News

Box To Box Films has expanded its senior team, tapping Shine TV producer Tom Hutchings in an executive producer role.

Hutchings joins co-founders James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin, kicking off with what Box to Box describes as one of its “most successful properties.”

Previously at Shine TV for eight years, Hutchings marks the first major hire since Bruin Capital’s investment in Box To Box. His industry journey began at BBC Drama, and he has produced acclaimed unscripted content globally. His credits include Channel 4’s “Hunted” and “Celebrity Hunted,” Disney+’s “Finding Michael,” BBC’s Comic Relief docs and “Bear Grylls Meets President Zelenskyy.” He also contributed to “Gogglebox” at Studio Lambert and “Goldrush” at Raw.

Based in London, Paris and Los Angeles, Box To Box Films is renowned for sports documentaries like Netflix’s “Formula 1: Drive to Survive,” “Full Swing,” “Six Nations: Full Contact,” “Tour de France: Unchained” and the upcoming “Sprint.

Cannes — 3Cat, the newly reset Barcelona-based Catalan public broadcaster, and one of the driving forces behind Canneseries highlight “This Is Not Sweden,” is bringing onto the market a new docuseries “Aitana” as the Catalan-language service seeks to cut through the crowd with some of the biggest IPs a territory has: Its soccer stars.

Sold as both a 90-minute movie and also a three-part 40-minute episode mini, “Aitana” is an inside-track on Barcelona soccer club’s Aitana Bonmatí, winner of the 2023 Women’s Ballon d’Or for best female soccer player in the world.

“Aitana” world premieres on April 23 on 3Cat’s linear channel and AVOD platform on April 23.

“The Signing” (“El Fitxatge”), about how Barcelona, far from the great soccer club of today, signed up the greatest player in the world, Johan Cruyff, is now near to completion and will be released on 3Cat in May 21.

3Cat also spares a thought for José Luis Nuñez,...

Miami — In two signs of the growing dynamism of Catalonia’s TV scene, Barcelona-based film-tv indie studio Filmax has licensed “Dating in Barcelona” to Amazon’s Prime Video.

Produced by Filmax, Catalan public broadcaster 3Cat and Prime Video in Spain, “Dating in Barcelona” bowed last year in Spain to big ratings, both on its first-window debut on 3Cat and on Prime Video, where it bowed to become one of the streaming service’s most-watched debuts. A modern take on romance and sex in an online age, “Dating in Barcelona” also reflects a swing in TV towards a lighter, more episodic fare, whether in crime thrillers or other categories. Each episode features two dates which, as Variety has observed, play off each other.

Powered in creative terms by Pau Freixas, behind iconic series from “Red Band Society” to “I Know Who You Are” and “Todos Mienten,” all produced by Filmax, “Dating...

The life of late, great Dutch soccer star Johan Cruyff is the subject of a doc from Drive to Survive producer Box to Box Films and Dutch firm Lusus.

The currently unnamed doc is the first to be made about the former Ajax and Barcelona legend in collaboration with the Cruyff family.

Production begins later this year ahead of an intended Q3 or Q4 2025 launch. No network is yet attached but Box to Box and Lusus said they are “in talks with a number of interested broadcast platforms.”

The film will “shine a true light on the complex and charismatic life and career of a man that has been hailed as one of the most influential figures of the modern game and one of International football’s greatest players of all time.”

It will feature interviews with those close to Cruyff, who led the Dutch national team to the final of the 1978 World Cup,...

Taika Waititi’s sports comedy, Next Goal Wins, is based on the true underdog story of the American Samoa national football team and one coach’s triumphant efforts to lead them to victory in a World Cup qualifying match. Waititi co-wrote the screenplay with The Inbetweeners co-creator Iain Morris, chronicling Dutch-American football coach Thomas Rongen’s tenure at the American Samoa national team. In the role of Rongen, Michael Fassbender leads a star-studded cast that includes Elisabeth Moss, Rachel House, Will Arnett, Rhys Darby, and Waititi himself. Most sports movies tell uplifting stories about underdogs, but Next Goal Wins has the distinction of being based on a true story.

A movie about football is a radical tonal departure for Waititi on the heels of two Thor films, but Next Goal Wins shares the same theme of maintaining courage and determination in the face of adversity and insurmountable odds. The all-powerful...

[This story contains spoilers for “Sunflowers,” the sixth episode of Ted Lasso’s third season.]

AFC Richmond has been in a funk since losing to West Ham two episodes back on Ted Lasso, with only a couple of draws to show for their work and a dispiriting slide down to the middle of the Premier League table.

