Event Date: Sunday, March 15, 2026
Time: 11:30 AM - 6:30 PM
Location: Recreation Field (PG 3)
Description
Eight language community teams compete in an elimination bracket tournament featuring 7v7 co-ed matches with mandatory gender parity. The tournament includes opening and closing ceremonies, cultural performances, food trucks, and entertainment elements. Teams represent Chinese, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish (I & II) programs.
Tournament Format
- Quarterfinals: 4 matches (1:00-2:30 PM, two fields simultaneously)
- Semifinals: 2 matches (2:50-3:25 PM)
- Third Place Match: 1 match (3:45-4:20 PM)
- Championship Final: 1 match (4:40-5:15 PM)
- Opening Ceremony: 12:30-1:00 PM (welcome, performances, team introductions)
- Closing Ceremony: 5:45-6:15 PM (awards, trophies, recognition)
Series Dates: January 26 - April 6
Time: Ranging from 11:30AM to 6:30 PM start
Location: GC and SIPA
Description
An eight-film festival featuring movies in eight languages that explore themes of soccer, identity, culture, and human connection. Each screening is hosted by the corresponding language club and includes refreshments and informal discussion. Films showcase diverse cinematic traditions and demonstrate soccer's role as a global cultural phenomenon that transcends language barriers.
Film Schedule
#HandballStrive (Japanese)
Date: January 26
Time: 5:00 PM
Location: SIPA I 103
Hosted by: Japanese club
About: An earthquake hit Kumamoto three years ago. A part of the city’s population has to relocate in temporary housings. Masao, 16-years old teenager, belongs to those who relocated. He’s not sure what he wants to do with his life and self-identifies as a loser. Masao used to play handball but stopped around two years ago. One day, he posts on his Instagram a picture of him playing handball. The picture receives a lot of likes. With his friend Okanoto, they establish an almost-brand: #HandballStrive.
Il Campione (Italian)
Date: February 2
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: GC 288
Hosted by: Italian club
About: Christian is an extremely talented as well as unpredictable football player. After his latest screw-up, the president of his team decides to assign him a personal tutor, to help him in controlling his temper. Valerio is a shy and solitary professor, the exact opposite of the champion. Sparks will fly between the two at first, but soon their relationship will change both for the better.
The Year My Parents Went on Vacation (Portuguese)
Date: February 5
Time: 12:00 PM
Location: GC 150
Hosted by: Cercle Francais / BRASA
About: In 1970, near the World Cup, Daniel Stern and his wife Miriam leaves Belo Horizonte in a hurry and scared with their ten years old son Mauro in their Volkswagen. While traveling to São Paulo, the couple explains Mauro that they will travel on vacation and will leave Mauro with his grandfather Mótel. Daniel promises to return before the first game of the Brazilian National Soccer Team in the Cup. The boy is left in Bom Retiro, a Jewish and Italian neighborhood, and waits for Mótel in front of his apartment. When the next door neighbor Shlomo arrives, he tells the boy that Mótel had just had a heart attack and died. Alone and without knowing where his parents are, the boy is lodged by Shlomo and the Jewish community. Through the young neighbor Hanna, Mauro makes new friends, cheers for the Brazilian team and sees the movement of the police and militaries on the streets while waiting for his parents.
Tifi (Haitian Creole)
Date: February 12
Time: 10:00 AM
Location: SIPA 220
Hosted by: Haitian Student Union
About: Tifi, a short movie shot in Little Haiti (Miami, FL), is a short film centered around a young Haitian girl who struggles to buy soccer cleats to play on a field held hostage by cunning bullies. Screening followed by Q&A with film director Al’Ikens Plancher.
Shaolin Soccer (Chinese)
Date: February 12
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: GC 140
Hosted by: Cercle Francais / Chinese clubs
About: After a fateful mistake costing his career, an ex-soccer player bum meets a shaolin kung fu student trying to spread the word of kung fu. The ex-soccer player helps reconcile with his five brothers, and teaches them soccer, adding shaolin kung fu as a twist.
