Al Pacino particularly relished his role as he found it a refreshing change from the usual cops and gangsters he often plays.
Al Pacino's final rallying speech for the team before the playoff game is based on a rallying speech real-life NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer gave the Cleveland Browns during the 1989 AFC Championship game.
When Willie Beamen enters Tony D'Amato's house, the movie that is on television is Ben Hur (1959), starring Charlton Heston, who also appears in Any Given Sunday as the Commissioner. Oliver Stone says on the commentary that the meta connection was deliberate, and meant to show that yesterday's rebels become the establishment. Charlton Heston agreed to appear in the film and granted permission for his image in Ben-Hur to be used.
Sean Combs was initially cast as Willie Beamen, but scheduling conflicts supposedly caused him to drop out, leaving the role to Jamie Foxx. Other sources cite that when the football experts began working with Combs on quarterback drills, they quickly realized that he had zero throwing experience. They knew he could never be convincing as a pro quarterback, whereas Foxx was a natural athlete and quick learner at the position.
Barry Switzer: former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys as a television commentator for the game between the Miami Sharks and the Dallas Knights (supposedly set in Texas Stadium, where Switzer once coached).