Soccer, Football, Futbol, Calcio, サッカー, كرة القدم – whatever you call it from your corner of the world, it is the great sport that unites. Here is a collection that honors the connection within short film and game, just in time for the World Cup.

Made up of several previous Short of the Week selections, alongside a handful of films never before featured on our pages – including award winners, animated docs, and even the occasional appearance from Timothée Chalamet – this collection offers everything you could want from a starting XI. So if World Cup 2026 isn’t providing enough soccer to satisfy your appetite, these shorts should more than fill the gaps between games.

soccer short films

Click on the image to see the complete collection on Shortverse

  1. KOP by Thomas Pons – Anyone who has taken a young child to a soccer match will recognise what an eye-opening experience it can be for impressionable minds. With KOP, Pons approaches the colorful language of terrace chants from a humorous angle, following an imposing father who attempts to use his influence to make the songs a little more family-friendly.
  2. Amarela by André Hayato Saito – Securing a place on the most recent Oscar® shortlist, this Cannes-premiering short was one of our favorites of award-season. Céline in our Voter’s Guide: “While football fans will appreciate the references to icons such as Zidane and Ronaldo (R9), the true centre of the film is Melissa Uehara, whose commanding central performance carries the emotional weight of the narrative with remarkable strength and nuance.” – Warning: this online release is for North American audiences only.
  3. Christine Sinclair: Kind of a Big Deal by Eoin Duffy – With women’s football still receiving only a fraction of the attention afforded to the men’s game, Short of the Week regular Duffy attempts to level the playing field with this kinetic, attention-grabbing profile of Christine Sinclair, the all-time leading goalscorer in international football.
  4. Backyard Legends by Mark Molloy – Starring Timotheé Chalamet and fondly evoking both his Marty Supreme hustler character and the blockbuster soccer short films its rival, Nike, pioneered in the 90s and 00s, Adidas enlisted Mark Molloy and SMUGGLER for its 2026 World Cup promo and scored a golazo with this 5min film. The Game Roman Hodel
  5. Das Spiel (The Game) by Roman Hodel – “With eight cameras present at the match and access to the communications between officials, Hodel provides an unprecedented look at the decision-makers as they navigate the game’s fast-paced action. At just 17 minutes, The Game condenses the referee’s experience into a series of highlights rather than the full 90 minutes.” – Read the Full Review
  6. Sunday by Charlie Watts – A short, quite heartfelt ode to the grand British tradition of grassroots Sunday League football in the wake of its suspension due to COVID-19 lockdowns, this piece poetically crystallizes the value of the everyday traditions and connections we sometimes don’t remember to cherish until they are lost.
  7. We Are Ayenda by Amber Fares – Winner of the Grand Prix in Entertainment at Cannes Lions, this 27 min documentary, supported by Whatsapp, “follows the profound relationship that develops between Farkhunda Muhtaj, the former captain of Afghanistan’s women’s national football team and humanitarian activist, and the members of the women’s youth team. Despite never having met in person, Muhtaj leads the young women to safety via WhatsApp texts and voice messages, which are woven throughout the documentary to retell their story.”
  8. The Lonely Goalkeeper by Dress Code – “As star strikers, such as Harry Kane, earn the plaudits for their goalscoring antics, spare a thought for those out there trying to stop them, those protectors of the net, the last line of defence – the goalkeeper.” – Read the Full Review
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  9. Joy in People by Oscar Hudson – ”Covertly filmed amid the very real crowds of the 2016 European Football Championships and released just as the 2018 World Cup has come to an end, though football supporters feature heavily in Hudson’s film, it tackles much bigger themes – from happiness to nationality.” – Read the Full Review
  10. The Switch by Ringan Ledwidge – ”Every moment is an opportunity to push the pace and condense a concept, which has been explored in full-length films on multiple occasions, down to its most basic beats.” – Read the Full Review
  11. TMB: Panyee FC by Matt Devine – “Can these kids, playing on a makeshift floating platform that has nails sticking out of it, really compete when it comes time for the big tournament held on the mainland?” – Read the Full Review