Dream (Korean)
Date: February 16
Time: 5:00 PM
Location: GC 140
Hosted by: Korean clubs (KLEC / KTMC)
About: With hard work and dedication on lock, a group of homeless men trains to compete in the Homeless World Cup, despite a cranky coach. Park Seo Joon plays Yoon Hong Dae, a professional soccer player on disciplinary probation after being caught up in an unexpected incident. He becomes the coach of a thrown-together soccer team, but as time passes, comes to sincerely care for and trust in the team members, becoming a true leader.
Zidane, A 21st Century Portrait (French)
Date: March 17
Time: 11:30 AM
Location: SIPA 230
Hosted by: Cercle Français
About: The film is a documentary focused purely on Zidane during the Spanish La Liga match played between Real Madrid and Villarreal on 23 April 2005 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium and was filmed in real time using 17 synchronized cameras.
Metegol (Spanish)
Date: April 6
Time: 11:00 AM
Location: GC 140
Hosted by: Cercle Francais / Colombian Studies Group / Spanish Club
About: A father who is putting his son to sleep narrates the extraordinary story of Amadeo, a young man who embarks on an unexpected adventure with the players of his beloved Foosball game.
Series Dates: February - April 2026 (6 lectures, dates TBD pending Area Studies coordination)
Time: Typically 12:00-2:00 PM or 10:00 AM-12:00 PM (Tuesday and Wednesday)
Location: Ferre Institute
Description
An academic lecture series examining soccer through interdisciplinary lenses including human rights, international relations, cultural diplomacy, indigenous rights, and global identity. Hosted by the Ferre Institute in partnership with all five SIPA Area Studies Centers plus Modern Languages. Each lecture features guest speakers addressing topics relevant to their center's expertise, creating dialogue between sport, culture, and social justice.
Partner Centers & Potential Topics
Modern Languages
Topic: Women's soccer and professional athletics
Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2:30-4:30PM
Location: SIPA II 260
Guest: Aline Milene de Lima (Brazilian soccer player, 14 caps)
Focus: Brazilian national team player's perspective on soccer, language, culture
Global Indigenous Forum
Topic: Soccer and land rights
Date: March 17, 12:00-2:00PM
Location: SIPA II 260
Guest: Secretary William J. Popeye Osceola
Focus: Indigenous perspectives on sport, land displacement, cultural identity
Asian Studies
Topic: Soccer and human trafficking in Southeast Asian countries (speakers: Asian Studies graduate students)
Date: April 7, 12:00-2:00PM
Location: SIPA II 260
Focus: Soccer's role across diverse Asian communities
Jean Monnet European Center of Excellence
Topic: TBD - European soccer culture and identity
Focus: Soccer's central role in European society and politics
African & African Diaspora Studies
Topic: Blackness, Futbol and National Identity in Latin America: Ecuador in the 2006 World Cup
Date: April 8, 10:00AM-12:00PM
Location: SIPA II 260
Guest: Dr. Jean Rahier (FIU, Professor of Anthropology)
Focus: Afrodescendants success and racial commentary in Spanish-speaking
Latin American & Caribbean Center
Topic: TBD - Soccer in Latin American and Caribbean contexts
Focus: Soccer's cultural and political significance in the Americas
Event Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2026
Time: 3:30 - 5:30 PM
Location: Graham Center Pit
Description
The FIU World Cup 2026 Official Draw is a public draw event determining the tournament bracket matchups. Teams learn their opponents in a live reveal creating excitement and anticipation. Event may include recruiting tables for teams needing additional players, promotional activities, giveaways, and opportunities for spectators to pledge support for teams. Creates milestone moment in tournament preparation and generates social media content.
Format
- Live bracket draw (March Madness-style reveal)
- Team representatives present
- Possible recruiting fair component
- Photo opportunities
- Bracket announcement and distribution
