The Beautiful Game Ending Explained: What Happened to Vinny, Mal and the Rest of The Team?
The Beautiful Game is available on Netflix from March 29, 2024. The film tells the story of a team of homeless English footballers who come to Rome to play in the annual tournament, the Homeless World Cup. The film is directed by Thea Sharrock and written by Frank Cottrell-Boyce. The cast also includes Valeria Golino among the various actors. The protagonist is Coach Mal, who leads the football team on this journey from London and Rome. At the last second, he decides to bring forward Vinny too. Is the film based on a true story? Let’s see together what there is to know and how it ends.
CAUTION, SPOILER ALERT. Inspired by the Homeless World Cup, which has existed since 2001, representing almost 70 countries, and in which more than 1.2 million people and 220 clubs have participated, The Beautiful Game is a British Netflix film that tells the story of Mal Bradley (Bill Nighy), a famous recruiter who is now dedicated to training England’s homeless soccer team. From the first time he sees Vinny Walker (Micheal Ward) play, he notices his talent and invites him to be part of the group that will travel to Rome for the international championship. Although Vinny doesn’t travel for the right reasons, at each match he discovers the true meaning of the event. Next, I will tell you what happened to the protagonists of the film directed by Thea Sharrock.
Initially, Vinny, who was once a professional footballer, rejects Mal’s proposal, claiming that he is not homeless and that he has a family and a job. Only part of that is true, as he sleeps in his car, has a sporadic job, and hides the truth from his ex-wife and daughter. When the little girl invites him to her next recital, his ex-partner pressures him to be honest and Vinny decides to go to the World Cup, apologizes, and explains that he will travel to Rome. Without a doubt, Vinny is the most talented on the team, but that is not the only thing that matters on the team, something that the forward will discover as The Beautiful Game progresses. At the airport, the mother of Nathan (Callum Scott Howells), another of the players, asks Vinny to take care of her son. Walker doesn’t understand why he gives him such a responsibility if he barely knows him, so he simply nods and prepares to return to the court.
The Beautiful Game: Summary Recap
The film The Beautiful Game is about second chances and redemption, with the support of the Homeless World Cup. It all starts with Mal, who is the manager of a team of homeless English footballers. He decides to take her to Rome to participate in this Cup and among those called up, he chooses Vinny. The latter is a talented young striker who could help the team win the title. The boy has a difficult past, which he cannot shake off. Throughout the film, a lesson is learned from Vinny: The Homeless World Cup is more than just a soccer tournament. Initially, she refuses to take part in the team, but then out of love for his daughter, she changes her mind.
The Beautiful Game Ending Explained: What Happened to Vinny, Mal and the Rest of The Team?
At the opening of the Homeless World Cup, led by Gabriella (Valeria Golino), one of the tournament’s founders, Vinny understands the magnitude of the sporting event and is excited to play. However, they win the first match through Walkover, since South Africa has not yet arrived in Rome due to problems at the airport. While the rest of the team celebrates the three points, Walker is not comfortable with that victory. Thanks to Vinny’s talent, Mal’s team wins their second match easily and takes first place in the table. However, the forward still does not feel part of the team. In addition to judging his classmates and reminding them that they are terrible, he rejects Nathan when he finds out that he is a recovering drug addict and would rather spend the night on a park bench than sleep in the same room as the rest of the group.
The South African team finally arrives in Rome and their coach Protasia, a very witty nun, convinces Vinny to play the first game. Mal and his team are surprised when Gabriella informs them of the new meeting, but they have no choice but to play. This situation causes problems among team members, which carries over to the field and results in a defeat. Nathan tries to talk to Vinny, who out of anger yells at him that real athletes don’t use drugs, referring to the methadone he takes daily to control the effects of his addiction. Despite that comment, when Walker leaves angrily, Nathan worries about him and asks his colleagues to go out and look for him. That night, they discover that the protagonist of The Beautiful Game has been sleeping on a park bench. After Cal shares his story, Vinny relaxes and stays with his companions, whom he empathizes with after learning their story. However, he refuses to share his past. During the next game, Nathan becomes disoriented and is sent home. Because? Because of Vinny’s comment, he stopped taking methadone.
Why Did Mal Seek Out Vinny?
During dinner with Gabriella, Mal confesses that she didn’t invite Vinny to her team to have a better chance of winning the World Cup. In reality, she feels that she owes him a debt. Because? Mal Bradley was the man who recruited Vinny when he was only 12 years old. Although he recognized his talent, the young athlete did not achieve the success he predicted. After losing the semifinal match, Cal blames Vinny for missing a penalty and a heated argument breaks out. However, Kevin is in charge of taking the conversation to a friendly level and everything seems to improve until Walker receives a call from his daughter, who excitedly tells him that at her recital she talked about him and how he is playing in the Homeless World Cup. Those last words affect his pride, he reproaches his ex-partner and runs away.
Vinny lets out his insecurities and remembers why he didn’t make it in professional football. “It wasn’t good enough”. Overwhelmed by self-reproaches, he falls asleep on the park bench and arrives late to the third-place game. He tries to enter, but they prevent him. Meanwhile, his team performs well and wins. Shortly after, Sister Protasia from South Africa convinces him to replace one of the players on her team. Vinny accepts and participates in the final and helps the South African team win the cup. After the award ceremony, Mal gives him his bronze medal and reveals that he recruited him to West Ham when he was a child. At the end of The Beautiful Game, Vinny joins Mal’s permanent team and helps him train new players. Furthermore, the Homeless World Cup is shown to help change the lives of the people who participate.
