The Philippines and Japan are the final AOFC teams to qualify for the Men’s World Floorball Championships in Tampere, Finland this December.
Second last day of AOFC Qualification tournament was eventful from the beginning. It started off with Solomon Islands getting their first ever win in the history of their federation with a 8-1 win over Hong Kong, China before Korea took 7th place with a victory over China.
The last two big matches of the day saw the Philippines and Japan on the winning sides, ensuring their qualification for the WFC 2026 in Finland this December. Philippines beat Australia 9-6 in the first quarterfinal securing a spot in their fourth consecutive World Championships. Kim Varga was the standout player for the Philippines, scoring 7 goals and assisting one. At the 2024 World Championships in Malmö, Philippines were the highest-placed AOFC team, finishing 11th and qualifying for The World Games 2025 in Chengdu, China. They also competed in the SEA Games in December, returning home with silver medals.
Japan, on the other hand, return to the World Championships after last participating in 2018. They played a strong qualification event in Wellington, beating the hosts New Zealand in the deciding quarterfinal 7-3. Yuichi Yanagita and Yusho Moriya were unstoppable today, both scoring two goals and assisting one.
There is one day remaining of these AOFC Qualifications, which will determine the final standings.
Schedule Monday 19th January 2026
09:00 local time / 21:00 CET – 5th place play-off – Australia v New Zealand
12:00 local time / 00:00 CET – 3rd place play-off – Philippines v Japan
15:00 local time / 03:00 CET – Final – Singapore v Thailand