just as much right to participate in sports.

When you first started playing football, did you ever imagine what you would achieve both on a personal level and in your career? 

The passion grew as I invested more time in it. At first my personal goal was just to be in a team, then later on to scoring goals, then winning for my school. If you ask the young Inna, she would not even think outside Colegio de San Agustin (CSA). As I spent more time in football, I learned and got better, got more opportunities to play in different tournaments, and played in different teams. Then I aimed higher, wanting a scholarship for college, get in the National Team, win a UAAP Championship, I was just dreaming big. Still crazy looking back because I was able to actually get to college with a scholarship, be part of the national team and win a Championship on my last year. It’s been quite a ride and I’m thankful for everything and everyone who believed in me. It’s always nice looking back and remembering how it all started. 

Being one of the top prospects coming out of high school, was there a lot of pressure and expectation on you as you make the jump to the collegiate ranks?

Of course. Coming from high school and being part of the national team at a young age came with a lot of expectations. Pressure is always there but I always embraced it as it challenged me to show up. Consistency was what I aimed to achieve coming in De La Salle University (DLSU).

You are one of DLSU's pride when it comes to women's football, what was it like donning the school colors and representing the DLSU community?

So much pride and honor representing the green and white. I loved the student-athlete life. And being able to balance both well just felt even better. It gave me so much opportunity to grow not just as a player but also as an individual. I really learned how to thrive and I enjoyed every bit of my 5 years there. I’m so thankful for everyone who was part of my DLSU journey especially my coaches and everyone in the Office of Sports Development for supporting my collegiate and national team career throughout my stay. 

Palacios and the DLSU women's football team won the UAAP Season 77
Championship.  (Photo:  Inna Palacios)

Some players have their  ups and down in the course of their career. What was the lowest point in your football career and how did you cope up and stay positive despite the setback?

When I wanted to quit football. I was losing passion for the sport and was just going through a tough time. I didn’t enjoy it. That time, I also lost a loved one, my grandma. I was just out of it. I wasn’t proud of how I coped with it. I was half hearted showing up for training in DLSU. I disobeyed my captain at the time because I was so stuck in my head and in my feelings which resulted to poor decision making. Coach Hans found out and told me to take a few days off. 

Other low points would be every time I got injured. I have had multiple injuries. I would spend every day in the gym strengthening it but I’d have days when I’m feeling so good about my game and then suddenly it will dislocated then I’m back to zero. I would really feel so frustrated and discouraged when that would happen. It really affects my mental state.

In life, there will always be highs and lows. I take my lows as an opportunity to re-center, get better and prepare myself for my high days. I try to stay positive by always thinking of my bigger goal. That my adversities are part of the journey. And once I achieve my goals, it makes everything sweeter. 

Many female athletes have to deal with sexism and misogyny, have you experienced any of those while playing football?

Female sports hardly get the recognition as male sports. It’s how it is all over the world and each female is battling against it in their own way. It seems like it’s a business decision to invest and promote women. I’m thankful for our previous managers for PWNT, especially Sir Jeff Cheng for supporting us in multiple tournaments. Kaya Football Club has also invested in a women’s team. It could lead to a great future in women’s football, so I hope other professional clubs follow.

You've been exposed to international competitions at a young age and now you are arguably one of Malditas' most experienced player when it comes to international football. Do you feel like you have a responsibility to help grow the women's game and get more people involved?

I think it’s my life mission now to help grow the game in the country. I just believe that there is so much potential in it especially in the women’s game. More people should invest in the Women’s game.

There are not many people that can say that they have played for the national team. How does it feel to represent the flag and country?

The feeling is incomparable. You just feel so proud to be Pinoy and playing is our way to honor our land and countrymen. Singing the national anthem gives me goosebumps all the time! At the same time, I’m just very thankful for the opportunity that to play the sport and represent the flag and country. 

The road to the 2023 Women's World Cup is a long way ahead, but what do you think are the things that need to be done in order to get closer to the dream of qualifying for the world cup?

Personally, I need to do my best to recover and get back stronger than I was before my shoulder surgery. Another thing is, we need to work on our team’s strengths and make it stronger then work on what we can improve on based on our previous tournaments. We definitely need a lot of time to play together and get stronger physically, technically and especially tactically.