The Beautiful Game: 10 African Films That Celebrate Football

It is football season across the world. The FIFA World Cup, which kicked off on June 11, is in full swing, and some passionate football fans would claim this is the best of times, at least since the last World Cup four years ago. 

Football and the movies have a long relationship dating back to the early days of cinema. The first film about football is believed to be the French documentary, Football, a silent short released in 1897. This relationship has only thrived over the years, evolving into a fully developed genre with recognizable beats that are routinely anticipated by a built-in audience. 

For this list, OkayAfrica considered some African movies that have engaged with football, whether as the main subject or as fancy plot dressing, and sought to trace meaningful interrogations of this beloved game that has come to mean so much to millions of people. The movies on this list — ranging from fictional, feel-good titles to hard-hitting documentaries — reflect on football’s place in our lives as Africans. What motivations drive people who play the game, and how does football figure into the sociopolitical contexts of countries that have embraced it? 

From old-fashioned escapist narratives to attempts at speaking out for credible causes, these 10 films argue that football is more than just a game; it is culture and a way of life.

Captains of Zaatari (Egypt, 2021)

Filmed over a five-year period by Egyptian filmmaker Ali El Arabi, Captains Of Zaatari follows teenagers Mahmoud and Fawzi, who are refugees from Syria but now live in the Zaatari camp in Jordan. Both boys keep their dreams of becoming professional football players alive despite the dire lack of opportunity in the camp. Things take a turn when one of the world’s leading sports academies sends scouts to the camp to identify promising talent. Gorgeously rendered, Captains of Zaatari finds hope within an unfortunate crisis while highlighting the plight of refugees and displaced persons.

Where to stream: Apple TV, Kanopy

Freedom Fields (Libya, 2018)

The contribution of women to the beautiful game is often overlooked, but with Freedom Fields, director Naziha Arebi highlights a story that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. Arebi’s debut feature works as an intimate look at post-revolution Libya through the eyes of an aspiring all-female soccer team. Their struggle to gain mainstream acceptance mirrors the broader challenges facing women not just in contemporary Libya but in similar societies around the world.

Where to stream: Alexander Street

The Golden Ball (Guinea/France, 1994)

One of the earlier examples of the football movie genre, Cheik Doukouré’s The Golden Ball is a heartwarming tale of 12-year-old Bandian, known for his lightning speed, who dreams of soccer stardom beyond his modest confines. Gifted a genuine leather ball by a visiting French doctor, Bandian journeys to Conakry, the capital, where his talent catches the scouts' eye, propelling him onto the national team. The Golden Ball is an old-fashioned, grass-to-grace romp that celebrates football’s uplifting power.

Not available for streaming

Inside Story (South Africa/Kenya, 2011)

An advocacy project, Inside Story tells the story of Kalu, a talented striker who plays for a local team but is desperate to go professional. He eventually gets an offer to play for a second-tier team in Johannesburg, but his life dramatically changes when he is exposed to the HIV virus. Directed by Rolie Nikiwe (The Polygamist), Inside Story isn’t the most subtle or prestigious of narratives, and the creative choices around the HIV plot don’t always work, but it does have some neat football moments. 

Where to Stream: Netflix

Khartoum Offside (Sudan/Norway/Denmark, 2019)

That Marwa Zein’s Khartoum Offside exists at all is something of a miracle, powered by remarkable acts of persistence. Under Sudan's Islamic Military government, women were not permitted to play football or make films. Zein and her protagonists do both. The formidable women at the center of this documentary are determined to play football professionally, and they are willing to defy the state-imposed ban. Intimate, lyrical, and occasionally funny, Khartoum Offside tracks their attempts to get official recognition as Sudan's national women's team.

Where to stream: Kanopy

Maami (Nigeria, 2011)

Funke Akindele stars as the titular character in Tunde Kelani’s sentimental and uneven adaptation of the novel of the same title by Femi Osofisan. An ode to motherhood, the film unfolds through the lens of Maami’s now-adult son, Kashimawo (Wole Ojo), as he recalls his impoverished rural childhood with his dignified mother. Kashimawo, now famous for his exploits in the English Premier League, arrives in Lagos ahead of the 2010 World Cup, but delays honoring the national team call-up until he lays some old ghosts to rest. An anxious nation awaits his decision.

Where to stream: YouTube

Super Eagles ‘96 (Nigeria, 2022)

Nigerian football’s finest moment remains the national team’s gold-medal triumph at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. This was, however, the culmination of a hot streak that saw the young national soccer team claim the African Cup of Nations in 1994 and reach the knockout stages of the World Cup that same year. Yemi Bamiro’s Super Eagles ‘96 documentary is an exploratory look at how the Nigerian men's football team came together and inspired a fractured nation grappling with very real political and economic instability.

Where to stream: Amazon Prime Video

The Queenstown Kings (South Africa, 2023)

Jahmil X.T. Qubeka brought some much-needed energy into the boxing drama with Knuckle City. He falls short of that with The Queenstown Kings, a hectic drama chronicling the saga of a scrappy underdog football team's quest for a national championship. Zolisa Xaluva is Mahamba, a washed-up soccer star who returns to rural Queenstown after his father's death. As he coaches the local team, Mahamba struggles to connect with his own son, a promising player with big dreams. The Queenstown Kings plays like television and suffers from pacing and plotting issues.

Where to stream: Netflix

Voy! Voy! Voy! (Egypt/UAE, 2023)

Inspired by true and unusual events, Voy! Voy! Voy!, written, produced, and directed by Omar Hilal, is an amusing take on the sports drama, elevated by some genuine comedic timing and brisk social commentary. Desperate to immigrate to Europe, a young man stuck in a dead-end existence pretends to be blind so he can join a disabled soccer team headed to the World Cup in Poland. Vibrant and refreshing, Voy! Voy! Voy! marries kinetic football scenes with serious rumination on contemporary Egyptian life.

Where to stream: MBC Shahid

Yellow Card (Zimbabwe, 2000)

This coming-of-age romantic drama is led by a winning central performance by Leroy Gopal as Tiyane, a hormonal soccer prodigy beloved by his community for his exploits with the township football team. When he unexpectedly becomes a teenage father, Tiyane learns that actions have consequences and must begin his growing-up phase. There are some dodgy issues of colorism surrounding the characterization and casting of the female characters. But John Riber’s breezy direction keeps things fresh, leaving the didactic elements to a minimum. 

Where to stream: YouTube