The five must-watch Soccer documentaries on Netflix right now
Dear Netflix watchers, you do not have to know what ‘offside’ means to enjoy a good soccer documentary. Because the best ones? They are less about the goals and more about the people who make the game legendary.
All thanks to Netflix, because the platform makes sure that such content is entertaining and informative to its wide variety of viewers. Isn’t that what makes Netflix different from the other OTTs? Also, the fact that it includes everyone from global icons to small-town dreamers shows that Netflix has turned the world’s favourite sport into pure storytelling gold to reach a wider audience.
These documentaries are so amazing; they make sure to show us everything that makes soccer addictive, from ambition to heartbreak and glamour to politics, and most importantly, the unscripted drama. You’d be delighted to see these documentaries if you are a lifelong fan, and as said before, it doesn’t matter if you aren’t one because they are perfectly curated for everyone.
And don’t worry, these documentaries are not just about the wins. These films and series show the human side of the greatness of the game and the pain that comes with it, including the injuries, the rivalries, and the impossible expectations fans have from a player or team. You see what happens when a player becomes a symbol, or when a city lives and breathes through a single team. It is sports, but it is also cinema.
So if you are ready for a crash course in soccer history (and more tears than you expect), here are five must-watch soccer documentaries on Netflix right now.
The five must-watch Soccer documentaries on Netflix
Beckham (2023)
Ahh, one of the most successful sports docuseries on Netflix, Beckham is a doc that everyone should watch. Everyone thinks they know David Beckham, but this four-part series goes deeper than the highlight reels. It peels back the layers of the world’s most recognisable athlete and goes back to tracking his rise from a quiet East London kid to an international icon with the world watching his every move. It is a sports drama and love story and pure therapy for an entire generation that grew up saying, “Bend it like Beckham.”
What makes it so good is its honesty. You can feel the pressure Favid must’ve felt, along with the backlash and the weird loneliness of being worshipped by millions. There are moments where he laughs at himself and others where you can tell it must’ve hurt. It’s quite emotional watching someone you’ve only ever seen through headlines just be human for once.
Under Pressure: The U.S. Women’s World Cup Team (2023)
Picture this: the US women’s team, the most successful team in soccer history, walking into another World Cup. Everyone is watching. Everyone expects them to win again. And for a while, it feels like they might. But then the cracks start to show. You can see the exhaustion, the weight of all those expectations, and the fear that maybe this time, it won’t happen.
Under Pressure is the documentary that doesn’t dress up this fear. It just follows them from their early mornings to the ice baths. It doesn’t even leave the long silences after a bad game. You see the older players like Alex Morgan and Megan Rapinoe trying to hold it together, while the new ones are just trying not to mess up. And the thing is, it’s not even about the loss in the end. It’s about everything they gave before it. You finish it feeling proud, like you’ve just watched a story about women who refused to break.
Sunderland ’Til I Die (2018-2024)
Imagine a city that breathes soccer. That’s basically Sunderland for you, where soccer isn’t just a sport; it’s everything. The team loses, and the whole city feels it in its nerves. People skip sleep and meals just to turn up for matches because that’s just what you do when the club’s a part of who you are. The documentary starts when everything has gone wrong. The team has fallen out of the big league with all the money gone, and you can tell everyone’s pretending they’re fine when they’re really not.
You see the fans showing up anyway, wearing the same old scarves. They have the hope in their eyes that this week might be different. You see players trying to believe in themselves when no one else does. You see people working behind the scenes, fighting for a club that might not even make it. Yes, it is technically a documentary about soccer, but it is more about what people do when the thing they love keeps letting them down.
Pelé (2021)
Every sport has legends, but Pelé is far, far beyond and bigger than that. The documentary starts with this boy from Brazil who grew up shining shoes, just trying to help his family, and how he ended up becoming the most famous footballer in the world. You see old footage of him playing barefoot, like he already knew the ball would listen to him. And before you even realise it, he’s leading Brazil to World Cup glory and changing what the game looks like forever.
But it’s not a fairytale, nope. The film spends time on the parts no one likes to talk about, like the politics, the pressure, and the years when he had to be more than a player because his country expected it. There are moments where he looks tired and unsure, like he’s carrying something too big for one person. Well, technically he was, and yet, every time you see him play, it’s magic again. You understand why people still say his name like it means hope.
Neymar: The Perfect Chaos (2022)
It’s easy to think you already know Neymar. His signature hair, the celebrations and the headlines he makes. But this documentary shows the person underneath all that shine, and isn’t that what we are here for? This documentary starts with him as a kid from São Paulo who just wanted to play soccer, and then suddenly, he’s the most talked-about athlete on the planet. Sounds kind of like Pelé, right? You watch his family trying to keep him grounded and his dad managing the business side, while Neymar is just trying to remember how to enjoy the game that made him famous.
It’s not a clean, happy story, if that’s your guess. There are injuries, transfers, bad press, and moments where he looks completely lost, even while surrounded by cameras. You realise how strange it is to be adored by millions and still feel misunderstood. But then he’s back on the pitch, doing those impossible flicks, and for a second you remember why people fell for him in the first place.