Icon Film Distribution has released the official trailer for HEYSEL 85, the gripping political drama from director Teodora Ana Mihai. The film will make its UK premiere at the 70th BFI London Film Festival on 15 October, followed by a UK theatrical release on 20 November 2026, bringing its immersive retelling of one of football’s most devastating nights to audiences nationwide.
Selected for the Festival’s Thrill strand, the film arrives with strong international acclaim after its Special Gala screening at the Berlin International Film Festival, where critics praised its immersive, moment‑to‑moment reconstruction of the tragedy.
Critics have praised the film’s tense, vérité‑style approach. Variety described HEYSEL 85 as “a tense political metaphor” and “an anxiety‑inducing work of cinéma vérité,” calling it “riveting at every turn” and “a stark reminder of the entwinement between soccer and corruption.” Gazettely hailed it as “a harrowing, claustrophobic examination of institutional rot” and “a formidable cultural critique.”
Synopsis
Set against the backdrop of the 1985 European Cup Final between Liverpool and Juventus, the film unfolds inside Brussels’ Heysel Stadium as thousands of fans descend on the ground. Old club rivalries fuel a volatile atmosphere that soon spirals into an eruption of violence. As the death toll rises, the mayor’s daughter and an Italian journalist are drawn into the heart of the catastrophe, caught between professional duty, family loyalty, and moral responsibility.
Rather than a distant historical reconstruction, HEYSEL 85 presents the tragedy as a lived, moment‑by‑moment experience, placing viewers directly inside one of football’s darkest nights.
Cast
- Violet Braeckman
- Matteo Simoni
- Josse De Pauw
- Fabrizio Rongione
- Paolo Calabresi
- Bobby Schofield
- Ben Segers
Filmmakers
- Director: Teodora Ana Mihai
- Distributor: Icon Film Distribution
- Run Time: 92 minutes
UK Release Details
- BFI London Film Festival Premiere: 15 October
- UK Theatrical Release: 20 November 2026
