Annie Leibovitz photographed stars of the U.S., Canadian, and Mexican national soccer teams ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup — the largest tournament in its history, with 48 teams competing across North America. Christian Pulisic and Jonathan David appear in the series, captured mid-kick or suspended mid-air. The images are on view at the Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City through August 30.

The project returns Leibovitz to familiar territory. Forty years ago she photographed the artistic athleticism of soccer players for a campaign tied to the 1986 FIFA World Cup. This time she brought in creative movement director Jorge Dorsinville to help the athletes, in his words, "translate the language of soccer into a visual language that could live inside a still image."

Dorsinville's résumé spans dance, music, and fashion. Originally from Brazil, he performed with Balé Teatro Castro Alves, choreographed for the musician Robyn, and directed movement for major fashion shows. His collaborators include Balmain, Chanel, Brooke Shields, Vogue, and Vanity Fair — the connections through which he met Leibovitz.

In a conversation about the project, Dorsinville described working with the photographer in admiring terms. "Annie has a remarkable sensitivity and an almost magical ability to find meaning in the smallest details," he said. "Her vision touches every aspect of an image." What impressed him most was her clarity about movement's role in the work. "Annie wasn't simply interested in creating beautiful portraits; she was interested in revealing something truthful about these athletes."

One of Leibovitz's strengths, Dorsinville said, is her ability to reveal the human being behind the public figure. He saw movement as the route in. "Movement allowed us to go beyond the idea of the athlete as a symbol of performance and into the realm of identity," he explained. "A gesture, a posture, a rhythm, a way of standing still — these things can reveal character in ways words sometimes cannot."

His method with the footballers avoided conventional posing. "I never wanted [the athletes] to perform fashion poses," Dorsinville said. "Instead, I looked for movement rooted in their own experience: the way they prepare before competition, the way they stand as leaders, the way they carry focus, determination, or pride." Rather than directing an arm placement, he would ask a player to reconnect with a feeling, memory, or mindset from before stepping onto the field. "Athletes already possess extraordinary physical intelligence," he said. "My role is simply to translate that intelligence into a visual language that works for photography."

The athletes' openness surprised him. "They were curious. They were willing to play. They understood instinctively that movement could be a storytelling tool," Dorsinville said, adding that many approached the shoot "with the curiosity of artists."

The greater challenge was shifting the players out of a competitive mindset. On the field, he noted, they are trained to focus on performance and results; in an editorial environment, the objective moves toward expression, presence, and storytelling. Finding the bridge between those worlds, he said, was one of the most rewarding parts of the process. With the Mexico City exhibition running through August 30, the series extends the collaboration's reach well beyond the tournament itself.