Synopsis

Josh Framm discovers that Buddy, his talented Golden Retriever, can catch footballs as impressively as he once played basketball. When Josh joins the school team, Buddy helps transform the struggling Timberwolves into championship contenders. Their winning run is complicated by a pair of circus managers who want to kidnap Buddy, forcing Josh and his friends to protect him while preparing for the biggest game of the season.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film's official title is Air Bud: Golden Receiver, although it was marketed as Air Bud 2 in several countries.

• It was released theatrically in the United States on August 14, 1998, following the 1997 original. It was later promoted on home video under the Disney Presents label.

• Production took place in British Columbia, including Vancouver, North Vancouver, Surrey, and Fort Langley. Filming dates are listed as February 14 through March 21, 1998.

• The movie was dedicated to Buddy, the real Golden Retriever associated with the original film. Buddy died from cancer in February 1998, several months before the sequel's release.

• Buddy had previously lost his right rear leg to cancer but continued performing. His athletic abilities helped inspire the original film and the broader Air Bud franchise.

• The sequel shifted Buddy's signature sport from basketball to football, establishing the series' recurring idea of placing the dog in a new athletic discipline.

• The production became connected to a dispute between Buddy's owner, Kevin DiCicco, and Keystone Entertainment producer Robert Vince. DiCicco said the sequel proceeded without his involvement and alleged that he had not received promised compensation from the first film.

• Air Bud: Golden Receiver was the second theatrical film in the series. Later installments moved increasingly toward home-video distribution and eventually expanded the property into the Air Buddies spin-off films.