Die wilden Kerle (2003)

The Wild Soccer Bunch are a group of boys who play soccer. After losing their playing field to Fat Michi and his group, the “Invincible Winners,” the boys have to become a team if they want to get the field back. A girl also shows up wanting to train with them, and is later accepted onto the team. The summer holidays start the day after tomorrow, but it is raining. The Wild Soccer Bunch head for their playing field. But Willi, who runs a kiosk there, tells them the field is closed because of the rain. Frustrated, the boys go home, play soccer in the apartment and try to make the rain go away. Since they cause quite a bit of damage, they are grounded. 1st sequence: So they sneak out of the house. But Fat Michi and his group, the “Invincible Winners,” are at the playing field. Since they are older and stronger than the Wild Soccer Bunch, they drive them off. Leon, the leader of the Wild Soccer Bunch, refuses to accept this. He challenges Fat Michi to a soccer match in ten days. To win, they ask Willi to help them as their coach, since he has told them that he used to be a professional soccer player. They now train in a meadow by the river. At first, the boys make progress in their efforts to become a team. However, Leon’s skills as captain are still far from developed. For example, he always wants to do everything himself and never passes the ball. Eventually, he kicks Raban and Joschka off the team because he considers them too weak. Since the team is now short of players, Leon has to find new boys to join it. 2nd sequence: He eventually finds two new team members. A girl also wants to join in. The Wild Soccer Bunch are completely against this, so Vanessa challenges the boys with help from Fabi, Leon’s best friend. At her birthday party, she holds a penalty shootout. She actually manages to beat all the boys, so she has to be accepted into the Wild Soccer Bunch. Meanwhile, Raban and Joschka have joined the “Invincible Winners.” But they don’t like the way Fat Michi and his gang behave. When the gang spies on the Wild Soccer Bunch and realizes how good they have become, they plan an attack on the Wild Soccer Bunch’s tree house, “Camelot.” Raban and Joschka tell Willi about it. The Wild Soccer Bunch are warned in time and successfully defend their tree house against the “Invincible Winners.” 3rd sequence: But defeated Fat Michi has an ace up his sleeve to destroy the Wild Soccer Bunch’s morale. He tells them that Willi was never a professional soccer player. The Wild Soccer Bunch no longer trust Willi, and the group falls apart. Finally, encouraged by her grandmother, Vanessa takes the initiative to save the Wild Soccer Bunch. She brings the boys together for a shared test of courage at the quarry lake, and this brings the group back together. Gradually, none of them mind anymore that Vanessa is part of the group. 4th sequence: The soccer match against Fat Michi and his “Invincible Winners” begins. But without their coach, the Wild Soccer Bunch have no chance and lose the first half 8–0 to Fat Michi. So Raban goes to Willi and persuades him to coach them again. And the game turns around. Shortly before the end, the Wild Soccer Bunch are leading 9–8. Then Leon makes the same mistake again by not passing the ball. So Willi takes him off, and Raban comes on; after Leon tries to make it clear to him that they will lose that way, he takes Maxi off and brings on Joschka. Leon is furious about this. Eventually, he manages to persuade Willi to put him back on in place of Juli. The score is now 9–9, and despite Willi’s and his teammates’ warnings, Leon charges toward the goal on his own again. The ball rolls straight to Raban’s feet, and he scores with his left foot to win the game. Leon is furious at first because he wanted to score the winning goal, but Willi eventually cheers him up, and Leon realizes his mistake. By beating Fat Michi, the Wild Soccer Bunch have become a real team. After this victory, the playing field belongs to the Wild Soccer Bunch again. The “Invincible Winners” can also be found there, but from then on they are the Wild Soccer Bunch’s “servants.” The Wild Soccer Bunch are happy to enjoy the “sweet life,” but they don’t want it to get too sweet, so they are already planning their next adventures.