The Ultimate Goal: Independence

Delve into the story of the Algerian footballers who traded European pitches to join the fight for independence. In 1958, in the midst of the War of Independence, talented players secretly left their clubs to form the FLN team – a living symbol of the Algerian people's struggle. This clandestine team, banned by FIFA, served as a mouthpiece for the Algerian provisional government until 1962. Footballer Rachid Mekhloufi explained: “This departure of the best Algerian players playing in France was no accident. With the control of the media, few French people knew what was happening in Algeria. The FLN representatives in France were ahead of the curve in terms of publicity. Truly ahead of the curve, because a move like this allowed the French people and the rest of the world to open their eyes.”

• Fayçal Abdelghani SalahDirector

• Mohamed BoumezragSelf (archive footage)
• Mokhtar ArribiSelf (archive footage)
• Mohamed AllamSelf (archive footage)
• Rachid MekhloufiSelf
• Mustapha ZitouniSelf (archive footage)
• Kaddour BekhloufiSelf (archive footage)
• Abdelaziz Ben TifourSelf (archive footage)
• Abderrahmane BoubekeurSelf (archive footage)
• Abdelhamid KermaliSelf (archive footage)
• Abdelhamid BouchoukSelf (archive footage)
• Amar RouaïSelf (archive footage)
• Saïd BrahimiSelf (archive footage)