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Goal! The Dream Begins

Play trailer Poster for Goal! The Dream Begins PG 2006 2h 1m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
44% Tomatometer 78 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Santiago Muñez, a Mexican cook in Los Angeles, gets a chance to follow his dream of playing professional soccer. A talent scout with contacts in the United Kingdom spots him and offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance: If he can find a way to England, he can try out for the Newcastle United team. Gavin Harris, a star player, takes young Santiago under his wing and helps him prove himself to his disbelieving father.
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Goal! The Dream Begins

Goal! The Dream Begins

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Critics Consensus

Impressive sports action sequences are the highlight, as the run-of the-mill story invokes every known sports movie cliche.

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Critics Reviews

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Marjorie Baumgarten Austin Chronicle Jun 24, 2006
2/5
The action on the field won't be enough to sate the most soccer-crazed viewers. Go to Full Review Trevor Johnston Time Out Jun 24, 2006
The combination of button-pushing uplift, sundry sweeping helicopter shots and a bombastic score that sounds like it came on a free transfer from a Tony Scott movie proves as resistibly synthetic as the CGI-enhanced heroics on the pitch. Go to Full Review John Monaghan Detroit Free Press Jun 9, 2006
2/4
Everything here is beyond predictable. Go to Full Review Tom Dawson The List Apr 27, 2019
2/5
Of the actors, it's Alessandro Nivola in the role of a playboy midfielder who provides Goal!'s most entertaining performance. It's a pity then that the world he inhabits in the film is depicted in such cartoonish terms. Go to Full Review Leigh Paatsch Herald Sun (Australia) Jun 15, 2018
2.5/5
There is a bulky bundle of sports movie cliches to sort through here if you do intend to follow the rise of wizardly soccer winger Santiago Munez (Kuno Becker)... Go to Full Review Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Apr 19, 2009
B-
Director Danny Cannon ("I Still Know What You Did Last Summer") captures every bit of Kuno Becker's star quality although the committee-written script remains slack. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jim P @RT08384096 May 4, 2026 "Back of the Net" as we might say here in 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿. Maybe the best soccer film ever, with cool British 🎶 Americans! Watch this before you ruin the World Cup this summer(!) See more Mark M @RT96555914 Feb 10, 2025 The movie's story is rather unconventionally conveyed but overall it's entertaining See more Jerod S @jeroduptown Dec 8, 2024 Movies like this should make you want to play soccer when you're done watching them. This one was an uninspired foreigner playing ball in England. See more Herry S @RT60627939 Jul 13, 2023 Most original American dont understand to watch this film about English Premier League, This the best option to watch if you knew about all the E.P.L teams, I watch more than couple of times never be bored because more Football scene instead telling the story. See more Mar 22, 2021 he kickada da ball in da goal... and i like dat See more May 20, 2020 THE BEST SPORTS FILM EVER BEEN MADE! Period. Whoever says Goal is bad is either knows shit a bout football, or has watched too much bend it like beckham. See more Read all reviews
Goal! The Dream Begins

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Cast & Crew

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Danny Cannon

Director

Kuno Becker

Santiago Muñez

Alessandro Nivola

Gavin Harris

Stephen Dillane

Glen Foy

Anna Friel

Roz Harmison

Marcel Iures

Erik Dornhelm

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Goal! The Dream Begins

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Movie Info

Synopsis Santiago Muñez, a Mexican cook in Los Angeles, gets a chance to follow his dream of playing professional soccer. A talent scout with contacts in the United Kingdom spots him and offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance: If he can find a way to England, he can try out for the Newcastle United team. Gavin Harris, a star player, takes young Santiago under his wing and helps him prove himself to his disbelieving father.
Director
Danny Cannon
Producer
Mike Jefferies, Mark Huffam, Matt Barrelle
Screenwriter
Mike Jefferies, Adrian Butchart, Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais
Distributor
Buena Vista
Production Co
Lawrence Bender Productions, Touchstone Pictures, Revolution Films, Milkshake Films
Rating
PG (Partying|Language|Sexual Situations|Some Thematic Material)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 12, 2006, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA)
$4.3M
Runtime
2h 1m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
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