10 Best Football Movies of All Time
The club football season in Europe has just ended, and a lot of football fans are already feeling the blues of the withdrawal from watching their favourite teams kick ball week in and week out. But live sports are not the only way the emotions of football come to shine through; there have been many attempts to bring the sport to the big screen, some more successful than others.
So, here are some of the best football movies according to IMDb ratings to tide your football-less summer with.
- Goal! The Dream Begins (IMDb Rating: 6.7)
The 2006 movie includes cameos from many Premier League stars, including Alan Shearer, about a North American teenager whose footballing talents help him overcome poverty and become a star for Newcastle United. The movie is a classic rags-to-riches story that mirrors the lives of many modern football superstars and is exactly what you want if you’re looking to get the thrill of a stoppage-time winner in a movie with its elevating climax.
- Pele: Birth of a Legend (IMDb Rating: 7.1)
This biographical drama, released in 2016, is another one of a rags-to-riches story, this time based on perhaps the greatest goalscorer in footballing history. With a thrilling score composed by none other than the Indian maestro AR Rahman, this movie traces the rise of Pele’s career from the slums of Sao Paulo to the history books of the sport. The Birth of a Legend traces his heroics to the 1958 World Cup, where he led the country to the title at 17 and finally announced his arrival on the international stage.
- Messi (IMDb Rating: 7.2)
A switch from the previous two movies, this is a documentary that looks into the meteoric rise of the Little Magician. It mainly features many notable teammates, coaches, journalists, and footballing legends, such as the Dutch and Barcelona legend Johann Cryuff, discussing the prodigal talent of Lionel Messi and his life, from his early years in Argentina to his early struggles with adapting in Spain and his final breakthrough. Released in 2014, right after the World Cup, where Messi infamously lost the final despite being awarded the golden ball for the tournament, this documentary is a great watch for those of us who strive to look for the humanity of the footballers we idolise.
- Offside (IMDb Rating: 7.3)
This movie is the perfect experience for those who love the way football moves people's emotions. Instead of looking into the glory of the sport, this Iranian comedy turns the plot into the ability of football to unite us across genders, nationalities, and other allegiances. Revolving around a set of football-fanatic women who want to watch a football match in the stadium despite a national ban in Iran on the same. In classic Iranian form, this film has a very loose narrative form and is the perfect watch for those who, during this season break, also want to nurture our aspiring cinephiles.
- Shaolin Soccer (IMDb Rating: 7.3)
An enthralling mix of martial arts and football, this movie is perfect for those of us who love both sports and action movies. This movie is a classic Hong Kong martial arts blockbuster with its comedic yet incredibly well-choreographed action sequences and blends it flawlessly into the high-intensity football matches through which the characters showcase their martial arts skills. In equal parts hilarious and thrilling, this is the perfect family watch.
- Green Street (IMDb Rating: 7.4)
Rooted in the heart of London, this movie is the ideal choice for a gritty watch that goes into the violence between the various football-based hooligan firms that form the identity of fan-culture English football. Its plot revolves around the induction of an American student who is expelled from Harvard based on a mistaken identity into a hooligan firm consisting of a few West Ham United fans known as the Green Street Elite. If you like realism and want to explore the dark side of footballing culture in England, Green Street is the perfect watch for you.
- The Damned United (IMDb Rating: 7.5)
This movie is based on a 2006 novel titled The Damned Utd and is a perfect introduction to one of the most controversial events in English football’s history, namely Brian Clough’s tenure as Leeds United manager in 1974. The film explores the motivations of Clough, his life events, and other circumstances that led to him joining Leeds United, a club he was a fierce critic of due to their violent playing style, only to end up being sacked in 44 days due to tensions. An enthralling watch, it is a beautiful exploration of the position of the man who decides the entire style of play for the team.
- Diego Maradona (IMDb Rating: 7.7)
A grand production by the veteran documentary director Asif Kapadia, this movie explores the much-celebrated career of the football legend Diego Maradona. The film mainly covers Diego Maradona's life period when he transferred from FC Barcelona to Napoli in Serie A and led them to the summit of Italian football. This movie, made from over 500 hours of newly discovered archival footage, is an incredibly enriching experience that leaves both enlightened and moved by its vivid storytelling of Maradona’s life.
- The Two Escobars (IMDb Rating: 8.1)
The 2010 documentary sheds light on a side of football in South America that few would have expected to exist, with the drug cartels that dominate power and violence in South and Central America. This movie explores the interrelationships that bind together Andres Escobar, the Colombian footballer who was murdered back in his home country of Colombia after scoring an own goal in the 1994 World Cup, and Pablo Escobar, the notorious Colombian drug lord who was once dubbed “the king of cocaine” in the greater scheme of things in the country. A gripping tragedy, this documentary is a truly enriching insight into the darker world that is sometimes connected to our daily lives through something as innocuous as sports.
In 2023, Netflix released a miniseries on the life of Andreas Escobar with the name The Final Score.
- Sir Alex Ferguson: Never Give In (IMDb Rating: 8.1)
The highest-rated football movie on IMBd, this is perhaps the most comprehensive documentary one can find on the life of Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson. This documentary covers his life in football, from his early experiences and playing career to his early managerial career, the building of the dynasty of Manchester United under his stead, and his life after his retirement in 2013. The movie uses extensive archival footage and is bound to leave you with a truly multidimensional perspective on the life and personality of one of the greatest managers to have ever graced the sport.
How many of these have you watched? Let us know in the comments.
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