Recs: Football RPF

[flywoman]

Football RPF Recs

Title: As Far As You and Me Go
Author: distira
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: José Mourinho/Pep Guardiola
Length: 22,570

This is star-crossed rival romance at its finest; I will paraphrase the author's summary by describing this fic as the EPIC love story of two sore losers. Even if you loathe one of them going in (and you probably do if you support either FC Barcelona or Real Madrid), distira will make you empathize with him even while keeping him completely in character. This is a gorgeous, funny, heartrending story of two men who have gotten to the same place by very different paths and are fundamentally incapable of putting themselves in the other's shoes.

Title: Abort, Retry, Fail
Author: acchikocchi
Rating: R
Pairing: David Silva / David Villa
Word Count: 16,500
Summary: In which FC Barcelona are a department of misfit programmers, Figo's in charge, Xavi has a lot of Ideas, Bojan might or might not be an intern, David Silva's just trying to help where he can, and David Villa is completely clueless. Romcom-style AU.

This is... just the most hilarious thing I have read in this fandom, as well as the best AU. Warnings for affectionate mockery of all concerned.

Title: The Distance Between Two Bodies
Author: luxover
Rating: R
Pairing: David Silva / David Villa
Word Count: 25,841

Longtime partners, the two David struggle to readjust when Valencia's financial troubles force them to join different teams in different countries. Fantastic characterization and painfully precise in its depiction of long distance relationships and the misunderstandings that so easily arise.


Title: In the Wake of Loss
Author: luxover
Rating: R
Pairing: Cristiano Ronaldo / Lionel Messi
Word Count: 7,700

CR7 knocks on Messi's door after being beaten brutally in a Clasico and turns out to be kind of a terrible boyfriend. This is such an unlikely pairing on one level, and yet on another, it makes so much sense that I can't believe there isn't more of it out there. But this author writes so well that it really, really works.


Title: The Edge Of Everyhing
Author: luxover
Rating: R
Pairing: Lionel Messi / David Villa
Word Count: 10,665

David Villa comes to Barcelona and becomes Leo's boyfriend. He's kind of an asshole, but he gets it. This fic deals with the centrality of football and the spectre of retirement in an incredibly honest and moving way.


title: yet to come
author: brojan
pairing: david villa/xavi
rating: r
words: ~10900

This is Xavi characterization at its best - telling it like it is, not caring what England thinks of him - so you'd think that developing a relationship with David would be equally simple and direct... but it really isn't. In a wonderful sort of way.


title: la gent normal com tu
author: meretricula
pairing: Fabregas/Messi/Pique
rating: NC-17
word count: 2000
summary: Leo is an alien. Cesc and Pique teach him about one of the best parts of being human, i.e. orgasms.

I suppose that I should warn for underage sex, but it's just three horny teenage boys messing around, an absolutely brilliant response to a brilliant prompt. Cesc, Leo, and Geri are all adorably in-character.


title: morning comes in paradise
author: meretricula
pairing: Victor Valdes/Andres Iniesta
rating: PG-13
word count: 4000
summary: In which puberty hits Andres like a freight train, and Victor is an innocent victim of the collision.

Sweet, shy Andres falls in love with his charismatic best friend at La Masia - and who wouldn't? Kinda heartbreaking, yet both realistic and hopeful.


Title: Detente, Bala
Author: tyrannicides
Pairing: David Beckham/Iker Casillas (+a hooker)
Rating: NC-17 for language, voyeurism, sex.

The first of several favorite international-player-falls-in-love-in-foreign-country fics. The ending should be disturbing but feels so right.


Title: Madrid Is
Author: luxover
Rating: R
Pairing: Cristiano Ronaldo / Mesut Özil
Word Count: 19,960

This is another one. German midfielder Mesut Özil comes to Real Madrid and learns that Cristiano Ronaldo is kinder and quieter than he'd expected. But then there's the added complication of Kaká. luxover has a real talent for forcing me to love new characters and pairings, and I really admire her for it.


Title: This Bitch of a Country
Author: dorkorific
Rating: Explicit
Pairing: Xabi Alonso/Steven Gerrard, featuring Pepe Reina
Word Count: 8895

This is the first Football RPF fic that I ever read, off meretricula's crack_van recommendation. And although these are by no stretch of the imagination my favorite characters, I still absolutely adore this fic. I can hear their voices and feel the cold and appreciate the complications of their situation and... yeah. Read it.


I've also recced a bunch of football rpf fics on crack_van.