SoccerMovieMom

Over 450 reviews

Tag: Corruption

  • ‘Soccergate’ (2021) shows how justice is denied

    ‘Soccergate’ (2021) shows how justice is denied

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    Soccergate (aka Footballgate) is Episode 3 of the Netflix series Bad Sport , but it provides disappointing coverage on the 2006 match fixing scandal commonly known as “Calciopoli”. I learn something from almost all the documentaries I’ve reviewed, and it is only a very few that leave me with so many questions that I am…

  • Review- ‘Black and White Stripes: The Juventus Story’ (2016)

    Review- ‘Black and White Stripes: The Juventus Story’ (2016)

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    Directors Marco La Villa and Mauro La Villa say that this film is about fathers and sons and how football unites generations and allows them to relate to each other. The twin brothers worked on this film for 10 years, after their father, a life long Juventini, passed away without ever attending a Juventus game.

  • ‘Super League: The War for Football’ (2023) deserves an Emmy

    ‘Super League: The War for Football’ (2023) deserves an Emmy

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    Having already reviewed Fulwell 73’s feature-length film Super Greed (2022), it took me a long time to get around to watching the 4-episode mini-series Super League: The War for Football. After all, how much more does anyone care to learn about a bunch of billionaires for whom football is strictly business. But Oh, what a…

  • Review: ‘The Men Who Sold the World Cup’ (2021)

    Review: ‘The Men Who Sold the World Cup’ (2021)

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    The Men Who Sold the World Cup was produced and directed by Daniel DiMauro and Morgan Pehme, two fellows who have built their careers with documentaries that explain corruption and evil-doing in a very accessible and entertaining way. This docuseries shows how corruption is cultivated and how difficult it is to capture the bad guys…

  • Fulwell73 hits home with ‘Super Greed’ (2022)

    Fulwell73 hits home with ‘Super Greed’ (2022)

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    Super Greed: The Fight for Football is the first faithful cinematic telling of the 48-hour debacle known as the European Super League (ESL). It will not be the last. Looking back to Apr-2021, you might recall the Super League with blurry pandemic memories. But because this documentary is from Fulwell73 and Sky Sports, whose business…

  • ‘FIFA Uncovered’ (2022) the World Cup of Fraud

    ‘FIFA Uncovered’ (2022) the World Cup of Fraud

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    If you did not have the energy to read the 2014 Garcia Report, the Netflix docuseries FIFA Uncovered is an excellent way to get all the facts in a very visual mode. Director Daniel Gordon interviews journalists, authors, and media experts as well as key principals formerly inside FIFA, and the Qataris who bought the World…

  • Is ‘The Holy Game’ (2021) sportswashing

    Is ‘The Holy Game’ (2021) sportswashing

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    Director Brent Hodge did not intend to make a film about why men enter the Catholic priesthood. At the outset, he and co-director Chris Kelly thought their film would be a comedic pop culture documentary, a movie genre niche that is Hodge’s specialty. They envisioned fat friars sweating in the Vatican-sponsored football tournament known as…

  • Will there be more ‘Men of Hope’ (2019)

    Will there be more ‘Men of Hope’ (2019)

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    Afghanistan has been in a state of civil war since 1992. For almost 30 years, lives have been violently torn apart by the Taliban, ISIS/ISIL, Pakistan, and the USA. So why is this film titled Men of Hope? Because when Afghans can watch their National Team play, it brings hope to locals, migrants, and refugees,…

  • ‘Fixed!’ (2020) – how to play the match-fixing game

    ‘Fixed!’ (2020) – how to play the match-fixing game

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    Once you’ve served prison time for match fixing, what is the easiest way to keep making money? Claim yourself notorious, become a consultant, and get paid to give interviews about corruption in FIFA.  The story of match-fixer Wilson Raj Perumal first broke in 2010, when as a FIFA Match Agent, Perumal arranged an international friendly…

  • Notes: The Garcia Report details FIFA corruption on every page

    Notes: The Garcia Report details FIFA corruption on every page

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    It is incredibly unfortunate that media like the Washington Post and the NY Times downplayed the 2014 Garcia Report, with headlines saying that there was “no smoking gun”. Virtually every page in this independent report from Michael Garcia’s Investigatory Chamber details FIFA’s corrupt methods in selecting the sites for WC 2018 and WC 2022. I’ve…

