The football comic that has been a hit in France arrives in Catalonia

BarcelonaJean-Christophe Deveney (Hyères, France, 1977) had an idea nagging at him: to create a good comic about football that could critique the darker side of the sport while simultaneously expressing the love it inspires, a game where idealism still has a place. But this writer and comic book scriptwriter often found doors closed to him, even though France is the land where comics are most valued. But football was losing that battle and couldn't break through the defenses of the European comic book industry, beyond older titles like Eric Castle.

Until two years ago, when one of the best-selling comics was The other story of football (Garbuix Books), Deveney's scripted work inspired by A popular football story (Paper Tiger), a 2019 essay by Mickaël Correia that explored the relationships between this sport, power, politics and resistance movements. "I had a comic book project focused on the lives of footballers that would allow people to learn about the history of football, but doors were closed to me. I couldn't get it off the ground. Football has always been a part of my life; my grandfather was a player. And being born near Marseille... it's normal to love football, since Olympique Marseille is a fun place to play, a club that, while not perfect, has united the population. I was sent Correia's book and he asked me if it could be made into a comic. And, indeed, it could: it allowed me to tell the story of the game well and how it has served as a political tool.

Football allows you to tell stories, although "many academics, out of snobbery or whatever," have ignored it, as Correia complains, adding that in his book he connects the threads between political movements and sport. For example, "Manchester was one of the most industrial cities in the world at the beginning of the 20th century, with movements to defend workers' rights." And in 1907 the first footballers' union was founded. It wasn't a coincidence.

Football tells history, but it also allows us to tell the stories of people like Deveney, who remembers his grandfather, "who was of Spanish origin and had emigrated to the south of France, where he played rugby and football. A politically engaged sportsman, which is why he almost participated in the anti-fascist games organized in Barcelona in 1936." The comic explores cases of militant football, contrasted with football turned into a business. "Paris Saint-Germain is the paradigmatic example of ultra-capitalist football, a club created by the Paris City Council with the support of businessmen, always thinking about creating a brand. In the book, however, we especially want to show models that escape the prevailing established discourse about football. It seems that business-oriented football is the only possible path, but that's not the case," it isn't; PSG, the great rival of his beloved Olympique, won the Champions League.

PSG doesn't appear in the book, as they preferred "to talk about those who wanted to make the world a better place." The book discusses the fight against French colonialism in Algeria, the pioneers of women's football, and how young people fighting for democracy organized themselves in the stands of Egyptian stadiums just a few years ago. "We had players like the Brazilian Sócrates, who fought against the dictatorship. It was a time when young people were very politicized and dreamed of a more democratic and freer society. Now we live in a neoliberal, individualistic society, and young people want to be like Cristiano Ronaldo," says Correia.

To turn an essay into a comic, Deveney added a chapter at the beginning and another at the end that do not appear in Correa's book. In the opening chapter, a group of people are seen in a café discussing the values of football. They debate whether it is worth following the sport when you know the corruption it conceals. "It's based somewhat on real experiences. When the World Cup was played in Qatar, people were talking about boycotting a tournament that didn't respect human rights. Many said it, but few actually boycotted it. Correa and I didn't know each other then, but neither of us watched the final. It was like a movie. Yes, I missed a great match, but I believed it was necessary to boycott it," he admits.

Rubiales' kiss to Jenni Hermoso

In the final part of the comic, Deveney and Bonaccorso resumed the conversation of the young people from the beginning, who, over beers, are still arguing about the contradictions of being a person with values ​​and loving football. At this point, they mention Luis Rubiales's famous kiss with Jennifer Hermoso. "The kiss happened when we were finishing the comic, and we were able to include a reference to it, as we found it to be a very powerful image. A moment that showed how a man with inappropriate attitudes can ruin the great moment for women who have been fighting for years. That gesture hides a man who wants his share of the spotlight." In fact, women's football occupies a central place in the work, which brings back the British pioneers who triumphed in the 1920s, filling stadiums, before being silenced.

Bonaccorso has played with colors to recreate the different eras that appear in a book that ranges from the medieval sport to the present day. "He had played football and has done something very interesting to recreate the game scenes: playing with perspective and angles of view so that you feel like the goalkeepers or players," Deveney comments. "We're happy with the reception. In France, it's been difficult to understand that sport is also a space for struggle, unlike in the United States or the United Kingdom. After May '68, French universities and our struggles became very spiritual, very intellectual, far removed from spaces like sport. So seeing so many teenagers triumphant," Deveney concludes. Now his work is arriving in bookstores in Catalan, with the challenge of attracting young readers. And some not so young.