#LightBoxFF: 11 Photographers Capture the World Cup

4 minute read

Welcome to this week’s edition of TIME’s LightBox Follow Friday, a series where we feature the work of photographers who are using Instagram in new and engaging ways.

This week on #LightBoxFF, TIME has partnered with the Photographic Museum of Humanity to curate #Teamphotogs, a team of 11 photographers from around the world using Instagram to document this year’s biggest sporting event, the 2014 World Cup. From Brazil’s soccer stadiums to cafes in Egypt, these photographers will bring a vast variety of perspectives to this month-long, world-wide event.


Felipe Dana @felipedana – An Associated Press photographer based in Rio de Janerio, Dana began taking photographs at 15 years old as a photo assistant in commercial studios. Since then, his work has appeared in Newsweek, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and the Wall Street Journal, among many others.

Rodrigo Abd @abdrodrigo – Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Abd has been a staff photographer with the Associated Press since 2003, covering political unrest in Bolivia, Venezuala’s 2007 presidential elections and the 2010 Haiti earthquake. He was part of a team of AP photographers to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News in 2013 for work covering the Syrian civil war.

Mar. 23, 2014. By Mario Tama.

Damir Sagolj @damirsagolj – Currently based in Bangkok, Thailand, Sagolj began taking photographs while serving in the Bosnian army during the Balkan wars. In 1997, he became Reuters’ chief Bosnia photographer and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of coalition forces in Iraq following Sept.11. His work has been published in TIME, The Washington Post, Newsweek, The New York Times and Le Monde, among others.

Oliver Weiken @oliverweiken – Born in Germany, Weiken joined the European Pressphoto Agency in 2005 after working for two years with Deutsche Presse-Agentur. He has covered the G8 summit, Pope Francis and international sports events. He is currently based in Tel Aviv covering the Israel/Palestine conflicts.

Joao Pina @joaopinaphoto – A freelance photographer from Lisbon, Portugal and based in Buenos Aires, Pina’s work covering gang violence, the Arab Spring and the war in Afghanistan has appeared in The New Yorker, Human Rights Watch, The New York Times and Visao.

May 31, 2014. By Tommaso Protti.

Alejandro Kirchuk @akirchuk – Kirchuk produces long-term documentary projects in Latin America and is currently based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He won a 2012 World Press Award for his series ‘Never Let You Go,’ that explored Alzheimer’s disease. His photos have been published in the New York Times, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and ESPN Magazine.

Tommaso Protti @tomprotti – Born in Italy and based in Brazil, Protti is an award winning documentary photographer who’s work has been featured in Esquire, Le Monde, The New Yorker, National Geographic and The New York Times. He has recently exhibited photos at the Prix Bayeux-Calvados festival in France and Fotoleggendo in Italy.

Mario Tama @mario_tama – Tama joined Getty Images in 2003 and has won multiple awards for his coverage of Hurricane Katrina, Sept.11, the war in Afghanistan. His work has been exhibited at Visa Pour l’Image in France and he’s been featured in National Geographic and Newsweek.

May 31, 2014. By Joao Pina

Laura El-Tantawy @laura_eltantawy – A member of the VII Photo Mentor program, El-Tantawy is an Egyptian photographer who began her career in 2002 with the Milwaukee Journal and Sentinel and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. She is currently a freelance photographer based in Cairo, Egypt and London, U.K.

Alice Martins @martinsalicea – Based in the Middle East, Martins has been reporting on the Syrian civil war since 2012. A freelance photojournalist covering conflict and crises in Africa, the Gaza Strip, Brazil, her work has appeared in National Geographic, Al Jazeera, Vice, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, The Washington Post and The New Yorker.

Meeri Koutaniemi @meerimatildakouta – Covering human rights issues in over 20 countries, Koutaniemi is a freelance photojournalist and documentary film maker who is currently based in Helsinki. In 2012 she won Press Photographer of the Year in Finland and is now working on a long-term project on female mutilation.


The Photographic Museum of Humanity is an online museum dedicated to contemporary photography.

Krystal Grow is a contributor to TIME LightBox. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @kgreyscale.

Phil Bicker is a senior photo editor at TIME.


