Have you heard the name of coach Thomas Rongen, the known American-Dutch football coach who turned the fate of the American Samoa soccer team in the 1990s? If not, then the upcoming autobiographical film titled “Next Goal Wins” is the perfect watch for you as it portrays the story of the beloved coach.
Directed by Taika Waititi, the upcoming autobiographical film is set to release this fall season and cause havoc in viewers’ minds with the truly inspiring story of Thomas changing the fate of fellow footballers that he coached during his career span in the United States.
Produced by Jonathan Cavendish and Garrett Basch, the film is based on a previously released British documentary movie on the coach released in 2014 for viewers to enjoy. The upcoming autobiographical film is set to release on November 17, 2023, and stars Michael Fassbender playing Thomas Rongen’s role, the film’s lead, and the beloved football coach, Oscar Kightley, playing Tavita’s role.
Kaimana played Jaiyah’s role, David Fane played the role of Ace, Rachel House played the role of Ruth, Beulah Koale played Daru Taumua’s role, and Will Arnett played Alex Magnussen’s role in the lead.
The film is anticipated to do well amongst the viewers, keeping in mind the response of the previously released film with the same title garnered from the viewers, as the film is made on a budget of $14 M with a run time of 103 minutes.
The film “Next Goal Wins” was initially set to release in April of 2023 but got postponed by the crew till November of 2023 due to certain unknown reasons that also caused the cast of the upcoming documentary film to miss the premiere due to the restrictions that were imposed by the SAG-AFTRA strike in 2023.
The film is supposed to focus on the life story of the Dutch-American footballer Thomas Rogen and the turn his life took after he faced the option of either converting the American Samoa national team into a winner or being fired from his coaching job.
Premise
The documentary film will tell the story of the difficult choices and struggles that the beloved American-Dutch football coach Thomas Rogen had to go through in transforming the weakest team in America at the time, the American Samoa National team, into winners after he had no other choice.
The story starts with a dejected Thomas Rongen facing the difficult choice between either getting fired from working as a coach or training the American Samoa National team to become winners.
The film “Next Goal Wins” shows the struggle of the American Samoa soccer team as the team has to deal with the people’s perception of them being one of the worst teams of the time, all whilst the team was trying their hardest to qualify for 2014, World Cup that was supposed to take place in Brazil.
After the team suffered the loss in the 2001 FIFA World Cup, they continued the streak of loss in several soccer games until Thomas Rogen, the hotheaded beloved coach with an alcohol issue, stepped up the game of turning a bunch of losers into a bunch of winners.
The team continues to work hard under the guidance of Thomas Rogen to become one of the best teams to be known, as they wanted to participate in the 2014 FIFA World Cup after facing an embarrassing loss in the one that occurred in 2001.
Filming Locations
The filming of the upcoming documentary film titled “Next Goal Wins” started in November 2019, and the filming was wrapped up in January 2020 with Honolulu, Hawaii as the prime location.
Honolulu, Hawaii
Known for its rich natural scenery, favorable tropical climate, extensive beaches, and pina colada, the beautiful island on Oahu’s south shore region, Honolulu, was used by the production crew of “Next Goal Wins” to film the entire movie. It is speculated that the opening sequence was filmed in one of the locations of Honolulu.
