BT Sport has announced a new docuseries into the football hotbed of south London, a production line which has produced several Premier League and international stars.
The three-part series will take an intriguing look into the unusually high number of top England footballers who hail from south London, and have gone from densely populated and often heavily deprived areas south of the Thames to lighting up our TV screens.
These include Rio Ferdinand, Joe Gomez, Jaden Sancho, Tammy Abraham, Aaron Wan Bissaka, Declan Rice, Ademola Lookman, Ryan Sessegnon, Michail Antonio Eberechi Eze.
South of the River will premiere on BT Sport on Tuesday, November 23, with the latest production of the BT Sport Films series being produced by award-winning Noah Media Group, exploring the eye-catching football talent pool in south London and the challenges they face.
These statistically underprivileged parts of South London are now globally recognised as among the most productive areas for young footballing talent.
Manchester United's Sancho and Liverpool's Gomez in particular will speak of their experiences and how they have risen to the top from south London, whilst Ferdinand also features.
The series will explore the stories of these rising stars who, in the last three years, have emerged from statistically underprivileged parts of South London – which are now globally recognised as among the most productive areas for young footballing talent.
As well as looking at the stories of south London's latest success stories, the series will examine the next generation of up-and-coming teenagers coming from the are and ready to be the next big thing in England.
The docuseries will feature contributions from players, talent scouts, community leaders, friends and family.
Rio Ferdinand, who is also an executive producer on the docuseries said: “It’s great that the area of London I grew up in is getting the recognition it deserves - it’s a talent factory like no other.
"You’ll hear from me and many others who, against the odds, have been lucky enough to represent South London at the biggest clubs and international competitions in the world.
“South Of The River shines a light on what makes the place so special and the obstacles that need to be overcome, whilst showcasing the next generation who are daring to dream by following in our footsteps. I’m proud to be from South Of The River.”
Sally Brown, BT Sport Films Executive Producer and Commissioning Editor, said: “I have long-admired the quality of Noah Media’s long form documentary output and was excited to work with them on South Of The River.
“Their approach to storytelling fits in well with ours and I’m thrilled to be able to add this three-part series to the award-winning BT Sport Films stable. It joins a very exciting autumn line up of titles on BT Sport including the recent Standing Firm: Football’s Windrush Story, Glenn Hoddle: Extra Time and The Special 1.”
South Of The River will be screened in three parts, on BT Sport 1HD at 10.15pm on Tuesday 23 November, and then at 10.30pm on BT Sport 3HD on Wednesday 24 November and Thursday 25 November.
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