Spirit Game: Pride of a Nation

Spirit Game follows the Iroquois Nationals as they travel to compete in the 2015 World Box Lacrosse Championships, staged for the first time on an Indian Reservation in Onondaga, upstate New York. The film alternates between the heat of competition and quieter off-field moments with players, coaches, and family, showing how lacrosse ties into heritage and community life. It records training, game-day tactics, and the emotional weight of representing a sovereign people in an international tournament. The directors mix match footage, interviews, and cultural context so viewers grasp what the event means to the team without resolving every personal struggle.

Released in 2017, Spirit Game was directed by Peter Baxter and Peter Spirer. The documentary draws on real tournament footage and interviews to document the Iroquois Nationals at the 2015 World Box Lacrosse Championships on Onondaga territory, and community voices.

Spirit Game had a limited theatrical and festival run, aimed more at communities and niche audiences than at mass box office appeal. Detailed commercial figures were not widely reported, reflecting its focused release strategy and grassroots promotion and community outreach.

By filming the first World Box Lacrosse Championship held on an Iroquois reservation, the film boosted public awareness of Indigenous stewardship of lacrosse and related sovereignty issues. It provided visual testimony of cultural continuity, sparked conversations in sports and Indigenous circles, and helped foreground Native voices in international athletics community.

Critics and viewers praised the film's intimate access and focus on team identity, reflected in its 8.5/10 vote average from a small number of reviewers. Themes include cultural preservation, national pride, and the tensions between tradition and organized sport, shown through interviews, game action, and personal reflection, and community resilience.