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Lionel Messi of Argentina stands rigidly in front of the camera. Marc Cucurella of Spain whips his hair and appears to boogie. Diego Moreira of Belgium covers his eyes with his forearm and reveals an eerie tattoo. Harry Kane leans on to one knee.
There are 1,248 football players and 48 managers at the World Cup, and none could escape the obligatory media duty that is the official portrait – whether or not they had a fun pose in mind.
Shot by Getty Images on behalf of Fifa in recent weeks, the portraits capture a wide array of poses and expressions, revealing details about each player’s personality – and the image they wish to convey to the world.
The accompanying behind-the-scenes images, shared by Getty, tell the stories of how the portraits were made and what some of the players were like off camera.
Two photographers were assigned to shoot each team, enabling them to prepare opposing sets – one plain and one distinctive – so players and managers could be rotated into position quickly.
Simple lighting set-ups were used throughout: typically, a large studio strobe-light with a softbox aimed at the subject’s body, with a couple of rim lights to provide shape and definition from the rear.
Though the backdrops were muted compared to the official portraits for the 2022 World Cup, the photographers were able to create vivid images using special lens filters that produced unpredictable blurring and kaleidoscopic effects (like the Messi image above).
The Guardian sports photographer, Tom Jenkins, says photographing famous footballers can be challenging at the best of times, let alone when it’s like a production line.
“With these kinds of shoots, you only get a few minutes with each player and you have to bash out various pictures and think incredibly quickly,” he says.
“You want some shots that are dead plain like a school photo – that’s how player portraits always used to be done – but these days you also want pictures that are more emotive and fun. A lot of players will have their own poses and goal celebrations already but you’ve also got to have a list in mind.
“The interesting thing is that you’re in control of these superstars and every aspect of the shoot. There’s a lot of pressure that comes with that. You have to make sure you’ve set things up and tested everything before they arrive, so that when the shoot starts you can just focus on them.”
Name cards were prepared for every player – Messi included, lest anyone in the editing team fail to recognise the world’s most feted footballer – and players often reviewed the images on set for their own satisfaction.
“Most football players are very aware of their own image these days and they know how powerful it can be, especially through Instagram,” Jenkins explains.
“They’ve done this kind of thing before for big brands – Eberechi Eze did Burberry and Declan Rice did L’Oreal – so actually they’re much more comfortable with being in front of the camera and some of them really enjoy it.”
Despite being image savvy some of England’s players got roasted in the wake of their photoshoot: Declan Rice for his sunburn, Anthony Gordon for his passing resemblance to Princess Dianna and Dean Henderson for his disturbing side-eye.
But the more creative images of Bellingham and co show what photographers can achieve in camera, even if the players themselves lack spark.
Curiously, the portrait which has received by far the most coverage this time around is not of a player, but of Uruguay’s manager, Marcelo Bielsa. The image, shot by Michael Regan at the team’s base in Cancún, Mexico, captures Bielsa’s unwillingness to cooperate with the process.
Instead of facing the camera, he looked down at his feet, creating an unusual image that says much about the unorthodox Argentinian. “I’m not a model,” he later protested.
Jenkins adds: “Ultimately I think the best portrait is one that displays the individual’s personality, and that’s why the Bielsa picture is so brilliant. It’s perfectly him.”
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