Next Goal Wins: Release date, trailer, cast, plot, & more

❘ Published: 2023-09-26T14:33:57

Michael Fassbender coaches a soccer team in Next Goal Wins

Searchlight Pictures

Here’s everything we know about Next Goal Wins from its release date, trailer, cast, plot, and more.

From the brilliant mind of Taika Waititi, the director of JoJo Rabbit and Thor: Ragnarok, comes a movie that will appeal to the soccer fan hidden in all of us.

If you’re a fan of Ted Lasso, the Apple+ comedy about an American football coach who’s recruited to coach a British soccer team despite having zero experience, then Next Goal Wins should be on your must-watch list of 2023.

From its release date, trailer, cast, and plot, here’s everything we know about Next Goal Wins.

Next Goal Wins release date: When is it out?

Next Goal Wins will premiere in theaters on November 17, 2023.

Waititi took up the dual role of director and screenwriter for this film, which is not a new feat for him. As for his co-writer, he tapped Ian Morris to help with the script. Morris gained recognition for creating The In-betweeners, a British coming-of-age teen series.

Originally filmed years ago, Next Goal Wins saw its release date changed several times. It was initially supposed to premiere on April 21, 2023, but then it was moved back to September 22, 2023, before Searchlight Pictures settled on the new date of November 17, 2023. The global shutdown and an unfortunate scandal seemingly caused the delays.

Is there a Next Goal Wins trailer?

The first trailer for Next Goal Wins debuted at CinemaCon. Check it out below:

Set to the earworm song that is ABBA’s Take a Chance On Me, the trailer shows off the film’s feel-good spirit and how the message Waititi is trying to convey is one of teamwork.

Waititi is well-known for his knack for creating up-lifting underdog stories; he is credited for single-handedly morphing the Thor movies from bland to innovative. So, it’s no surprise that you can find those traits in the film’s trailer.

The movie received another trailer on September 25, 2023, featuring Waititi providing more backstory about Next Goal Wins. You can watch it below:

Next Goal cast: Who’s in it?

The cast of Next Goal Wins is a mix of well-known actors and fresh faces. There is a notable change to the cast that came due to an unfortunate scandal that broke out during filming. Check out the full cast list below:

Michael Fassbender as Thomas Rongen
Elizabeth Moss as Gail
Oscar Knightly as Tavita
Will Arnett as Alex Magnussen
Rachel House as Ruth
Kaimana as Jaiyah Saelua
Kaitlyn Dever as Nicole
Uli Latukefu as Nicky Salapu
David Fane as Ace
Beulah Koale as Daru

Will Arnett was not originally supposed to be in Next Goal Wins as the role was being played by Armie Hammer. However, Deadline reported that Arnett had been tapped to take over Hammer’s role through reshooting his scenes. They also explained that Arnett’s role was expanded to be a bit bigger while Hammer’s original scenes were more of a cameo.

Next Goal Wins is just one of the projects Hammer was dropped from after an anonymous Instagram account made texts alleging that the actor admitted to being a “100% cannibal” public. On top of the graphic and violent messages Hammer allegedly sent, a woman stepped forward to claim that he sexually assaulted her in 2017. All of these allegations led to Hammer being dropped from this film, the Paramount+ series The Offer, which was about the making of The Godfather, and the rom-com Shotgun Wedding, which also starred Jennifer Lopez.

However, on a happier note, Waititi cast Kaimana, a fa’afafine or non-binary person, to play Jaiyah Saelua, the first non-binary player to compete in a men’s FIFA World Cup qualifier. A fa’afafine is a person who does not identify as male or female. It’s considered a third gender in Samoan culture and is often referred to as transgender or non-binary.

They will play Jaiyah Saelua, who was the first nonbinary player to compete in a men’s FIFA World Cup qualifier https://t.co/qRCbnJvxLk
— Out Magazine (@outmagazine) November 16, 2019

During an interview wi t h Variety, Waititi said that he never considered casting a cis-gender actor for this role. “It was vital,” he explained. “There was no way we would have approached it in any other way.” Waititi also expressed that New Zealand and Polynesia’s fa’afafine community are an “accepted part of the culture and of life,” so he wanted to make sure they were respected as a people. Kaimana, who uses one name, will make their acting debut in this film.

Next Goal Wins plot: What is it about?

Next Goal Wins is based on a documentary of the same name that follows a down-on-their-luck American Samoa soccer team.

After being fired from his job as the United States U20 manager, Thomas Rongen (Fassbender) is sent to American Samoa. There, he must turn around a soccer team that hasn’t scored a single goal. The film takes place after the soccer team’s infamous 31-0 FIFA loss in 2001 to Australia.

While the film does follow the events of the documentary, Waititi was sure to put a cheeky disclaimer at the beginning of the trailer that reads, “Based on a true story…that pretty much actually happened.” Next Goal Wins is sure to be the best feel-good story of 2023!

That’s everything we know about Next Goal Wins, but we’ll be sure to update this page with more announcements and trailers as they roll out. In the meantime, check out our other upcoming movie and TV hubs below: