Ryan Savini (left) and Wesley Wingo (right) are documenting the World Cup and soccer culture in the city
Two video producers in New York are documenting New York’s passion for the World Cup and soccer culture in the city.
Ryan Savini and Wesley Wingo are freelance video producers and full-time soccer fans. For the last two weeks, the 27-year-olds have been exploring bars in the city and documenting people watching the FIFA World cup. Another friend, Scott Herriott, 33, helps them edit the vignettes, which they post on their YouTube channel, NYXI and their instagram @weareNYXI.
The popularity of the beautiful game is reaching new heights in the US, and particularly New York. The recent US-Portugal match was the most watched soccer game in US history. “It’s certainly taking hold,” says Wingo. “We watched the last World Cup in local bars, and this time we can’t even get in because they’re so crowded.”
The two say they want to make the game more accessible. “There’s a snobbery people associate with it, “ said Savini. “We want to make it approachable. With fewer barriers, it’ll become big enough with not only European transplants but Americans too.”
Their project looks at soccer lifestyle in the city. They choose bars for the teams that are playing. For instance, Savini went to Buka, a Nigerian bar in Brooklyn where people turned up to watch the Nigeria-Argentina match, while Wingo visited an Argentinian bar in Queens for the other side of the story. They also create comedic drink recipe shorts titled ‘Taste Of Defeat’ for teams that have been eliminated.
While they currently shoot reaction footage, in the later stages of the tournament, they will focus on personal stories and interviews. After the World Cup, they plan to create fan profiles that will connect soccer club fans with bars and events in New York.
