The thing about football supporters is that they can be an obsessive bunch. Getting behind your team is one thing, but many like to take their love of the game to whole new levels, which can include the likes of playing football games on the computer, listening to football podcasts and even sitting down to watch films that are all about the sport.
Whilst there might be some films that are fictional and cover the game quite well, the truth of the matter is that if you want a genuinely watchable film about football then you need to turn to the world of documentaries.
The question is, which ones are the best?
LFG (Let’s Fucking Go)
If you are looking for a film about the state of football then you could do a lot worse than to have a look at LFG (Let’s Fucking Go!). It is a fascinating film about the fight of the American women’s team to get equal pay, following the stars of the US national women’s team as they take on the United States Soccer Federation.
The likes of Megan Rapinoe, Jessica McDonald and Becky Sauerbrunn feature heavily as the stars of the team, who are concerned about the level of pay discrimination in the sport in the United States of America, keen to get paid the same as the men.
Unsurprisingly, the right-wing press did not like the film, with some pointing out that it doesn’t offer much attention to the actual legal proceedings of the case. Generally speaking, though, film critics seemed to enjoy it and even Rotten Tomatoes wasn’t review-bombed, seeing it hit an approval rate of 94%.
The unequal pay of a team that had won numerous World Cups and Olympic medals became a global story, but the documentary takes a closer look and goes behind-the-scenes in a battle that ultimately resulted in the case being thrown out of court.
Diego Maradona
The main argument in Asif Kapadia’s 2019 documentary is that there were essentially two people, Diego and Maradona. The former was a kind, loving family man, as seen in footage from the player’s personal archives. The latter, meanwhile, was the football-mad lunatic who would lose himself in drugs, amongst other things.
Kapadia had more than 500 hours of film to work with, the majority of which had never been seen before the film’s release. It isn’t the first time that the filmmaker has delved into tricky subjects, having also released both Senna and Amy, about Ayrton Senna and Amy Winehouse respectively.
The film centres around the period of time that Maradona was sold by FC Barcelona to S.S.C. Napoli, which took place in 1984. He would go on to win two Serie A titles as well as the UEFA Cup with the Italian side, with the period of time selected by Kapadia thanks to the fact that he felt as though it offered both a beginning and an end.
The material that he had to work with was available thanks to the fact that Maradona’s agent, Jorge Cyterszpiller, came up with the idea of documenting the player’s life in 1981, hiring two cameramen to record countless hours of time with the Argentine.
Football’s Coming Out
There is little question that there is an issue around sexuality in football. FIFA has been more than happy to award the World Cup to countries such as Russia and Qatar, whilst it won’t be too long before Saudi Arabia hosts the famous tournament.
The likes of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates both own English football clubs in the form of Newcastle United and Manchester City, buying them in order to sports-wash their reputations on the global stage, with the Premier League waving through both sales in spite of the fact that it is illegal to be LGBTQ+ in both countries.
Football’s Coming Out looks to explore the taboo nature of sexuality in the sport, pondering what happens to a footballer when they do decide to come out to the world. We have no idea what that might be like for a player in the English top-flight, given the fact that there are no openly gay players making a living in the Premier League.
Footballers both currently in the sport and those that have played in the past take part in the documentary, explaining why it is that the culture of the game makes it incredibly difficult for male players to take the decision and announce the fact that they’re gay.
Take the Ball Pass the Ball
Between 2008 and 2012, Barcelona were arguably the best team on the planet. Under the management of Pep Guardiola, the Spanish giants won 14 major trophies, which was well documented by football journalist Graham Hunter in his book Barça: The Making of the Greatest Team in the World.
The documentary Take the Ball Pass the Ball is essentially the film version of the book, looking at what it was that made Barca such an incredible team during the period in question. One of the things that it takes you through is the club’s Champions League triumph in the 2010-2011 season.
It also investigates the rivalry with Real Madrid and their manager at the time, José Mourinho, in addition to the return of Eric Abidal from cancer treatment, plus the manner in which Barcelona have been influenced by Johan Cruyff’s legacy. It is impossible to talk about the success of the Catalan side during this period without also looking at the emergence of Lionel Messi, although it steers clear of any of the controversies surrounding the club.
If you want to fall in love with football all over again, then this might well be the documentary for you, albeit it might also make you despair for the state of the club in the modern era.
Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story
If you want a documentary that will make you laugh as well as cause your jaw to hit the floor in amazement, you can’t do any better than Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story. This isn’t a one-off film, but rather a series that appeared on Disney Plus in the United Kingdom, exploring the moment that Coleen Rooney revealed to the world that Rebekah Vardy had been selling her private stories to the S*n.
It is something of a cross between a true crime drama and a football documentary, delving into the details of the case that became known as ‘Wagatha Christie’.
A Wagatha Christie documentary so soon? Be still my heart. pic.twitter.com/nGzZxO6UOd
— Caroline A. Warner (@carolineawarner) October 17, 2023
It takes you through Rooney’s step-by-step process of figuring out who it was that had leaked her private Instagram stories to the British tabloid, then the ensuing court case when Vardy sued Rooney for libel. Ultimately, most people will know that Vardy had to pay £1.4 million in legal costs when Rooney won the trial, but that doesn’t even come close to telling you the full story.
The documentary might not be about the football, but it has as many astonishing moments as the most exciting match that you could ever hope to watch and is genuinely one that is not to be missed.
Next Goal Wins
Whilst football is a sport filled with huge highs and devastating lows, some teams never really get to experience the former. In 2001, for example, American Samoa lost 31-0 to Australia, which was recorded as the worst defeat in the history of international football.
The aim of American Samoa is to qualify for the 2014 World Cup, but their struggles on the pitch, including failing to even be able to score a goal, mean that it looks as though it’s an extremely unlikely thing for them to do. As a result, they bring in the Dutch-born, America-based coach Thomas Rongen to train the team.
The 2014 documentary, Next Goal Wins, looks at Rongen’s work with the team as it looks to acquit itself well in the OFC World Cup qualifiers. If a documentary doesn’t sound like your sort of thing, you can instead look at the film of the same name, which tells the story through the lens of Taika Waititi’s comedic take on life.
The reason the documentary is such a hit, however, is that it appeals to both football lovers and those that don’t really like the sport in equal measure. It is an exploration of what winning looks like depending on where you’ve come from, with some people requiring less to feel brilliant.
