COPA ’71 Documentary

Screening to be followed by a conversation with directors Rachel Ramsay and James Erskine.

Executive produced by Venus and Serena Williams, COPA ‘71 centers on a long-forgotten 1971 tournament held in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium two decades before the first FIFA-sanctioned Women’s World Cup. Six teams from Europe and Latin America compete for the title amidst a fervor usually reserved for the men’s competition including lucrative sponsorship deals, merchandise on sale in every corner and extensive TV coverage. The final match, a frenetic battle between Denmark and Mexico, plays in front of a crowd of over 100,000 spectators. Over 50 years later, filmmakers Rachel Ramsay and James Erskine shine a spotlight on one of the most electrifying competitions in sports history, while weaving dazzling archival footage and interviews with the former players for an eye-opening dive into the historic struggles female soccer players have faced over the last century. –Javier Chavez