My Beautiful Game II Show Synopsis
My Beautiful Game is the leading documentary series about African football. The show is distinct from weekly magazine shows and highlights programs in that the objective is to explore African football within the broader historical, cultural and anthropological narratives of Africa. So, for example, an episode about football development in Africa will not simply profile the continent’s leading youth academies, but will also interrogate the social and economic realities in Africa that influence the nurturing of talent.
The show covers stories across the entire African continent. Neither wanting to only look at certain popular football hotspots nor wanting to fall into the common trap of treating Africa as if it were one country, My Beautiful Game has a truly pan-African field of interest. There is a kaleidoscope of geography, politics, and national characteristics as one traverses the continent from Cairo to Lagos to Cape Town. We are fascinated by this tremendous cultural diversity, with particular regard to how it influences football from region to region.
The first season of the show covered an eclectic mix of topics, from the impact of war and genocide on the growth of African football to the ritualistic customs in which many African players participate. Please view the accompanying DVD containing our pilot episode, which provides an overview of the first season.
With the 2010 World Cup soon to be hosted in South Africa, Africa and African football are attracting unprecedented international attention. In the build-up to this momentous event we are particularly excited to be producing our second season. See below short descriptions of the episodes comprising Season 2.
So pervasive is football throughout the world that it has almost infinite links to other stories, industries and social phenomena. With the broader world of football in mind, we are eager to engage with experts and professionals of all varieties who share our passion for football, and who can help maintain My Beautiful Game as Africa’s premiere football series.
Season 2 Episodes:
1. Introduction
This episode opens with a brief overview of MBG Season One. We then explore the issues and topics to be covered in the following 12 episodes, in seamless vignettes.
2. Contact Sport
Injuries can destroy a footballer’s career, and in all but theory football is a contact sport. We explore how conditions unique to Africa (pitches, equipment, approaches to recovery) make football a different kind of contact sport in Africa. We also trace the evolution of science and medicine as it relates to football in Africa.
3. The Future Looks Bright
An examination of youth development in Africa. We will profile some of Africa’s most promising young footballers, and look at the various youth tournaments on the continent.
4. The Safest Hands
A profile of goalkeepers in Africa, looking into the rare psychology that drives a footballer to be a goalkeeper. We highlight the legendary keepers, and interrogate the near-absence of specialized training for keepers in Africa.
5. Africa East
An overview of football in the under-exposed region of East Africa. This
episode will profile tournaments and leagues in Kenya and Rwanda, an reveal how cultural practices particular to the region influence football there.
6. Culture Clash
We look at the extent to which culture (values, religion, shared beliefs and practices) influences football differently inside and outside of Africa. We also open the “club or country” debate that many African footballers in Europe must engage with, and we explore the relationship between European clubs and their “satellite” clubs in Africa (Ajax Amsterdam and Ajax CapeTown).
7. The Dark Side
This episode probes the ethically grey underbelly of African football, investigating corruption, poor gamesmanship, illegal betting, and doping.
8. The Captain
An episode about captains and the specific qualities and temperaments they must possess. We look into what distinguishes a captain in football from captains in other sports (relationship with the coach, responsibilities on the field), and highlight some of Africa’s greatest captains.
9. French Connection
There are many unscrupulous scouts in the football world, and promising young footballers from Africa are often lured to Europe with phony promises and bogus contracts. When these youngsters don’t succeed at trials, they are often abandoned on the streets without any means of returning home. We travel to France to explore this regular occurrence, and examine how France had become the preferred destination for aspiring African footballers to live the European Football dream.
10. Money Game
We explore the extent to which a third-world economy hinders the development of football in Africa, and the relationship between money and success. We also look at Africa’s wealthiest league, and how a club’s financial resources are distributed across development, salaries, marketing etc.
11. Fish Out of Water
An exploration of the challenges facing African footballers that play outside of Africa, covering problems of acclimatization in a foreign environment related to language, culture, food, weather etc.
12. Beach Soccer
Beach soccer has been steadily gaining popularity in Africa in recent years. Competitions are drawing larger crowds and uncovering a wealth of talent in this lesser known form of the beautiful game. We explore the development of beach soccer in Africa, looking at its history while profiling the emerging African players and future stars.
13. 2010
A follow-up to the first season’s coverage of South Africa’s preparation for 2010, reviewing the development of stadium construction, African players to look out for in the World Cup, and the peripheral infrastructure around the tournament (entertainment and special venues).
