Best Soccer Documentaries to Watch

Documentaries are not only informative but inspiration. Sports documentaries provide this as well as some great action and motivation. What makes your favorite athletes who they are? What are the inner workings of your favorite sport to watch? These soccer documentaries follow not only the most famous soccer players, but the path that soccer takes, as a form of unity and compassion for many athletes and fans of all walks of life.

Referred to as one of the most inspiration soccer documentaries, The Class of '92 is a British documentary that follows the paths of six Manchester United soccer players.

David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs, Phil Neville, and Gary Neville are on their route to fame. The documentary highlights their growth throughout 1992 to 1999, following them from the YA Youth Cup to their win at the Champions League. Plus, there are even special interviews with Prime Minister Tony Blair, Eric Harrison, Zinedine Zidane, and Eric Cantona.

Trainer! is one of the most authentic soccer documentaries, as it follows the paths of world famous soccer couches Frank Schmidt, Stephan Shmidt, and André Schubert. Winner of the Best Soccer Title on Netflix by Paste Magazine and the VDS Television Prize, the 2013 film was a hit with many positive reviews. With interviews by many established coaches like Armin Veh, Thomas Schaaf, Hans Meyer, and many more, the film gives an interesting insight into the Frank Wormuth training program.

With real footage and inspirational interviews, Becoming Zlatan is a hit soccer documentary that follows the storyline of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, a famous Swedish International soccer player. Telling his coming-of-age story, the story of his athleticism is motivational to any viewer. Showing his path from playing for the Malmö FF to the AFC Ajax team, the film portrays his struggles as he makes his way to his current successful career as a professional athlete.

Directed by Jeff and Michael Zimbalist, Two Escobars is one of the most intense soccer documentaries you can watch right now. Following Pablo Escobar and Andres Escobar's very different stories. Though the two men were not related, their paths were intertwined, and the documentary highlights this. After Pablo's death, Andres' national team takes a huge turn for the worse during their game against the United States in the 1994 World Cup. Andres scores in his own team's goal, a terrible mistake. Do the two events coincide?

Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos is a documentary that follows the New York Cosmos. The Cosmos were one of the most famous clubs of the United States in soccer history. The film reminisces about the 1970 success of the club, with live footage and old photos to help tell the story of the athletes. With narration by Matt Billion and interviews with Pelé (the star players of the season) the documentary was released in collaboration with the book by the same title, written by Gavin Newsham.

Directed by Mat Hodgson, The Four Year Plan is one of the most interesting soccer documentaries. Winning the Marbella International Film Festival Award for Best Documentary in 2011, the film was accepted by audiences with positive reviews. The plot follows the Queens Park Rangers based out of London while they are nearing bankruptcy. Their goal is to promote their team to gain access to the Premier League throughout the following three years. Will they be successful?

One Night in Turin was directed by James Erskine as a British documentary film in 2010. The England soccer team before the '90 World Cup was a disgrace to their country. However, this competition is their shot at redemption.

With Sir Bobby Robson's management, the team attempts to bring honor to their name again. The documentary is narrated by Gary Oldman and follows the team through their most important tournament. With the use of archived footage and interviews, the film is as authentic as can be.

This film follows the path different than most soccer documentaries, the referees. The documentary gives insight into the work that the referees do, specifically during the European Cup of 2008.

Following the paths of the referees both during and after tournaments, the film will have you thinking differently about the job and the pressure that lies on them. Plus, the families of the referees are also portrayed and how they are influenced by their family member's career.

I Believe in Miracles tells the story of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor, as they bring the Nottingham Forest to success from 1979 to 1980. Portraying their huge accomplishments as athletes, the documentary follows the team as they are promoted and go on to win the First Division League, as well as two League Cups and two UCL trophies. The title I Believe In Miracles says it all, as this story is not only a legend worth telling, but something that will likely never happen again.

Raved as one of the best soccer documentaries of all time, The Other Final was directed by Johan Kramer in 2003. The documentary follows the lowest-ranked FIFA World teams as they are paired up to play a match. Buhtan and Montserrat finish the game with a score of 4-0, a blowout by Bhutan.

This was just the start of Bhutan's rise from the bottom rankings. Winner of the Avignon Film Festival's best documentary and Bermuda International Film Festival's Documentary Prize as a special mention, the film was a hit and gives a motivational message for any underdog.