The film – which has now opened in UK cinemas – retells one of the most infamous incidents in Irish sport: the bitter feud between legendary captain Roy Keane and manager Mick McCarthy in the run up to the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.
If you weren't following football back in 2002 and are hearing about the story for the first time – or perhaps if you just want to check how accurately the film portrays the events – read on for everything you need to know about the true story behind Saipan.
Saipan true story: the real events behind the infamous 2002 Roy Keane bust-up
As is shown in the film, Keane – the Republic of Ireland's captain and one of the finest central midfielders in world football at the time – had a public falling out with manager Mick McCarthy ahead of the tournament. This bust-up ultimately led to him leaving the squad and missing out on what would have been his only appearance at the World Cup.
Keane initially decided to leave the camp in 22nd May 2002, only to change his mind and stay, but his relationship with McCarthy continued to sour and the press in Ireland began to report on the spat, which further exacerbated the situation especially after The Irish Times published an interview with Keane that outlined some of his issues.
He added: "You're a f**king w**ker and you can stick your World Cup up your arse. The only reason I have any dealings with you is that somehow you are the manager of my country! You can stick it up your bollocks."
Shortly afterwards, Keane was sent home from the camp which led to weeks of media coverage and a fierce debate as to who was in the right. Without their captain and star player, Ireland still performed very well at the World Cup – reaching the second round and only being eliminated by Spain in a penalty shoot-out.
How accurate is Saipan to true events?
View oEmbed on the source websitePundit and former Everton star Kevin Kilbane – who was also a member of Ireland's 2002 squad – wrote a column in The Irish Times explaining that the film was "a fictional account of actual events largely from the perspective of an imaginary Roy Keane."
Among the scenes he said were fabricated were one which saw "Roy fuming from his balcony as we did the conga night after night," while he also took issue with the "complete nonsense" characterisation of McCarthy as "a bumbling manager who was easily cowed" – saying that he "deserves a better reflection."
He concluded the piece by writing: "My issue with the film is its inaccuracies. There are too many. It’s worth knowing what really happened before going to see this cartoonish version of Saipan."
Has Roy Keane commented on Saipan?
Speaking to RadioTimes.com ahead of the release, co-director Lisa Barros D’Sa explained that "we haven’t spoken directly to Roy" about the film and that "we don’t know how it’s going to unfold." She added: "It’s really up to them to react however they want to react."
We'll certainly be keeping an eye out to see if Keane does comment on the film in the coming weeks and months...
Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
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