For a free pdf download of this resource click here
CLIP: The clip starts at 59:30 and lasts until 1:10:58
Suggesting that your youth group watches a documentary about a rubbish football team may not be the most appealing proposition you’ve ever offered them. But, Next Goal Wins is a superb documentary that deserves to be seen by everyone. Next Goal Wins is the ultimate underdog story; a film about community, going against the odds, believing in yourself, winning and losing, accepting your limits, friendship and football.
Nicky Salapu is the goalkeeper the day American Samoa lost 31-0, who keeps coming out of retirement in a bid to banish that memory. At first sceptical and exasperated about the team, coach Thomas Rongen is slowly immersed in the culture, revealing his past traumas and embracing his team as his family - it’s a beautiful journey to witness.
The clip that this session focuses on is at the most emotional moment of the film. After weeks of training, Thomas Rongen prepares his team for their qualifying matches. But surely fairytales don’t really happen in sport - you’ll have to watch the clip to find out! (There is some brief swearing).
After showing the clip, break into groups and explore the following questions:
- Are you a bad loser? How do you react when you don’t win in life?
- Have you ever had a victory after such a long time of waiting? Describe some of the feelings you had.
- What examples in the clip did you see of teamwork, community and encouragement? What can we learn from these?
Read through 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 together and return to your groups to discuss the final set of questions:
- Is this verse about sport or something else? If so, what?
- What might ‘strict training’ look like in this verse?
- What might the phrase ‘a crown that will last forever’ mean and what are the implications?
- Are you living your life like this at the moment? If not, what changes need to be made?
