Director
Benjamin Best
Benjamin Best is considered one of the leading investigative journalists in sports. He researches topics that are too hot for others: gambling scandals, corruption, human rights abuses. In his current feature-length documentary "Dirty Games", he publishes his highly explosive research on the machinations in top-class sport and has already received several awards for his work.
Benjamin Best, born in Berlin in 1976, studied sports journalism at the German Sport University in Cologne. Since 2005 he has worked as a freelance journalist, author and reporter. His films and contributions are shown on ARD and WDR, among others. As an expert on betting fraud, his assessments can be seen in the Tagesschau. In 2013 his much-discussed book "Der gekaufte Fußball. Manipulierte Spiele und betrogene Fans" was published by Murmann Verlag.
Benjamin Best is the owner of the film production company Benjamin Best Productions GmbH and has held a teaching position at the Institute for Communication and Media Research at the German Sport University in Cologne since the summer semester 2015. He lives and works in Munich, when he is not travelling the world for research.
Awards
2016: Best Documentary "Dirty Games", Snowdance Independent Film Festival
2016: Best Director "Dirty Games", London International Filmmaker Festival
2016: Silver Medal Best Documentary "Dirty Games", New York Festivals
2016: Best Documentary "Dirty Games", StarDoc Documentary Film Festival
2013: Journalist of the Year (3rd Place Sport Journalism), Medium Magazin
2012: Nomination for German Human Rights Film Prize "Pharma-Sklaven"
(with Rebecca Gudisch)
2012: Research Stipend from investigate! e.V.
2011: CNN Journalist of the Year
Filmography (Selection)
2016: "Dirty Games", Feature-length documentary, 90 mins.
2016: "Wettbetrug im Fußball – Milliardengeschäft für die Mafia", ARD, 30 mins.
2013: "Im Griff der Zockermafia, Die Story im Ersten" (with Uwe Schwering), 45 mins.
2013: "Nivea Check, ARD-Markencheck" (with Edith Dietrich), 45 mins.
2012: "Pharma-Sklaven", WDR "die story" (with Rebecca Gudisch), 45 mins.
2007: "Adolf ,Adi‘ Katzenmeier – Der Vater der Nationalmannschaft", ARD/WDR, Collaboration, 45 mins.