The Miracle Of Taipei (Aka "We Wanted More") (Das Wunder Von Taipeh)
Nominated for
Best Editing
Directed by
John David Seidler
85' • Germany • 2019
In 1981 Taiwan hosted its first Women's World Cup, at a time when the German Football Association did not promote but rather grudgingly tolerated women's football – in Germany it was officially banned until 1970. Since establishing a women's national team was of no interest to the German Football Association, the invitation to the Women’s World Cup in Taipei went straight to the reigning club champions SSG 09 Bergisch Gladbach. In the film the former players talk about the absurd conditions in which they had to fight for their great dream of playing football – against all odds and with a fair dose of humour. Without any support from the German Football Association they played the match of their lives in front of hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic spectators in the World Cup stadiums and live on Taiwanese television. Accompanied by historical footage – testimonies of a men's world that today seem all the more anachronistic – WE WANTED MORE (DAS WUNDER VON TAIPEH) tells a football story that is about much more than sporting success, namely equality and recognition.