How storytelling is changing perceptions of homelessness
|Actor Michael Ward played former professional footballer Vinnie in The Beautiful Game. Image: Netflix / The Beautiful Game
By Rebecca Corbett
How stories are changing hearts and minds about homelessness
The age-old adage says that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’ - that picture shapes the narrative and can inform opinions. This is particularly the case when talking about homelessness. Images used in mainstream media often depicts homelessness in a narrow and stereotypical way which generalises, dehumanises and removes any sense of an individual. Since the Homeless World Cup was established in 2001 and the first tournament took place in 2003, one of the main aims has been to challenge this view and change public perceptions and expand people’s understanding of what homelessness is.
“We have people coming along to our tournaments and they see the players in their football kits and say - ‘these people can’t possibly be homeless. What’s happened is that the narrative in the media means people think they know what homelessness looks like,” said Homeless World Cup President, Mel Young. When feature film ‘The Beautiful Game’ was released on Netflix in April 2024 it was watched by millions worldwide - the story was inspired by hundreds of players at the Homeless World Cup. Screenwriter Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Blueprint Executive Producers Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin and Ben Knight visited numerous Homeless World Cups to experience the event and meet the players, which is reflected in the script. “What I think the scriptwriter did brilliantly is to bring in the real stories –they weren’t ‘the homeless’ they were homeless people,” said Mel Young.
|Monica travelled for 12 hours to take part in the trials where she was selected to compete for Mexico at her fourth attempt. Image: HWC / Rebecca Corbett
“They were nice guys and not so nice guys, they were people who had a drug problem and people who didn’t have a drug problem, they were good at football and not good at football. They were a slice of humanity if you like. “A lot of the players watch the film and say – you see that character? That’s me. That’s a real compliment to the movie makers, because the players see themselves in the film – it’s that authenticity – it’s real for the players and it’s real for everyone else.
“By the time you got to the end of the film, you were really empathising with them. A lot of people have said to me – that could have been me. There was one man who was a footballer and lost his job [like Michael Ward’s character, Vinnie] - people realise they have been closer to the edge than they think.”
the real players in the Beautiful game
|Hussain represented his adopted nation Austria at the Cardiff 2019 Homeless World Cup. Image: Mile44
Stories like this challenge the narrative which generalises ‘the homeless’. The authenticity of the film is highlighted though the script, as well as the use of real Homeless World Cup footage at the end and also in the decision to include former Homeless World Cup players in the cast. Mexico’s goalkeeper in the film is played by Monica Sanchez, who was part of the Mexican winning team at the Homeless World Cup in Mexico City in 2018. She travelled for twelve hours by bus from the mountainous region of Chiapas to take part in the trial, which would see her finally be selected on her fourth attempt.
|Dillon (right) with South African teammate Bongani on the set of The Beautiful Game in Rome. Image: HWC/Rebecca Corbett
Hussain also plays in goal, representing Afghanistan in the film – a former Homeless World Cup player who was at the tournament in Cardiff in 2019 representing Austria after arriving there as a refugee in 2012. He left his family who had moved to Iran and hasn’t seen them for more than nine years. But now he’s starting to build a new life in Austria, and football plays a big part of it.
Dillon didn’t think he would ever leave South Africa - his parents died when he was thirteen and in 2013, he was living on the street and struggling with addiction in Johannesburg. But two years later he was on a plane to represent his country at the Homeless World Cup in Amsterdam. In 2021, he was jet-setting again, this time to Rome to film The Beautiful Game.
In the charity sector, Mel Young explains, you are continuously asked to show your impact – ‘What are the figures? What are the statistics?’ - we have the numbers, but these stories – when I start talking to people about the actual people they are always engaged.”
When it comes to numbers or people, you will remember the conversations or story you have read about Hussain, Monica or Dillon – they make the numbers come to life and make it real, because they remind you it’s the individual that matters and surely that’s what the (bigger) picture is really about?