Bus Stop, 1999

Thomas Hoeffgen

Afrique football Hoeffgen Soccer

Un mot sur l'oeuvre

( REF : THOE001)
This image comes from «African Arenas », a major photography project produced over a ten-year period by Thomas Hoeffgen. The project tells the story of a continent through its football pitches.
The work has appeared in print many times and was published in 2010 in Germany by the publisher Hatje Cantz. It was awarded a prestigious International Photograpy Award in 2011.
Abuja National Stadium, the place that Nigeria’s national team plays in when they are in the north of the country.
An old bus bearing the « Golden Eaglets » insignia, the nickname for the under-17 national team which makes reference to the main team, the illustrious « Super Eagles ».

Le témoignage de Thomas Hoeffgen

« I caught the football bug in 1999 when I went to Africa to do a photography feature on the Nigerian player, Jonathan Akpoborie. At the time he was playing for VfB Stuttgart and I was working for the German edition of Playboy. At the last minute he couldn’t make it. I was already in Nigeria and ended up alone in Lagos, his home town.
He felt guilty, so to help me he got one of his oldest friends, who knew his life story, to drive me to all the places he had played football at as a kid and teenager. Not wanting to go home empty-handed, I followed in his footsteps.
After Lagos I travelled to the north of the country. I was totally immersed in the project by now and carried on taking shots of real stadiums and makeshift pitches.
I stopped in my tracks when I saw this old bus that was supposed to transport the young players.

Le choix de Jean-Denis

It is a simple image that is remarkably shot. It is very graphic, very esthetic and tells a story.