Last Goal Wins: World Cup Football, Identity and Politics Play Out in Justice Eze’s Riveting Debut

At Babes HQ, football (particularly Arsenal) is our love language. And we’re hardly alone in our passion. Football is arguably the most popular sport on earth. Some nations are ready to eat, sleep, die and repeat for the beautiful game. As World Cup mania hits fever pitch, over in south London, you can fall in love all over again with a new play called Last Goal Wins.

Written by Justice Eze and directed by Kalungi Ssebandeke, Last Goal Wins was selected by award-winning playwright Ryan Calais Cameron (Retrograde, For Black Boys) for his first curated season at Broadway Theatre in Catford.

It was my first visit to this handsome Grade II listed, multi-purpose building that features bars and cafe area, DJ booth, main theatre and studio downstairs. The studio theatre is compact but the director and actors make clever use of the space. It’s an intimate play that feels much bigger in scope, thanks to its broad themes and some immense performances.

From the moment we walked into the studio, we were greeted by two of the main characters in their football kits, kicking a ball around and inviting us to join in. As with much Black theatre, there’s an interactive element to this show. However, there are no awkward moments for shy audience members as most of the focus remains firmly on the cast.

We meet Victory and Youssef, two footballers vying for a spot on Nigeria’s World Cup team. Victory is 27, a struggling dad with an invalid wife, desperate for what feels like his final chance at making it on the world stage. His “uncle”, Coach Kamso, appears to have pulled several favours to give him a shot. Still, we sense that luck might not be on his side.

Youssef is an up and coming talent who’s played with a smaller UK side but wants his big break. He’s half Nigerian, half Moroccan (and soon lets us know which team he’d rather play for). Mostly though, he’s a Londoner who feels slightly out of place on home turf. 

Just as they’re getting ready for an intense battle, a third contestant enters the fray. The newcomer has plenty of sports cred but is he Nigerian enough to represent the Super Eagles? Or is this another unfair toss of the coin? And what does the Shell Oil company have to do with who gets chosen and why?

Last Goal Wins takes on some huge ideas and handles them with humour and sensitivity. For a debut play, it’s an incredibly skilful and multi-layered examination of what it means (and what it costs) to live your dreams. Like the beautiful game, it’s rife with passion, politics, drama and emotions you can’t hold back. Eze told us before the show that he wanted us to ‘laugh and maybe cry a bit’. I didn’t shed tears but I did have a lump in my throat at different points. 

Although there are some bad choices and questionable decisions, there are no clear winners or villains. Every character is relatable, every one of them makes us feel just how much is on the line. This is a testament not just to Eze’s writing but to the quality of the acting across the board. Keep an eye out for these names: Benjamin Akintuyosi (Victory), Alexander Lobo Moreno (Youssef), Cameron Forrest (Michael D’Arcy), Jerome Ngonadi (Coach Kamso) and Kossim Osseni (Zanza). I’d love to see whatever they do next.

Last Goal Wins is about football but (like the sport itself) it’s about so much more: heritage and identity, belonging and self-belief, colonisation and corruption, race and racism, masculinity and pressure, friendship and betrayal, ambition and acceptance. The stakes couldn’t be higher and this kept us riveted from kick-off to final whistle. 

It’s the kind of show that will make you laugh, think, question, and continue conversations long afterwards. Such a treat to watch this with my football-obsessed 17 year old, a mixed heritage Nigerian Londoner studying politics at A-Level. Talk about your target demographic! He really enjoyed the play and we had some good discussions on the way home. Huge congrats to Justice Eze and also to Ryan Calais Cameron for an absolute belter to start his opening season. 

Last Goal Wins is at Broadway Theatre, Rushey Green, Catford, SE6 4RU (Catford/Catford Bridge rail). Ages 12+. 7.30pm (Wed-Sat) & 2.30pm (Wed-Sat + Sun Jul 12); £12-£15 (Jul 1-12) 

Last Goal Wins, is part of The Ryan Calais Cameron Season at Broadway Theatre. For the full season which includes Cranes and How To Keep Warm In Winter please see: https://www.broadwaytheatre.org.uk/the-ryan-calais-cameron-season/