The French Football Show

Paris Saint-Germain's quest to win back-to-back Champions League crowns continues on Wednesday with the first leg of their quarter-final against Liverpool. Matt Spiro previews the big clash with Liverpool expert Dan Clubbe from Redmen TV in part 1 of the show. Can the Reds pick themselves up from their big FA Cup defeat at Manchester City? How do the English perceive PSG these days? Will Hugo Ekit...

Didier Deschamps’ team flexed their attacking muscle by swatting aside Brazil and Colombia in the US with two completely different starting elevens. Should the rest of the world be worried? Are Les Bleus ready to clinch their third star this summer? Matt Spiro welcomes Tom Williams and Andy Scott onto the pod to discuss. Part 2 focuses on the coach who is preparing for his final tournament – Desch...

Champions for the last four seasons and current league leaders, Paris Saint-Germain have again requested that a league fixture be postponed in order to help them focus on a big European tie. The difference this time: the game in the middle of their Champions League quarter-final with Liverpool is a potential Ligue 1 title-decider against Lens. The Northern club, who sit one point behind PSG, have...

This week on The French Football Show , we dive into one of the most fascinating players in French football: Rayan Cherki. After his recent interview with France Football, Cherki once again reminded everyone that he sees the game differently - creative, unpredictable, and proudly individual. But in a sport increasingly dominated by systems, pressing structures, and tactical discipline, that raises...

PSG look to be flagging at the wrong moment! After suffering their first home defeat of the Ligue 1 season at the hands of Monaco, Matt Spiro speaks to the former PSG defender Didier Domi to find out if he is worried about the upcoming Champions League tie with Chelsea. Matt and Didier have a great chat in Part 1 of the episode, and any concerned PSG fans will probably be reassured by the former N...

PSG's early elimination has lit a fire in the Coupe de France and this week's quarter-finals promise to be great. Matt, Tom and Andy ask if France's oldest competition - famed for its giant-killings - is in better health than ever. For Marseille and Lyon, neither of whom have won silverware since 2012, this year's edition is HUGE. Lens, who look likely to miss out on the title, have never won the...

When Kylian Mbappé won the Ligue 1 title aged 18, then the World Cup at 19, it was assumed that this sensational footballer would go on to claim multiple Ballon d'Ors and Champions Leagues. But today - at 27 - he's still waiting. Host Matt Spiro and guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams ask the following questions: does Mbappé need to win a Ballon d'Or to be remembered as a true great? With Real Madr...

There are just 12 games to play in France and Paris Saint-Germain are NOT top of the league. Racing Club de Lens are enjoying an extraordinary campaign. Host Matt Spiro, alongside guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams, uncover the secrets the northerners success this week and ask the big question: can Pierre Sage’s team go the distance and pull off one of the biggest surprises in modern football? In...

French football was plunged into a terrible financial crisis in 2020 when, in the midst of the Covid pandemic, its domestic television broadcaster pulled out of the contract. With revenues from TV rights subsequently collapsing, the professional game in France is still suffering. Matt Spiro explains exactly what happened, and with the aid of guests Andy Scott and Jonathan Johnson, examines the bol...

The FFS takes a deep dive into the chaotic world of Olympique de Marseille this week. After crashing out of the Champions League in Bruges, the volatile Mediterranean giants are plunging towards yet another crisis. Host Matt Spiro investigates with the help of his guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams: is there a method behind Marseille's madness and is Roberto De Zerbi the man to end the club's 14-y...

This time last year, PSG beat Manchester City in stunning fashion and turned what had been a faltering season into the most successful campaign of the club's history. Once again, Luis Enrique's charges have been below par (and injury-plagued) in the first half of this current season. This week's discussion, Le Dossier, sees host Matt Spiro ask guests Andy Scott and Tom Williams if it is all part o...

He's the top-scorer in Ligue 1, the first Marseille striker to score twenty plus goals in back-to-back seasons for more than a decade, and yet many people find it hard to talk about - let along enthuse about - Mason Greenwood. The accusations levelled against the Englishman in the past have left a lot of observers feeling uneasy to say the least. But rather than ignore the subject, we dive in head...

This week, Matt and Tom are joined by Brazilian football expert Jack Lang to discuss the arrival of wonderkid Endrick at Lyon. The teenager scored on his debut in the Coupe de France against Lille and excitement is growing in the Rhone Valley. Could he be the missing piece in Lyon's jigsaw and will the Real Madrid loanee force his way into Carlo Ancelotti's World Cup plans? There's also a nod to P...

