Next Goal Wins

Next Goal Wins follows the American Samoa football team through their world cup qualifying games. They are famous for their record 31-0 defeat to Australia and being the worst team in the world.

You really don't have to like football at all to enjoy this excellent documentary. It has a host of natural but great personalities and it is refreshing to see people playing sport for the right reasons. It was nice to see the culture of the American Samoans which seems a lot more welcoming than many western cultures. The fact that no-one seemed to playing up to the camera at all is a credit to all participants.

I really enjoyed this uplifting and at times tear jerking documentary and highly recommend it to non football and football fans alike.

This documentary chartering the preparations of American Samoa for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers has little to do with the beautiful game. It's a story of redemption, of solidarity, of family and community, and of believing in yourself. A true David and Goliath tale, there are further nuances that make "Next Goal Wins" stand above many other documentaries.

For one, there's Saelua, a transgender woman on the American Samoan team who plays harder than her male teammates, and her wholehearted acceptance and support by everyone on the island. Then there's Thomas Rongan, the Dutch coach who volunteers to come and help prepare the team, while he continues to grieve over the death of his daughter in a car accident.

I won't say anymore about the characters or what happens, but I will say that this story is truly inspiring and uplifting, and more than that, has made me question my own attitude, work ethic and beliefs in the weeks since I watched it, and I am very grateful.

The documentary successfully manages to convey 1) the historical events on how they played out 2) to showcase the importance of teamwork and how important it is to boost morale and make people give there 100%. 3) how with good intentions and right approach you can manage to merge cultures and overcome initial apparent differences.

Overal interesting documentary

In 2001 American Samoa lost 31–0 to Australia. It was the worst defeat in international football. Things have not been much better for the American Samoa team since then. To qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup potential salvation comes in the unlikely form of Thomas Rongen, an American based Dutch soccer coach.

He commits for one month to give the team a fighting chance. During this brief period he focus on achievable tactics, fitness, a better defence as well as organising training sessions around the part time footballers. He also finds a couple of non island recruits who are of American Samoan heritage. Their form has been so bad that scoring a goal would be a bit of an achievement. It turns out that Rongen also has a personal tragedy to overcome.

The film also focuses on Jaiyah (Johnny) Saelua, a member of the team since 2003 but is the first trans-gender player to compete in a men's FIFA World Cup qualifier and is wholly accepted by the team. Samoan culture has a different attitude to trans-gender than in the west. We also see the unfortunate goalkeeper who let in all the goals against Australia.

Its a classic underdog and uplifting story but done in a minor key. Its nice to see football at the other end of the spectrum without overpaid prima donnas but for me the documentary was too formulaic and manipulative.

Interesting documentary film about the worst international football team, American Samoa. I say worst in the past tense. We begin the film with the nation at the bottom of the FIFA world rankings. The team have lost 31-0 to that great soccer powerhouse Australia!

The team is full of unfit, part-timers. I could go on.... Anyway the US Soccer Federation sends a new coach. A US/Dutchman that once played with the likes of George Best. He slowly develops the team and they record their first ever victory in the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers. The film is a real life Cool Runnings similarity. The film sends the viewer through an emotional journey and makes you think twice about football in particular. A little known documentary film. I had never heard of it or American Samoa for that matter.