Will a trip to the continent get things back on track? On the pitch, decidedly not — the team loses a friendly by the frightening score of 5-0 to Dutch power Ajax (one of Zava’s many former clubs, apparently; a photo in the stadium commemorates his tenure there, “2013-2013”). Afterward, though? Ted (Jason Sudeikis) declares a curfew-free night in Amsterdam for everyone, and what follows is reminiscent of season two’s (very good, no arguments considered) “Beard After Hours,” but following most of the principals (save Keeley, who jets off to see the Northern Lights with Jack early on and isn’t seen again).

It’s the show’s longest episode to date,...

Click here to read the full article.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Usain Bolt and Barack Obama are among the friends, fellow athletes and notable figures remembering Pelé, the Brazilian soccer legend who died Thursday at the age of 82.

His agent told the Associated Press that the three-time World Cup winner, whose real name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento, died after he was hospitalized for the past month. In September 2021, he was diagnosed with colon cancer.

His daughter, Kelly Cristina Nascimento, shared a photo on Instagram with loved ones’ hands all holding Pelé’s by his hospital bed, with a caption honoring her father.

Pelé played a huge role in increasing the popularity of the sport across the globe, especially in the United States. He played professionally in Brazil for two decades, where he won three World Cup championships in 1958, 1962 and 1970. Later, he joined the New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer...

World Cup Icons have arrived, with the World Cup taking center stage in FIFA 23's Ultimate Team. Several promotions have been running in the second season of FIFA 23, such as World Cup Stories. Icons in FIFA are legendary star players that are seen as the rarest cards that can be found in the game. With the World Cup taking place mid-season for the first time, World Cup Icon can be packed and added to players' main Ultimate Teams.

Not all FIFA 23 Icon are receiving World Cup versions, but most legendary stars do feature in the promotion. World Cup icons have been released in teams every week throughout the World Cup, with the final ones expected to be released ahead of the World Cup final. While most cards in the promotion are available to open in packs, others can be found by completing objectives, finishing SBCs, or collecting FIFA 23 World Cup Swaps tokens.

To be released worldwide Nov. 4 on Prime Video, Amazon Original “El Presidente: The Corruption Game,” from Academy Award winner Armando Bo, is a Latin American series about how a Brazilian, João Havelange, wrestled control from Europe of the biggest sport on earth.

In a neat historical echo, backed by Bo’s About Entertainment, “Narcos” producer Gaumont TV, Pablo and Juan de Dios Larraín’s Fabula (“La Jauría”) and Argentine powerhouse Kapow (“La Jauría”), the second season in the “El Presidente” series saga of soccer business high jinks and low morals now looks set to become one of the biggest soccer titles released in the countdown to the greatest show on earth, the FIFA World Cup.

Whether FIFA will be entirely comfortable with it is another matter, if a trailer, shared in exclusivity with Variety, is anything to go by.

One of Iberseries’ biggest market premieres, “El Presidente: The Corruption Game...

Berlin, Sep 15 (Ians) It might not have been his best game, but Erling Haaland’s winning goal in Manchester City’s Champions League encounter against Borussia Dortmund is certainly in the charts of football’s most artistic goals.

His 13th goal in the City in nine games triggered a wave of astonishment, not only among his former teammates of Dortmund that he left only 122 days ago.

“Not many players kick the ball at a similar height,” Dortmund coach Edin Terzic assumed, as German media came up with headlines expressing the greatest admiration.

Spanish newspaper Diario As is assumed to have seen a “goal going around the world.”

German TV reckoned the 22-year-old could easily paint the ceilings of a flat by foot.

Former Norwegian international Jan Aage Fjortoft spoke of a “Zlatan-like masterpiece” reminding of similar artistic goals created by Swedish icon Zlatan Ibrahimovic, reports Xinhua.

British media asked: “Who...

To call Harry Styles’s Love on Tour a ‘smash hit’ would be an understatement. The worldwide shows have gone down so well that the 28-year-old singer has announced a slew of extra dates for 2023.

Five new UK and 12 new European shows have been added to the Love on Tour itinerary, including two nights at London’s Wembley Stadium, tickets for which will go on sale this week.

The newly announced tour dates will kick off in Horsens, Denmark on 13 May 2023 with the UK leg beginning in Coventry on 22 May. Styles will also play in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Ireland.

It has been a busy couple of years for Styles. His Love on Tour shows were postponed due to the pandemic, finally starting again in September 2021, and his third solo album, Harry’s House, came out in May 2022 and is currently up for the 2022 Mercury Prize.