We kick off the new year with a new name. The French Football Show replaces Across the Channel — but fear not: it’s the same team, the same voices, and the same weekly deep dive into French football. The format has evolved slightly, but the aim remains unchanged: to be informative, opinionated, and above all, good fun. Each episode now centres on “le dossier” - an in-depth discussion of a major ta...

In this special edition, Matt Spiro speaks to Sébastien Bassong about his journey from the Paris suburbs to the Premier League via the Clairefontaine academy and FC Metz. The former Cameroon defender experienced so many highs and lows during his colourful career; he speaks candidly about the heartbreak of getting released from Clairefontaine and tells wonderful stories from his time at Newcastle w...

Host Matt Spiro is joined by French football journalists Jonathan Johnson and George Boxall to discuss a remarkable story in France as RC Lens finish the calendar year on top of Ligue 1. It's the first time PSG have failed to be top at Christmas in five years - and back in 2020/21, Lille finished as French champions. The guys look at Lens' 2-0 win over Nice, PSG's slightly nervous 3-2 triumph at b...

Matt Spiro is joined by Tom Williams and Jeremy Smith to review the Round 15 action in France. PSG were in ominous form, putting five past Rennes thanks notably to a brilliant Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, but Lens are still the pacesetters after they won for the fifth week running, away to Nantes. But many of the chasers are falling away: Marseille, Strasbourg, Monaco and Lyon all suffered damaging defe...

Host Matt Spiro and guest Baptiste Reynaud heap the praise on RC Lens who sit atop the Ligue 1 standings for the first time in more than two decades after their win at Angers. How has Pierre Sage built such a strong unit so quickly? The lads do their best to explain all. Cameroon international Sébastien Bassong pops in to discuss PSG's dramatic Champions League win over his former team Tottenham,...

This week we have an exclusive interview with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who talks to Matt Spiro about Marseille's title push. Our host also catches up with podcast regulars George Boxall and Luke Entwistle at the Allianz Riviera to analyse Nice 1-5 Marseille. Podcast guest Andy Scott was in Rennes to witness Paul Pogba's debut - his first appearance in 881 days - and the remarkable ovation afforde...

In this episode, Matt Spiro speaks to the legendary former Marseille striker Tony Cascarino. The man still affectionately known in the south of France as 'Tony Goal' tells us all about those crazy years down at the Vélodrome: meeting Bernard Tapie and signing for the recently-crowned European champions (instead of Blackpool!), nearly coming to blows with the notorious club president at half-time i...

Matt Spiro is joined by Marseille-based journalist George Boxall and his Paris-based nemesis Jonathan Johnson to run the rule over another eventful weekend. Were Lyon hard done by against PSG? Are Marseille and Lens genuine title contenders after their latest impressive victories? It's close at the top of Ligue 1 - and it's close at the top of Ligue 2 too, as George's beloved Red Star push for pro...

Host Matt Spiro is joined by regular guest and Ligue 1 expert Andy Scott - and there's a debut this week for the distinguished French commentator Julien Brun. One of French television's most recognisable voices after working for TF1, DAZN, Amazon Prime and beIN Sports, Julien gets embarrassed when Matt calls him 'the French Martin Tyler'. But he duly shows his class by providing shrewd analysis of...

Host Matt Spiro is joined by author and broadcaster Tom Williams, plus there's an Across the Channel debut this week for the French journalist and African football expert Karim Baldé. The panel run the rule over PSG's masterclass in Brest and admire the work of Pierre Sage's Lens team who are second after beating Marseille. There's a focus on Rennes and their under-fire coach Habib Beye, analysis...

Host Matt Spiro is joined by Marseille-based journalist George Boxall and French football expert Jonathan Johnson after a record-equalling weekend in Ligue 1 that saw an incredible 40 goals scored across the nine games. The team reflect on PSG 3-3 Strasbourg - an early contender for 'game of the season' - Mason Greenwood's Marseille masterclass against Le Havre, Nice's crucial victory over Lyon, a...

Host Matt Spiro is joined by commentator Andy Scott to reflect on France’s latest international games and write a half-term report for our Ligue 1 clubs. Should Didier Deschamps be worried about dropping points in Iceland? Can Les Bleus win without Kylian Mbappé? Is Upamecano-Saliba a winning ticket at the back? We look to answer those questions - and we get strict with our Ligue 1 pupils! If Renn...