Saipan true story: The real events behind the infamous 2002 Roy Keane bust-up

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Football is the world’s most loved sport, but surprisingly, there haven’t been many truly great movies made about it. However, a new film called Saipan is receiving a lot of positive attention after premiering at the Toronto Film Festival last year.

The new film, now playing in UK cinemas, revisits the famous and controversial falling-out between Irish football captain Roy Keane and manager Mick McCarthy before the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

Éanna Hardwicke and Steve Coogan star in the film, which tells the story of Roy Keane’s departure from the Irish national football team. It explores the reasons behind the split, the resulting media frenzy, and also delves into questions of Irish identity.

If you didn’t watch football in 2002 or are new to this story – or if you’re curious how the movie compares to what actually happened – here’s everything you need to know about the real events behind Saipan.

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Saipan true story: the real events behind the infamous 2002 Roy Keane bust-up

Most football fans, particularly those in Ireland, are familiar with the story of Saipan. It received extensive coverage in Irish news leading up to the 2002 World Cup.

The movie depicts a major disagreement between Roy Keane, the Irish team captain and a world-class midfielder, and his manager, Mick McCarthy, before the tournament. This conflict resulted in Keane being removed from the squad and, ultimately, missing the World Cup – which would have been his only chance to play in it.

The conflict began because Keane felt McCarthy hadn’t prepared the team properly for the tournament, finding his approach deeply unprofessional. Keane specifically criticized the training camp on Saipan – the facilities were inadequate, equipment was missing, and the players weren’t being fed a healthy diet. He also questioned McCarthy’s overall management skills.

Keane first decided to leave the team on May 22nd, 2002, but he changed his mind and remained. However, his relationship with the manager, McCarthy, continued to deteriorate, and the Irish press began reporting on their conflict. This made things even worse, particularly after The Irish Times published an interview with Keane detailing his concerns.

He launched into a furious tirade, using extremely offensive and vulgar language towards the manager. He expressed intense anger and resentment, stating he only interacted with the manager due to their position as national team leader, and delivered a highly disrespectful and obscene insult.

Soon after, Keane left the training camp, sparking weeks of intense media attention and a heated argument about who was at fault. Despite losing their captain and key player, Ireland still had a strong showing at the World Cup, making it to the second round before being narrowly defeated by Spain in a penalty shootout.

How accurate is Saipan to true events?

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The movie tries to accurately depict the real events and the media frenzy that followed, but like most films based on true stories, some details have been heightened for dramatic effect.

I recently read an interesting piece by Kevin Kilbane, the former Everton player and Irish international. He wrote in The Irish Times about a film, and he explained it wasn’t a true story, but more of a made-up version of events, told mostly as if it were through the eyes of Roy Keane – a completely imagined perspective, really.

Kilbane liked the film, but he noted it wasn’t entirely accurate. He specifically pointed out that the movie exaggerated the team’s drinking habits, stating they weren’t prevalent by the time Ireland qualified for the 2002 World Cup, and he felt it was important to correct some of the inaccuracies presented.

He disputed several scenes, including one showing “Roy angrily watching from his balcony while we did the conga every night.” He also strongly objected to the portrayal of McCarthy as a clumsy and easily intimidated manager, stating that McCarthy “deserved a more accurate depiction.”

He also clarified that the dramatic retelling of the team meeting exaggerated what really occurred. He emphasized repeatedly that Roy never used that offensive language towards Mick.

He finished by stating that the film’s biggest problem is its historical inaccuracies. He felt there were too many errors and recommended learning the true story of Saipan before watching the movie’s fictionalized account.

Has Roy Keane commented on Saipan?

Knowing how freely Keane usually shares his opinions, many expected him to comment on the film. However, the famous midfielder and Sky Sports commentator hasn’t said anything yet, and it’s unknown if he even intends to watch it.

Glenn Leyburn, who co-directed with her, added that Roy is known for being honest and direct with what he thinks, and everyone appreciates that. He said they’ll have to wait and see what happens.

I’m definitely going to be watching to see if Keane shares his thoughts on the movie soon – I’m really curious to hear what he thinks!

Saipan is now showing in UK cinemas.

Authors

Patrick CremonaSenior Film Writer

Patrick Cremona writes about films for TopMob, covering new releases in theaters and on streaming services. He’s been with the site since October 2019, and during that time has interviewed many famous actors and reviewed a wide variety of movies.

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2026-01-23 13:35