Between Two Worlds | Filipina American Host and Filmmaker Megan Reyes on Finding Home Through Soccer

Written by Jennifer Redondo

The Philippines' women's national soccer team has made history, putting the nation on the global map. In 2022, they secured the AFF Women's Championship, followed by their first-ever World Cup victory in 2023 against New Zealand. This formidable team is garnering international acclaim and a growing fanbase, with Megan Reyes standing out as one of their most ardent supporters.

Megan Reyes, a sports marketing professional, award-winning host and multi-hyphenate creative, has added filmmaker to her list of accomplishments. Her passion lies in expanding soccer's reach by sharing stories that highlight identity, culture, and belonging.

Reyes is the writer, producer, and host of Between Two Worlds, a narrative podcast that explores the Filipino-American experience alongside the Philippine women's national team's historic journey to their first-ever FIFA World Cup. The podcast's success led to a visual spinoff. In August 2025, Reyes debuted her film, Between Two Worlds: The Documentary, at the Manila Film Festival. This documentary chronicled her initial visit to her homeland, the growth of soccer in the Philippines, and the profound influence of the Philippine women’s national team.

We recently had the pleasure of interviewing Meg during her film screenings in the Bay Area and San Diego, California. Continue reading to learn more about Meg and her journey.

Tell us about yourself, Meg.

Megan Reyes: My name is Megan Reyes. I'm a first generation Filipina American. I'm a sports host and content creator. My journey in sports has been untraditional. I started in sales. I've done marketing, social media, but in the last four years, I have completely done a 180 in the sports world. I'm on the media side, but in front of camera, hosting, content creator, and now I can add filmmaker to that list as well.

I knew in college that I wanted to work in sports but at that time I graduated college in 2013, this digital world that we live in hadn't evolved yet so the type of work I do now wasn't a career path that was on anyone's vision board. At that point, I thought maybe I would be a Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of a pro sports team or company in the sports world. If 21-year-old Megan knew this is what she would do for a living, she would not believe it at all!

When did you get your spark for the sports industry?

Megan Reyes: It started in college. I originally wanted to work in fashion. My freshman year of college, my business professor told the class that the athletic department was hiring marketing interns. Truthfully, I was only 18, and I didn’t even know what an internship was. I just applied and I got the internship. I spent all four years of college working in the athletic department. That game day experience, I fell in love and immediately knew I wanted to do this. I enjoyed being behind the scenes, making these moments happen for people. Fortunately I knew very early on what I wanted to do. All through college, I just shaped my work experience around sports.

Now, I'm 34 and I have been working in sports since I was 18. After graduating from the University of Idaho, I got my first full-time job out of college at the University of Oregon in the athletic department. I was in Oregon for a year and then in 2014, I moved to California when I got a job with the Golden State Warriors.

How did you get into fútbol (soccer)?

Megan Reyes: After I left the Warriors, I went to three different jobs all within the sports world.I kept thinking this is going to be the one. Okay, I'm not as happy here. This is going to be the one. This one isn't as fulfilling. So the long story is I kind of made this a very impulsive decision to work for myself. When I first started working for myself, I was a one person agency. I was offering social media services to brands and also to professional athletes, building their personal brands and their social identity. I also wanted to dabble more in on-camera talent. The first few projects I got were in soccer. That’s how I started getting more projects in soccer. It was not by design but I absolutely embraced it. In the last four years, soccer has grown tremendously in the United States. At that time, it was a sweet spot for me as I started to work for myself. There was such a need for creators and people with social media expertise to help grow soccer in the U.S. and I happened to just grow with it and I had inherently fallen in love with it along the way.

4. Tell us about your podcasts.

Megan Reyes: In 2023, I wrote, hosted, and co-produced my podcast Between Two Worlds. It’s a four-part narrative audio documentary examining the Filipino-American experience in parallel with the Philippine women’s national football team going to the country’s first-ever FIFA World Cup. The project gained recognition from CNN, BBC, and NBC and was a Best Storytelling finalist for the 2023 North American Soccer Business and Media Awards.