Brazil WCup Fields Everywhere Photo Essay
June 3, 2014. Kids play soccer at the Cantagalo slum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Rio de Janeiro might be best known for its white sandy beaches and dramatic rocky outcroppings, but soccer pitches are just as ubiquitous a part of the World Cup cityís landscape. The Two Brothers Mountain and Ipanema neighborhood are seen at top left. Felipe Dana—AP
OCTOBER 14, 2012 - Photography by Alejandro Kirchuk in Mercedes, a small town in Argentina. A boy walking in the small stadium of Club Mercedes, during a match from the local league. Mercedes is a small city located in the province of Buenos Aires, with 50,000 inhabitants, and each game of the local team brings 5,000 people to the stadium.
Oct. 14, 2012. A boy walking in the small stadium of Club Mercedes, during a match from the local league. Mercedes is a small city located in the province of Buenos Aires, with 50,000 inhabitants, and each game of the local team brings 5,000 people to the stadium.Alejandro Kirchuk
Riots in Rio de Janeiro
Jun. 20, 2013. Commuters watch from a bus as Brazilian riot policemen charge at protesters during riots following a demonstration joined by hundreds of thousands in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Brazilians took to the streets protesting against corruption and price hikes. The biggest riots in the country since 1992 started with the announcement to raise the price for bus fares in order to stake the football World Cup in 2014.Oliver Weiken—EPA
Rio's Pacified Favelas Face Challenges Ahead Of World Cup
Mar. 23, 2014. A boy shows off his soccer skills in the Complexo do Alemao pacified 'favela' community on in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The 'favela' was previously controlled by drug traffickers and is now occupied by the city's Police Pacification Unit (UPP). A number of UPP's were attacked by drug gang members on March 20 and some pacified favelas will soon receive federal forces as reinforcements. The UPP are patrolling some of Rio's favelas amid the city's efforts to improve security ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and 2016 Olympic Games. Mario Tama—Getty Images
A young man rides a horse in the Mineira Favela (slum) with Rio de Janeiro's Financial district downtown area on the background.
Jul. 30, 2011. A young man rides a horse in the Mineira Favela (slum) with Rio de Janeiro's Financial district downtown area on the background.Joao Pina—Redux
Sonia Pereira refused to leave her home in Buraco Quente slum and remained living with her children amongst the debris of homes that were destroyed in a project to build suspended train tracks as part of preparations for the World Cup. Many residents who were dislodged were left with little or no compensation by the government. Sao Paulo, 5 February 2014
Feb. 5, 2014. Sonia Pereira refused to leave her home in Buraco Quente slum and remained living with her children amongst the debris of homes that were destroyed in a project to build suspended train tracks as part of preparations for the World Cup. Many residents who were dislodged were left with little or no compensation by the government.Alice Martins
People protest outside the closed entrance of Ana Rosa subway station during the fifth day of metro worker's protest in Sao Paulo
Jun. 9, 2014. People protest outside the closed entrance of Ana Rosa subway station during the fifth day of metro worker's protest in Sao Paulo. A court set a 500,000 penalty ($223,000) for each day they stay off work from Monday and also declared the strike illegal, complicating preparations for the World Cup opening match. Damir Sagolj—Reuters
June 6, 2014. Arrival of Cameroon to Rio de Janeiro.Rodrigo Abd—AP
MARCH 18, 2014: Photograph by Tommaso Protti, taken in the Coronel Francisco Vieira Satadium in Itapira, Sao Paulo State. Fans of the Itapirense Football Club support the team during the game against the Paulista. The two teams are part of the Second Division of the Brazilian Campeonato Paulista, the mayor football league for the teams in the Sao Paulo state.
MARCH 18, 2014: Photograph by Tommaso Protti, taken in the Coronel Francisco Vieira Satadium in Itapira, Sao Paulo State. Fans of the Itapirense Football Club support the team during the game against the Paulista. The two teams are part of the Second Division of the Brazilian Campeonato Paulista, the mayor football league for the teams in the Sao Paulo state.Tommaso Protti—Tommaso Protti
“Unconfirmed date 1989, Ismailiyah, Egypt - Photograph by Atif El-Tantawy (my father). Throughout primary and secondary school in Egypt, I was the only girl on my school's soccer team. Between classes, I didn't sit down with the girls and braid my hair, talk about boys or exchange fashion tips. Instead, I was among the guys trying to score a goal or two. I don't remember if I came up with my own soccer-pitch nickname or if it was bestowed upon me. I was known as Zico.”
Unconfirmed date 1989, Ismailiyah, Egypt - Photograph by Atif El-Tantawy (my father). Throughout primary and secondary school in Egypt, I was the only girl on my school's soccer team. Between classes, I didn't sit down with the girls and braid my hair, talk about boys or exchange fashion tips. Instead, I was among the guys trying to score a goal or two. I don't remember if I came up with my own soccer-pitch nickname or if it was bestowed upon me. I was known as Zico.Laure El-Tantawy—VII Mentor Program
May 16, 2014. Local men are play football on the beach in Ipanema at sunset, Rio De Janeiro, BrazilMeeri Koutaniemi

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