I have never been a football fan.
Maybe once in 2006, driven by the fervour of my brother and "Zizou", but nothing more.
This is the reason why I was surprised to be asked to come and take pictures, with a colleague, for the Parisian club: the MFC 1871. Even more surprising, I ended up following them on tour for a few months.
The MFC 1871 stands for Ménilmontant Football Club and 1871, the year of the foundation of this Parisian Commune. This club isn't unknown to me. I had already heard of it, as well as the Red Star Bauer in Paris, and Sankt Pauli in Hamburg, as they are best known for their militant convictions and their supporters being just as committed.
The MFC 1871 define themselves as a self-managed club. The decisions concerning the club are taken by all its members, fans and staff. They gather individuals united by the love of this sport and against discriminations based on gender, social origin, religion or sexual orientation. "Love Football, hate Fascism" is their credo.
They denounce the perversion of sport by money, the repression of fans and therefore the use of hyper security in stadiums.
They denounce the perversion of sport by money, the repression of fans and therefore the use of hyper security in stadiums.
That, it’s for the substance.
Their values take shape as much on the shirts as in the stands, from the Palestine flag on the players to the "Refugee Welcome" banner in the stands. I've never been to a big stadium, nonetheless should I have to imagine a grandstand it would be what I saw with MFC:
Fumi, slogans, drums, clapping... It's visually impressive to see all this passion, this fervour that emanates from the stands of the stadium, laid between building bars.
But these values do not stop there in the stands. They are found in the streets, during social demonstrations, from social demonstrations against racism and precariousness, to the support of family victims against police violence.
Fumi, slogans, drums, clapping... It's visually impressive to see all this passion, this fervour that emanates from the stands of the stadium, laid between building bars.
But these values do not stop there in the stands. They are found in the streets, during social demonstrations, from social demonstrations against racism and precariousness, to the support of family victims against police violence.
The stands are politicised, it isn't new but I saw the MFC 1871 mixing the content with the form and thus allowing myself to see a version of football made by players and supporters and not by shareholders.
2019
