The Beautiful Game
A simple image, a subtle shift. Three white lines arranged just so become an instantly recognizable symbol. Whatever the wider context, whether they are either end of a village green pitch, or in the grander surroundings of a professional stadium, the purpose of these structures is always clear. The goalposts never move.
I see football pitches in much the same way as I see a theatre. The action is played out, holding the audience rapt. There are moments of high drama, struggles for power, laughter and, sometimes, tears. There’s also a parallel to be drawn with places of worship, the spectacle of the players along with the participation of the audience chanting and singing along allows one to enter a heightened, almost euphoric state at times. Football in this sense is utterly transformative – as all great art should be.
Some pitches were the stages on which the greatest games were played by the greatest players; others are now left abandoned, the posts stand as only as a reminder of what once was … Either way, whether grand or grassroots, what they represent is the same – the greatest game in the world.
A simple image, a subtle shift. Three white lines arranged just so become an instantly recognizable symbol. Whatever the wider context, whether they are either end of a village green pitch, or in the grander surroundings of a professional stadium, the purpose of these structures is always clear. The goalposts never move.
I see football pitches in much the same way as I see a theatre. The action is played out, holding the audience rapt. There are moments of high drama, struggles for power, laughter and, sometimes, tears. There’s also a parallel to be drawn with places of worship, the spectacle of the players along with the participation of the audience chanting and singing along allows one to enter a heightened, almost euphoric state at times. Football in this sense is utterly transformative – as all great art should be.
Some pitches were the stages on which the greatest games were played by the greatest players; others are now left abandoned, the posts stand as only as a reminder of what once was … Either way, whether grand or grassroots, what they represent is the same – the greatest game in the world.
Anfield
Bronx, NY
Brooklyn, NY
Bushwick Inlet Park, Brooklyn, NY
Craven Cottage
Earls Orchard, Richmond Nth Yorkshire
East River Park, NY
Formby
Goodison Park
Goole AFC
Lambert Park, Sydney, Australia
Leeds United
Marrickville, NSW, Australia
Marseille, France
Monks Risborough
Near Leeds United
New Norfolk, Tasmania, Australia
Notre Dame de la Garde, Marseille
Old Trafford
Pizzey Park, OLD, Australia
Preston North End
QPR
Salts FC, Shipley
Samlesbury, Lancashire
South Stand, White Hart Lane
Southport
Stamford Bridge
Sybil Road, Anfield
University of the Philippines, Manila
West Wycombe
White Hart Lane
