I didn’t see The Match on purpose. My plan for the day had been to wait in line for something nearby, but after the first hour in the sun, sweat dripping down my back, I didn’t have the will power to keep standing. So I decided to wander into a random rush line. I wasn’t enthused to learn it was a documentary about soccer.
Not to be punny, but I actually had a ball watching The Match. The documentary, directed by Juan Cabral and Santiago Franco, follows the story of the 1986 Argentina-England World Cup and the Falkland Islands conflict, a ten week undeclared war between England and Argentina. What I was drawn to wasn’t the story or the players; it was the choice to make the interviews greyscale.
The most distinct part of a sports team is their colors. It’s what visually divides the crowd at a game. A sea of one color versus a sea of another color. The overlap between sports team unity and patriotism is a no brainer. Color denotes who you’re fighting for.
The Match takes away that color and in turn, takes away the divide. The interviews with both the English players and the Argentinian players are completely in black and white. Players from completely opposite teams feel like the same team. You can’t tell the difference visually, until a lower third comes on and they open their mouth. The thesis of The Match can be boiled down to a message of unity. The Match begs the question; what if instead of warfare, we just all played soccer? Sports documentaries aren’t my thing, but a film about the human condition and a globalized sense of unity? That’s my thing. If it’s yours too, you might just enjoy The Match even if, like me, you don’t give a damn about sports.