5. At what point did you decide that you were going to become a filmmaker?

Megan Reyes: In the final episode of the Between Two Worlds podcast, I say it’s my dream to one day visit the Philippines. At this point in my life, visiting home always felt like a distant dream - something I hoped to one day do in my life. The idea of making a visual sequel had been suggested by several friends, so at the end of 2023 I decided to make all of this a reality. My intention wasn’t to become a filmmaker; the intention was to tell the story of soccer in the Philippines.

6. What was your first visit to the Philippines like?

Megan Reyes: My first visit to the Philippines was magical. I immediately felt at home. My partner and I were graciously welcomed by everyone we met along the way and those who helped make the documentary happen. We spent three weeks both filming the documentary and also experiencing the beauty of the provinces. During those three weeks we spent time throughout Metro Manila and in Cebu, Bohol, and Coron. We reminisce about our time there often.

7. After you filmed all the footage, did you have the team that was going to help you edit and bring it together?

Megan Reyes: No, not at that time.We literally went with two cameras, two drones, and an idea. A.J. Calomay reached out to me after he saw my social media posts about spending time in the Philippines to film a documentary. A.J. has decades of experience in film and TV in Hollywood. Bringing him onto the team as my producer and editor was the easiest and best decision. This film would not be where it is today without A.J. Together we built a post-production team - all of us Filipino creatives. This part was really important to me.

8. For people who have not seen the documentary, can you give a brief overview of it?

Megan Reyes: Between Two Worlds: The Documentary is a short film about the growth of soccer in the Philippines and discovering heritage as I visit my homeland for the first time. The film focuses on the impact of the Philippine women’s national team and the grassroots efforts in place for homegrown soccer talent to develop and hopefully one day make the national team.

We premiered in August 2025 as part of the Manila International Film Festival’s Summer Screening Series. We’re currently doing private screenings and film festivals all with the hopes of securing distribution so this story can reach a global audience.

9. What do you hope people will get from watching your documentary?

Megan Reyes: I hope people understand that the football culture is vibrant in the Philippines. A lot of people are unaware that football is growing in the Philippines or that we have a national team that went to the World Cup. I want to change that narrative about football in the Philippines. I also hope the documentary reminds football fans of why we love this sport so much – because of what it means, the joy and the passion.

10. For you, what does it mean to be Filipino ?

Megan Reyes: My journey to my Filipino identity has been complex, especially growing up in Idaho. Most of my life, I wanted to assimilate to being white. I didn’t really understand my culture. I always thought it meant literally where I'm from, but I've learned it's really about how you connect to the culture and how you express your heritage. As long as you are proud of your heritage and proud to be Filipino by my definition, then you're Filipino! I've also learned not to focus on what I lack – like not being able to speak Tagalog. I have to find other ways to connect with my heritage, and I’ve been able to do so through storytelling. I learn from Filipino athletes and share their stories. I’m learning to cook Filipino food and I am trying to learn Tagalog. To me, being Filipino is everything – it makes me proud.

11. What's next for you?

Megan Reyes: I will be taking Between Two Worlds: The Documentary through the film festival circuit. The number one priority is finding a distribution partner and a place for this film to live online. As for myself, I want to do more storytelling. I want to turn the documentary into an episodic series.I want to visit the other regions in the Philippines where football is alive and thriving. The Philippine women’s national team are also competing in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup in March. This tournament is also a qualifier for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup. I’d love to follow their journey back to the World Cup. Aside from that, I'm going to continue doing these heritage storytelling pieces – even outside of Filipino culture. I love using soccer as this vehicle to learn about other cultures and countries.

12. How can the Filipino community support you?

Megan Reyes: Supporting both the Between Two Worlds podcast and documentary by listening, downloading, and watching (when/where you can) means the world. I also ask and encourage everyone to watch my longform heritage storytelling features on YouTube. I have two out right now: one on the Philippines and coffee and another on Argentina and empanadas – both with soccer as the backdrop. Also, following and engaging on my social media accounts is a huge support. I’m a freelance creative so I value every community member. You all make a huge difference!

13. Where can people find you?

Megan Reyes: My Instagram is @megreyes_ and both my TikTok and YouTube are @meganreyes__. You can also learn more about my background, the film, and my previous work on my website www.meganareyes.com. Mabuhay!

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Written by Jennifer Redondo

Co-Founder and Co-Author of In Her Purpose

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