The vvvvvitesse way: Celebrating football’s ability to create energy between people, places, and cultures

A conversation with vvvvvitesse co-founder Thomas Qederi about creative presence in football culture

By Where Is Football

June 22^nd, 2025

There are people who make football culture.

And then there are those who are football culture—no need to brand it, no need to explain.

vvvvvitesse is one of the most quietly influential figures in the global game right now. Their presence isn’t about content or campaigns. It’s about care. Intention. Intuition.

You won’t find gimmicks. Just a deep, lived-in understanding of how football moves through people, cities, and moments.

Their recent event in Amsterdam wasn’t an activation. It was a gathering. A creative pulse. A reminder that football at its best is about more than goals—it’s about connection, perspective, and real ones showing up for each other.

We’ve followed vvvvvitesse for a while. This isn’t a brand. It’s a lens. A voice. A rhythm.

And now, we get to hear from one of the three founders behind it all.

Starting from somewhere

Before any of this—before the name, before the following—what was your first connection to the game?

Like many people, I started playing soccer at the age of 6 in my local club in France. Coached by my father, who was also a soccer fan (notably Barcelona and River Plate). First and foremost, soccer has always been my sport, both competitively and as a hobby. A sport that has, of course, turned into a passion.

The vvvvvitesse way: Celebrating football’s ability to create energy between people, places, and cultures

What was your relationship to creativity growing up? Were you sketching boots on the back of notebooks? Tuning kits in your head? Or did it come later?

Each member of the @vvvvitesse team has developed his or her creativity by accumulating footballing references over the years with shirts, studs, advertising, brand marketing and our travels too... We've developed our own eye, our own way of seeing things.

We've done different types of studies, each of us has developed different skills, and we're putting them to good use together.

If someone really wants to understand you—not the aesthetic, but the intention—where should they start?

@vvvvvitesse starts with the idea that brought it all together: sharing a passion, building a community.

vvvvvitesse isn’t just about football. It’s about the energy it creates between people, places, and cultures.

It’s about kindness without compromise. A space where you can play, watch, talk, learn without fear of not belonging.

The Amsterdam moment

That event felt like it was made for the right people. No gloss, no noise. What was on your mind when you were putting it together?

As simple as it sounds, our first objective was to bring together people from our community to play soccer. Then our second objective was to create an authentic playground, both with created materials (e.g. banners, chasuble), but also with finely selected materials to create that “vvvvvitesse” atmosphere.

Last but not least, we wanted an open event where people from different origins/background could meet, talk, exchange about football and life.

What did the space feel like to you—before people walked in, and once they did?

The feeling was of having gone back in time. Downtown, concrete pitch, wire fence, watering hole... You just don't play soccer like that these days. You can either play club football on large synthetic or grass pitches, or you can play five-a-side or futsal… but never on a concrete pitch.

Once the players have arrived, the game takes over, and all you have to do is define the teams and the rules, manage the time and the upcoming matches so that everything runs smoothly and everyone has a good time.

What’s a moment from that night that you keep replaying in your head?

Smiles on faces. This event was more than just playing football, it was a way of connecting people in real life, and that's also what @vvvvvvitesse stands for.

The Parisian moment

Tell us more about your recent work in Paris, what did you contribute and was that experience like?

In collaboration with 2 local associations, we worked on the artistic direction of an African unity tournament in the Parisian suburbs. We worked on shirts, the trophy, digital visuals, photo-shoot and off-field experience. It's a project that's close to our hearts, and one that showcases our creativity.

Creative integrity & keeping it honest

There’s a calm confidence in the way you move—like you’re not rushing to keep up with the game. What helps you stay rooted in that?

The work we do and the projects we undertake stem from a passion for football, but that passion is not dependent on current events. Whether it's the content we share, the events we organise or the projects we run, we always try to be creative and ask ourselves the right questions before moving forward. Rigour helps us to stay rooted in that motion.

We see so many “football x culture” things now. What makes something real to you? What makes it fall flat?

It's a huge question. I always ask myself the following questions: How much of it is passion? How much is business?

If the ratio isn't right, I think it will fall flat.

You’ve built trust in a space where most things feel transactional. Do you think about that consciously—or is it just how your work naturally unfolds?

It's natural, it's the very essence of @vvvvvitesse. And we are glad people can feel it

What has Amsterdam given you, creatively and personally?

It gives me memories for life by meeting new people, making a lot of connexions.

Creatively, it gives us a lot of ideas about how we want to run our events and what we can improve,

Looking toward the World Cup

What do you hope we don’t lose in the lead-up to the World Cup?

I hope we don’t lose the sense of unity and sportsmanship that football can bring. Recently it has been too much bad stories with refereeing…

On the other hand, I hope that people will continue to watch football matches. I get the impression that people are focusing more and more on highlights or short videos on social media, and watching fewer and fewer matches. There are many reasons for this but I hope people will continue to take the time to enjoy football in a good way.

What do you want to see more of—not from brands or federations, but from the people who actually care?

There is a lot to do! But most important I want people to do things in real life. Not social media things.

Do you see a role for your work during this cycle—or would you rather step back and observe?

The World Cup is the most important moment in the football calendar, so it goes without saying that @vvvvvitesse will be active in this period. We'll do things our own way, as usual.

What keeps you excited? Not for content, not for clout—but for the joy of it?

Play football ! At my local club, with new people like I did in NYC with @street.fc or in Amsterdam… even tried Futsal recently, I just love to play and meet new people threw football