Hi!
My name is Marta and I'm the founder of Futebol de Tostões. Since 2017 I've been traveling around Portugal to photograph the unique and beautiful landscape of lower league stadiums and football fields, especially the oldest ones.
With Futebol de Tostões, I aim to create a visual record of these places, paying special attention to its architectural and spatial features - not only the pitch, but also all the details that make each field unique. The surrounding context also often appears portrayed at Futebol de Tostões, since most of these places are a key element of the territory and have an important role in their communities.
In addition to this (or perhaps also because of this), Futebol de Tostões is a way to highlight lesser-known clubs, which for me represent the true essence of the beautiful game, far from the spotlights or million-dollar budgets.
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If you are interest in working with me please get in touch for commissions, projects and collaborations. You can contact me via contact form or email.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
During a roadtrip, on April 2017, I came across an abandoned local football field, on a small village in the North of Portugal, called S. Romão de Neiva. Its colorful ticket office awakened in me childhood memories:
In fact, the history of Futebol de Tostões begins long before that day. Back in the 90’s, I used to go to football matches with my dad, on small stadiums like this one, with poor conditions, but lots of emotion. It was in these matches that I began to enjoy football and where I learned words that only adults could say out load, without filters.
The desire to relive those memories grew and the months that followed that day in Neiva were spent traveling many miles on secondary roads, searching for more fields. Along the way, I had the chance to visit and photograph hundred of small stadiums, and felt an urge to keep alive the memories of these places, before they are rebuilt or left to decay.
It's been 6 years of many kilometers and many fields photographed.
I hope you enjoy this journey as much as I do.
The UK based collective of football writers and photographers Terrace Edition features some of my images along with an article I wrote about Campo da Avenida, in Espinho, Portugal. You can check the article (in English) here.
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