The singer is currently on tour in the US,...

To call Harry Styles’s Love on Tour a ‘smash hit’ would be an understatement. The worldwide shows have gone down so well that the 28-year-old singer has announced a slew of extra dates for 2023.

Five new UK and 12 new European shows have been added to the Love on Tour itinerary, including two nights at London’s Wembley Stadium, tickets for which will go on sale this week.

The newly announced tour dates will kick off in Horsens, Denmark on 13 May 2023 with the UK leg beginning in Coventry on 22 May. Styles will also play in Edinburgh, Cardiff and Ireland.

It has been a busy couple of years for Styles. His Love on Tour shows were postponed due to the pandemic, finally starting again in September 2021, and his third solo album, Harry’s House, came out in May 2022 and is currently up for the 2022 Mercury Prize.

The singer is currently on tour in the US,...

Coldplay have sold nearly 1.5 million tickets for their 2023 tour, just one day after completing their European tour in Glasgow.

Due to the huge demand for tickets, the band have now added further dates to the forthcoming schedule.

Tickets were released for the Music Of The Spheres World Tour 2023 on Thursday (25 August), with dates across Manchester, Barcelona and Amsterdam.

News of the new tour comes straight off the back of Coldplay’s residency at Wembley Stadium, where 90,000 people attended six sold-out shows each night.

Since Coldplay began their 2022 tour, more than 5 million tickets have been sold throughout Europe and America.

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The band have just finished this year’s European tour, ending with two shows in Glasgow’s Hampden Park.

Colplay have been praised for their commitment to environmental sustainability on tour, with shows fully powered by renewable energy at most locations.

Coldplay have announced dates for their 2023 UK and European live tour shows.

The band will continue their Music of the Spheres world tour next summer, following a string of 2022 shows.

In June 2023, Coldplay will play stadium shows at the Etihad in Manchester and the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

The tour will also see the band travel to Portugal, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Last week, Coldplay played six sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium. During Saturday (20 August) night’s show, they were joined on stage by Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge for a rendition of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”.

The band will play two shows at Hampden Park Stadium in Glasgow this week.

How to get Coldplay tickets for 2023

Tickets will go on sale for the UK and European Music of the Spheres dates on Thursday 25 August at 10am local time and will be available on Ticketmaster.

After announing dates for their 2023 UK and European live tour shows, Coldplay have today added an extra Cardiff show to their line up, scheduled for 7 June 2023 at Principality Stadium, due to overwhelmingly high demand for tickets.

The band will continue their Music of the Spheres world tour next summer, following a string of 2022 shows.

In June 2023, Coldplay will play stadium shows at the Etihad in Manchester and the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

The tour will also see the band travel to Portugal, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Last week, Coldplay played six sold-out shows at Wembley Stadium. During Saturday (20 August) night’s show, they were joined on stage by Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge for a rendition of Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”.

The band will play two shows at Hampden Park Stadium in Glasgow this week.

How to get Coldplay tickets for 2023

Tickets will...

We get a view of Zlatan Ibrahimovic any number of defenders have seen, his back advancing across the pitch. Ajax' stadium looming over, the Amsterdam Arena that now takes its name from another club legend, Johan Cruijff. "Do you want a special position?" asks the coach, sending him away. Glossy black sportscar to his house, where sports journalists ask what they have to say to make this immigrant go away. That's not subtext, nor hyperbole. The clips are out there, still. Zlatan is a player who made, and has, history.

There's an indicative moment when he does not pass the ball. We're minutes into the film when there's a reminder, not a repetition, that's both reprise and precursor. Football is a team sport, but Zlatan is a figure alone. From the balcony where he uses a Cruyff turn to keep the ball away from a younger sibling, even when there are.

Following an expanded deal with the National Football League (NFL) that is bound to bring more football viewership to YouTube, the platform has now struck an agreement with Spain’s Liga Nacional de Futbol Profesional (Lfp) -- the country’s national professional soccer league -- to broadcast a number of games for free on YouTube later this summer.

In addition to free live games from the Lfp World Challenge, a pre-season tour, YouTube will offer highlights packages and behind-the-scenes footage, according to The Drum. Matches are slated to include the San Jose Earthquakes vs. Spain’s Real Sociedad, the Philadelphia Fury vs Sd Eibar, and Bolivia’s Club Blooming v Rcd Espanyol, among others.

In terms of video viewership, soccer can be a major boon for digital platforms. When Facebook released a list of the top 10 most-viewed 360-degree video clips of the year thus far, for instance, two of the...

