The 2LAB x Lower Block | NO FAIR PLAY Exhibition opened in Catania on the evening of December 19 and runs through February 15, bringing together three distinct but connected bodies of work that examine identity, belonging and defiance within football’s wider cultural landscape. The exhibition presents Boogie’s Napoli Ultras, Emiliano Zingale’s Catania Ultras, and a curated selection from Lower Block’s archival Editions documenting decades of British football culture. Together, these strands form a unified study of how football is lived collectively and expressed through community, ritual and visual style.

Lower Block’s role sits at the heart of the show. Over recent years it has become a recognised authority in preserving and curating the visual language of the game, treating football imagery not as ephemera but as cultural record. Its commitment to authenticity – and its ability to bridge eras and geographies – forms the backbone of NO FAIR PLAY, underscoring football as a social identity shaped by people, places and histories.

Boogie’s contribution anchors the Italian narrative. His Napoli Ultras series, captured during the club’s Scudetto-winning season in 2023, delivers an intense, emotional portrait of a city in full release. The photographs channel tension, pride and euphoria, revealing Naples not only celebrating victory, but reaffirming its collective sense of self.

Catania’s story unfolds through the lens of Emiliano Zingale. His images of the local ultras offer a raw, close-to-the-ground view of the city’s football culture – streets, banners, smoke, friendship and defiance. Lower Block has played a key role in bringing Emiliano’s photography to wider attention, placing the uniqueness of Catania’s scene within the broader continuum of European fan traditions.

Completing the exhibition is a selection from Lower Block’s archival Editions, featuring work by John Ingledew, Tony Davis, Conrad Tracy, Richard Davis, Taff Manton, Steve Pyke, Bill Stephenson, Nic Salmon and Clive Lawrence. Spanning decades of British terrace life, these photographs capture everyday supporters, subcultures, fashion and the social realities that shaped football’s visual heritage in the UK.

NO FAIR PLAY positions football not as spectacle, but as identity – built on atmosphere, community and conviction, and carried across generations.