  • ‘The FIFA Family’ (2017) – a never-ending corruption story

    ‘The FIFA Family’ (2017) – a never-ending corruption story

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    Thank DR, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, for bringing the stories of Chuck Blazer and the corruption behind the Qatar World Cup to the public in such an easily digestible form.The FIFA Family: A Love Story dissects how Blazer’s plea deal to become an undercover informant led to the arrest of 6 members of the FIFA…

  • Shakhtar Donetsk is ‘The Other Chelsea’ (2010)

    Shakhtar Donetsk is ‘The Other Chelsea’ (2010)

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    Although The Other Chelsea is 10 years old, it is a valuable film to watch in the context of today’s impeachment inquiry of Donald Trump. First-time Writer-Director Jakob Preuss lays out the struggling lives of coal miners in Donetsk and compares them to Kolya, a young rising local politician and businessman who drives a Lexus and…

  • ‘Foul Play’ (2017) – it’s easy to fix matches in Indonesia

    ‘Foul Play’ (2017) – it’s easy to fix matches in Indonesia

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    Director Suridh Hassan put together this documentary about corruption in Southeast Asian football, mostly covering Indonesia. He follows the season of UK manager Simon McMenemy, who coaches Indonesian side Mitrar Kukar FC. He also conducts interviews with a youth coach, a physio, and a journalist who explain how easy and pervasive match fixing is in…

  • ‘The Workers Cup’ (2017) normalizes Qatar

    ‘The Workers Cup’ (2017) normalizes Qatar

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    Now that WC 2018 has finished in Russia (Congratulations to Les Bleus!), the eyes of the world turn to WC 2022 in Qatar. But as happened with Russia, the eyes of football fans are blind to the exploitation and corruption that FIFA has facilitated for these two tournaments. The Workers Cup might open your eyes…

  • ‘Soka Afrika’ (2011): well-meaning but misinformed

    ‘Soka Afrika’ (2011): well-meaning but misinformed

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    The problem of human trafficking through football, also known as football trafficking, has been covered in the media for almost 10 years. In Soka Afrika, Suridh Hassan puts together a sensitive portrayal of 2 teenage footballers trying to make a career in Europe in 2009. However, I do not recommend this documentary because it puts…

  • Notes: The Problems with Football Agents

    Notes: The Problems with Football Agents

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    The 2011 film Soka Afrika got me wondering, how does a player in Africa find the right agent? How do players avoid scams by fraudulent football agents that will turn them into victims of human trafficking?

  • Notes: The Slavery Side of World Cup Soccer

    Notes: The Slavery Side of World Cup Soccer

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    If you follow soccer at all, you probably agree that FIFA is synonymous with corruption. As we’ve learned since the FIFA Scandal erupted in 2015, much of the income of the so-called “non-profit” went into the pockets and personal bank accounts of its officers and those of the football associations that represent the 209 member…

  • So many ways to cheat in ‘Dirty Games’ (2016)

    So many ways to cheat in ‘Dirty Games’ (2016)

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    As sports fans, we should all thank Director Benjamin Best for his investigative journalism. We like to think that the games on which we spend so much time, money, and emotion, are equally true to us, the fans and supporters.

  • More FIFA corruption in ‘The March of the White Elephants’ (2015)

    More FIFA corruption in ‘The March of the White Elephants’ (2015)

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    In The March of the White Elephants, Director Craig Tanner continues the work he began with his first film, exposing the societal insanity of spending billions on stadiums for a one month soccer party.

  • Romanian corruption in ‘Craiova versus Craiova’ (2016)

    Romanian corruption in ‘Craiova versus Craiova’ (2016)

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    What is the most extraordinary aspect of the documentary Craiova versus Craiova? It’s not that 2 teams claimed to be the same club and then played each other in the Romanian Second Division. What’s amazing is that this excellent film was created by a student as his senior journalism project at a Brazilian university. Director…