Bunyodkor
Tashkent, Uzbekistan. 2008.
FC Bunyodkor (founded in 2005) became a symbol of a football bubble in Asia. In 2008, the club, financed by Zeromax, invested millions in rapid growth: Rivaldo’s contract was estimated at €10–12 million for two years (≈€5–6 million per year), while the average monthly salary in Uzbekistan was $150–200. Coaches of the level of Luiz Felipe Scolari were brought in, and negotiations were held with top players. My reportage was shot on September 24, 2008, during an AFC Champions League match against Saipa FC, just a few months after Rivaldo’s arrival.
In 2010, following the collapse of Zeromax, the project fell apart: the money disappeared, the ambitions ended, and the club became an ordinary Uzbek team.
Tashkent. 2008. Local residents watch the training session of FC Bunyodkor.
Tashkent. 2008. Cleaners prepare the stadium for the match.
Tashkent. 2008. Bunyodkor Stadium. Wives of the club’s foreign star players wait for their husbands after training.
Tashkent. Bunyodkor Stadium. 2008. Ticket trading.
Tashkent. Bunyodkor Stadium. 2008. Female supporters in the stadium. Iran allowed women to support the team at a stadium for the first time while maintaining a strict Islamic dress code.
Bunyodkor
Tashkent. Bunyodkor Stadium. 2008. Supporters pray during halftime.
Tashkent. Bunyodkor Stadium. 2008. Bunyodkor scores the third goal against Iran’s Saipa.
Tashkent. Bunyodkor Stadium. 2008. Bunyodkor supporter during the match.
Tashkent. 2008. One of the central streets. While the leaders of the capital’s football club were spending tens of millions of dollars, the country’s social system was on the verge of collapse.
Tashkent. 2008. Bunyodkor training base. The club’s highest-paid player, thirty-six-year-old Brazilian star Rivaldo, during a massage.
