At the eight-minute mark of the final match of the CAN 18 soccer tournament, the players from the Mauritania team delivered an impressive display of skill, scoring three goals in rapid succession. The impact of the balls hitting the goalkeeper’s net reverberated like cannon blasts. Boom. Boom. Boom. The last two goals happened so quickly that many in the crowd missed them.
“Do they score?” asked the Ivory Coast fan, who was squeezed next to me, looking bewildered. “Yes, twice,” responded a jubilant Mauritanian fan on my other side.
It didn’t take long to realize that the annual soccer tournament in Paris’s 18th arrondissement was unlike any other. The stadium was a small, enclosed turf court in the heart of the Goutte d’Or neighborhood, a densely populated, working-class area that welcomes each new wave of immigrants to the city. In these crowded streets, African wax stores and boubou tailors compete with boulangeries and bistros.
Inspired by the 2019 edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, numerous tournaments have proliferated in Paris. The popularity of these events has grown so much that the finals of one tournament in Créteil, a southeastern suburb of Paris, were broadcast on Amazon Prime last summer.
Mamoudou Camara, the driving force behind the tournament in Goutte d’Or, had no grand aspirations of showcasing immigration and community spirit in his neighborhood. His primary concern was providing his friends with a means to cope with the hot nights during Ramadan. He presented the idea on Snapchat, and within a night, six teams had registered. The following day, another six teams joined.
Instead of holding the tournament in a distant stadium, Camara and his friends decided to host it in their childhood sanctuary – a mini court in the center of the urban park, where they had spent countless summer nights and weekends, competing for a ball and enjoying rounds of Coca-Cola or Fanta (with the loser footing the bill).
The ambiance at the tournament was worlds apart from the marble statues and meticulously groomed flower beds of the Tuileries and Luxembourg gardens. On game nights, Square Léon Park came alive with older men engrossed in checkers, children frolicking on playground equipment, and elderly women in West African dresses selling homemade doughnuts and refreshing ginger drinks that tantalized and soothed the throat.
Just before the final match commenced, a tambour player set the beat with his rhythmic drumming. “In our neighborhood, we have people from all nationalities,” declared Camara, at 26 years old. “We take pride in our multiculturalism.” According to France’s national statistics institute, approximately 30% of the 21,000 residents in Goutte d’Or were immigrants or foreigners in 2019.
This year marked the fourth edition of the tournament, with sixteen teams registering to compete in 31 games over three weeks. On this June night, we found ourselves in the finals. The Ivory Coast, a seasoned team that had won the inaugural tournament in 2019, sported their distinctive orange and green jerseys in their quest to reclaim the title. Their opponents, Mauritania, comprised a young squad, many of them semiprofessionals, donning striking yellow and brown jerseys designed by a renowned local collaborator with Nike who had even been invited to the presidential palace.
This edition of the tournament demonstrated its growth and progress. The local city hall provided a small grandstand on one side of the court, while spectators claimed their spots around the court, arriving an hour before the game commenced. By the time the referee blew the whistle, we stood eight rows deep.
The court itself measured a mere 25 meters by 16.5 meters, approximately one-seventeenth of FIFA’s recommended field size. Enclosed by a low concrete wall and topped with a tall chain link fence, the confined area amplified the intensity of the game, characterized by precision, tight tricks, bursts of speed, and the resounding impact of the ball crashing against the walls and fence.
This was soccer on a minute scale, with teams losing and gaining possession within seconds. Camara and the other organizers set the rules: five players per team, no offside, throw-ins instead of corner kicks, a penalty kick for any foul after the fifth within a half, and games lasting between 30 minutes to an hour, depending on their significance.
Livestreams captured the matches, with an additional camera available for referee reviews. While the first year limited players to locals, subsequent editions have allowed participants from outside the neighborhood. However, those who grew up playing on this court quickly revealed their expertise, utilizing the side walls to their advantage by bouncing passes around defenders, showcasing their technical finesse.
Martin Riedler, who formed the tournament’s French team three years ago, likened it to a boxing ring. “You have to be alert at every moment, which makes the experience so intense,” said Riedler, a soccer scholarship recipient at Santa Clara University in California. Though his team consisted of elite players capable of hitting the crossbar from the halfway line of a full-sized field, the arena posed a daunting challenge for them. “You know you won’t sleep at night after a game.”
Players collided, aided one another, and fiercely battled against the wall, with spectators close enough to brush against them through the fence. This intimate setting allowed for breathtaking displays of skill, such as flicking the ball over opponents’ heads and deftly maneuvering it around their feet. The small court created a compression chamber for technical plays, according to referee Bengaly Souré.
Amidst the electrifying atmosphere, spectators enthusiastically shouted their observations above the pulsating African beats emanating from the loudspeakers. The player wearing No. 7 for Mauritania, who also played for an Italian team, was commended as a formidable force. Despite the Ivory Coast falling behind, the game’s outcome remained unpredictable. “I’ve seen a team losing 4-1 make a comeback,” shared Makenzy Kapaya, a 37-year-old artist who grew up in Goutte d’Or but now resides in a less crowded apartment. Like many in the audience, he returned to watch the games and reconnect with childhood friends. “If you have problems, people will help you here, regardless of your background,” Kapaya affirmed.
Goutte d’Or, known for its dense, working-class environment, has often made headlines for unfavorable reasons such as drug-related issues, prostitution, and violence. The local library had shut down temporarily three years ago due to repeated threats from drug dealers near its premises. Following the fatal police shooting of 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk this summer, along with subsequent protests across the country, the local police station also faced an attack.
However, Éric Lejoindre, the mayor of the 18th arrondissement, emphasized the quiet assistance provided by local volunteers in areas such as education, cooking, and housing. Therapists in Goutte d’Or regularly organize listening sessions, setting up chairs in an abandoned lot for passers-by to unload their burdens. Despite its trials, the neighborhood possesses a profound sense of community.
“Locals are aware of it, but sometimes it needs to make a spectacular entrance,” Lejoindre stated. “To me, CAN is one of those moments when the neighborhood can revel in being a bit special.”
After halftime, the Ivory Coast team staged a comeback, bringing the score to 9-7. However, Mauritania swiftly extinguished their momentum and dreams. As the sky darkened into a velvety night, spectators illuminated the scene by holding up their phones like lanterns. Mauritania scored yet again, and again, and again. Boom, boom, boom. The players celebrated each goal with joyful dances.
When Souré sounded the final whistle, a euphoric crowd rushed onto the tiny court, engulfing the young Mauritanian team in a whirlwind of ecstatic celebration. Camara, who would take a few weeks off before commencing preparations for next year’s tournament, expressed his astonishment at the immense joy brought to the neighborhood by this small-scale tournament. At a time when anti-immigrant sentiments are on the rise…
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