Major League Soccer’s 2025 season, and its Cup Final between Inter Miami and Vancouver, marked a turning point decades in the making. In this reported piece, writer and photographer Marvin Heilbronn explores how MLS has finally struck a balance between global star power and genuine player development, pairing figures like Lionel Messi and Thomas Müller with academy graduates and emerging young talent. What emerges is the clearest evidence yet of a league evolving beyond spectacle into a sustainable football culture—one capable of generating real stakes, belief, and lasting emotional investment.
GLOBAL STORIES
FROM WORLD’S FAIR TO WORLD’S GAME
THE MAYOR AND THE MANAGER
VOICES OF THE MEDINA
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FOR GIRLS IN CASABLANCA, DREAMS OF FOOTBALL GO BEYOND THE PAVEMENT
While driving to a match between Nigeria and Tunisia, the Football Case Study team, based in Casablanca for the CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, stumbled upon a youth girls club that is redefining the ways young women approach football in the region. By finding inspiration through the Moroccan women’s national team and recieving support from their families, the young footballers see no limit in their future.
EDITORS CHOICE
COMMUNAL OVENS AND SHARED SPACES: THE POWER OF ACCESSIBILITY AT WAFCON
In Morocco, communal ovens known as furans serve as more than just places to bake—they are social spaces that nourish both body and community. From low-cost tickets and free transportation to women attending their first-ever matches, the tournament embraced inclusion across generations. Whether in a Casablanca bakery or Rabat stadium, these public spaces demonstrated how openness, generosity, and cultural values can elevate women’s football and strengthen community ties through shared experience.
BRAZILIAN FANS REASSERT FOOTBALL’S FORGOTTEN POWER
Throughout the Club World Cup, Marvin Heilbronn attended matches of Palmeiras and Fluminense, where he experienced the strength and fervor of the Brazilian clubs’ support and witnessed the prominence of Brazilian football reignite on the international stage. Fans from around the world united for these games; games that offered something deeper than football: a connection to home and to family.
THE LONG ASCENT: WOMEN’S FOOTBALL
AND THE MEANING OF THE AFRICA CUP OF NATIONS
The 2025 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations arrives in Morocco at a defining moment for the women’s game on the continent. From its colonial-era roots and decades of resistance to the present surge in investment and visibility, WAFCON reflects both the progress made and the structural challenges still to overcome. Football Case Study will be on the ground throughout the tournament, documenting its players, cultures, and stakes with the depth this historic moment deserves.
AS A NEW CLUB CLOSES IN,
SAN FRANCISCO CITY FC FIGHTS FOR PLACE IN THE COMMUNITY
Kezar Stadium in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park has recently been made the grounds for a dispute between USL League Two team San Francisco City FC and Golden City FC, an in-development MLS NEXT Pro team being backed by the Mayor, the city and tech investors. As the new club makes its way into town and treads on SF City’s home stadium, Fay Harvey shines a light on how the community feels and what can be learned from clubs of the past.
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PHOTO ESSAYS
WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO
Football Case Study takes us inside Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale for the MLS Cup Final between Inter Miami CF and Vancouver Whitecaps FC on December 6, 2025. Matthew David Stith captures the raw atmosphere—from chants and drums to the moment Inter Miami, led by Lionel Messi, lifted the MLS Cup on home soil.
FCS AT THE CWC
MEDINA FM
Born in the winding alleys and open squares, Medina FM is a collection of songs that followed us through Morocco. Some we found in the hum of cafés, others drifted from passing cars, and a few came from our own late-night conversations. OBSERVATIONS COMPANION
Listen to the companion playlist as you flip through Observations, our first fine art photobook. It opens with high-energy breakbeats and eases into an ambient blend of global sounds—crafted to deepen the viewing experience.SUBSCRIBE
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