- Banned in mainland China because it did not await certification before being released in Hong Kong.
- This was the most successful Hong Kong-made movie ever in Hong Kong, making HK$60 million (about US$4.7 million) at the local box office.
- All of the "Bullet Time" like effects in the film were done by only two motion picture cameras and all the "still" frames were generated with a computer.
- In the beginning of the movie, when young Fung (Golden Leg) misses the goal, the scoreboard shows both team names: Universe (distributor) and The Star (production company).
- In the Italian version, all main characters are dubbed by professional soccer players (Damiano Tommasi, Vincent Candela, Marco Delvecchio, Sinisa Mihajlovic, Giuseppe Pancaro, and Angelo Peruzzi.)
- 'Stephen Chow' dubs his own voice for the American release.
- In order to appear as if her head was shaved, 'Zhao Wei' had to sit in the makeup chair for 8 to 10 hours each day.
- Film's U.S. release date was scheduled and rescheduled numerous times over a year and a half.
- One of three Chinese films acquired by Miramax in 2002 for major U.S. distribution following the success of Wo hu cang long (2000). The other films were Ying xiong (2002) (Hero), and Shu shan zheng zhuan (2001) (Zu Warriors). In April 2004, this film was given a limited U.S. theatrical release. Hero was given a successful wide release in September 2004. Zu Warriors was released straight-to-DVD in August 2005.
- 'Stephen Chow' said he was inspired by the animated series "Captain Tsubasa" (1983).
- In North America, the film received a significant following through pirated copies and internet downloads, because an official release was never issued. Miramax's refusal to release the film for nearly two years only strengthened the underground word of mouth as cinephiles searched high and low for copies of the film.
- This film was referenced in Chow's next film, Kung fu (2004). During his first appearance in the film, Chow encounters a few boys playing a game of soccer. He stomps on a soccer ball after doing a few tricks, deflating it, and yells "No more soccer!"
- The line "It's only an illusion, you can't scare me!" said by the Team Puma Leader (Vincent Kok) is in reference to Stephen Chow's earlier film Sik san (1996) in which Kok also says this line to Chow.
- The film contains a vast amount of Puma product placement - almost every football boot in the film is Puma; almost all of the team shirts (other than Team Shaolin) are Puma; along with numerous Puma ads and even a football transforming into a flaming Puma when kicked at speed.
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<
Trivia items below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.
- SPOILER: The Shaolin goalkeeper is a humorous homage to martial arts legend Bruce Lee. H develops a Lee-style haircut and wears a Game of Death (1978) yellow jumpsuit. When he is carried off, he also wears the big-lens sunglasses Lee was famous for wearing. As he is carried off, he lies in exactly the same fashion as Bruce Lee laid when he was in his coffin in Hong Kong.
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