We’ve seen the new stadiums that will host this month’s Fifa Soccer World Cup but the beautiful game is played on fields far removed from the glamour of the tournament

Christiaan Vorster, like most South Africans, is an avid sports fan who likes to travel and experience this beautiful country. He’s also an amateur photographer and, on one of his travels, conceived the idea behind documenting the many soccer fields used in the soccer-mad communities.

The result is The Real Soccer Fields of South Africa, a look at how rural and urban communities play the beautiful game. Chartered Accountant Vorster and Ingrid Biesheuvel of ReadHill Publishing have put together a book that stretches to the core of the sporting passion of South Africa’s people – soccer.

As Vorster notes,” For the past four years I have taken photos in different locations across South Africa of the most interesting fields imaginable, where no two fields look or feel the same. As the project grew, I began collaborating with other sources to add to my own library of photos. I then teamed up with ReadHill Publishing, who were as excited by the idea as I was. Together, we have formed relationships with other people with a passion for soccer: the Dreamfields Project, Kick Off magazine, Grant Veitch and The Richard Allen Foundation, and Adam Cooper and the talented kids from the Extra-Mural Education Project.

“I would also like to specially mention Henk Venter from The Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography, all the photographers featured in the book, and the writers for their positive contributions throughout the process. The book will contribute to uplifting soccer-mad communities by donating 10 percent of net sales to The Dreamfields Project, a non-profit organisation. I now invite you to page through this book and imagine the atmosphere of South Africa’s local soccer fields: the energy of the communities playing on the fields, the dust, the goals, the dreams …”

The Real Soccer Fields of South Africa is available at leading bookstores for a recommended price of R214.

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