The 32 nations competing for the 2018 FIFA World Cup have booked their tickets to Russia.
Their itineraries have now been filled out—at least through the group stage—and in just over half a year's time, the tournament will take over 12 stadiums in Russia and TV screens around the globe.
But this competition's scope is far larger than just its final stage, with a qualifying process that started in East Timor back in March 2015 and consisted of 872 matches seen by over 18 million spectators.
178 other countries tried, and failed, to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. Some more attempted to simply have the opportunity to participate in qualifying, but were denied membership by FIFA or disqualified before their opening matches.
But far away from the manicured fields and television cameras of a FIFA-sanctioned occasion, football goes on in all of these other lands. It goes on in the tall grass of rural villages, on floating rafts tied together to create a pitch, and atop skyscrapers in dense urban cores. It goes on in refugee camps, in elementary schools, and in retirement homes. It goes on in the hearts of those caught in civil wars, those struggling for equality, and those waiting for their big break. It provides hope, solace, and connection.
In collaboration with our friends Goal Click, we wanted to shine a spotlight on some of the nations who won’t be represented this coming summer in Russia. Rather than focusing on the World Cup, we wanted to focus on the world not at the Cup. We wanted to tell a few soccer stories that you might not otherwise hear.
Goal Click worked with locals in these places to help showcase the sport in their own backyard through the medium of analogue photography.
From the red dirt fields of Sierra Leone to Singapore’s futuristic retractable dome to the beaches of Lebanon… this is the world’s game, by the world.