What do you do when you have the most beautiful player of the beautiful game as the subject of your documentary? You create a gimmicky false set up, show very little football and seek to penetrate as little as possible into what makes this footballing phenomenon tick whilst never apparently talking to him. At least you do if you are director Alex de la Iglesia. Going into the film, I worried that Messi might not be a fascinating subject for a documentary and Iglesia confirmed it for me.

The setting is a restaurant and most of the tables are full of people from Messi’s past and present. At one table are seated his primary school teachers, one of whom looks across the restaurant and asks “Who’s that?” pointing to another patron. It is Johan Cruyff. At another, we find Messi’s childhood pals from his Rosario neighbourhood and...

"Thank God that (Lionel) Messi exists", says legendary Dutch footballer Johan Cruyff at the end of the first trailer for Messi, Álex de la Iglesia's documentary/dramatization dedicated to the current Argentina national football squad and Fc Barcelona leader. The Spanish filmmaker behind The Day of the Beast, Perdita Durango and Witching and Bitching has gathered former and current football players, journalists, and people close to Lionel Messi, in order to discuss the career of one of the all-time greatest footballers. Aside of Cruyff, in the trailer we get to see César Luis Menotti, Andrés Iniesta, Gerard Piqué, Jorge Valdano (who also wrote the film), and Javier Mascherano, as well as some other people I don't recognize but that are closely-related to Messi.De la Iglesia also filmed...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

A Brazilian wonderkid – a rare player every football fan secretly wishes their team had. They may not be known for their reliability or work-rate but their creative genius and ability on the ball is world-renowned. Maybe it’s the single name (Neymar, Ronaldo, Pele etc.) but there’s always been something more enthralling and exciting about a Brazilian; something the effort or enthusiasm of a Grant Holt or Scott Parker can never quite make up for.

The worldwide appeal and wealth of the Champions League has proved vital in drawing the major South American stars to Europe. It hasn’t always been this way. The legendary Pele spent most of his career playing for Santos, while Zico – one of the best players of the late seventies and early eighties – transformed Flamengo into one of the best sides in the world, even destroying Liverpool 3-0 in the Intercontinental Cup in 1981.

One...

Barcelona have scheduled a press conference for 11am (UK Time) today where Pep Guardiola, one of the club’s most successful managers in history, is expected to announce his resignation at the end of the season. He won two Champions League trophies at Barcelona and three La Liga Titles in his four years in charge and won’t be easily replaced.

Barca club president Sandro Rossell has a huge job on his hands replacing Guardiola. So let’s help him out shall we?

Here’s the top five candidates who could replace him as Barca’s new manager…

Luis Enrique

Roma manager Luis Enrique spent the majority of his playing days at Barcelona, appearing over 200 times at the Catalans and scoring 73 goals between 1996 and 2004. He was embraced by the Barcelona fans as a player having made the controversial switch from Real Madrid directly to their rivals but he had to work for their respect.

The Dutch team celebrates its second goal against Brazil in the World Cup quarterfinals, July 2, 2010. The last time Argentina were humiliated 0-4 in a World Cup quarterfinal the dark skies sundered and rain fell with the force of a monsoon. That game took place 36 years ago in Gelsenkirchen, West Germany and left observers reeling with admiration for the Dutch victors, led by Johan Cruyff, playing “total football.” In Cape Town last weekend the Albiceleste were humiliated 0-4 once more, albeit without rain, by another swift-moving team playing soccer from the future. Only this time the defeat was inflicted by brilliant, free-spirited Germans. Strangely, a day earlier, the Dutch were also busy stirring ancient memories as they came from behind to beat Brazil 2-1. Brazil’s second half collapse evoked numerous self-destructive performances by Holland while the fightback recalled spirited victories achieved by dull but indomitable Germans. In a funny way...

The country famous for creating “total football,” a soccer system in which players attack from every angle and swap positions freely, is also famous for underachieving. Talent has never been a question for the Netherlands, and this year is no different. Even with stylish winger Arjen Robben arriving to South Africa wounded—nearing the end of the team’s friendly on Saturday, Robben, in typical Dutch fashion, delivered a pitch-perfect tricky back-heel pass, only to limp off the field straight into the trainer’s room—the team is so stacked up front that his injury might not even harm it. In its qualifying run—sometimes with Robben, sometimes without—the squad not only didn’t lose a game; it was the only team to win every single one. That achievement hasn’t yet earned coach Bert van Marwijk the trust of his country’s wary fans, but it’s gotten him tepid support.