How Soccer Explains Leadership Podcast

In Episode 201, Phil and Paul continue Season 14's focus on   The People Advantage   by exploring one of the most important ingredients in every healthy team, organization, family, and relationship: Trust. Most leaders recognize trust is important. Far fewer intentionally build it before they need it. The reality is that trust isn't built during a crisis. Trust is built long before the crisis arri...

In Episode 200, Phil and Paul continue Season 14's focus on   The People Advantage   by exploring a reality every leader, coach, parent, and teammate needs to understand: Every strength has a shadow side. The very traits that make people successful can become liabilities when they are stressed, unhealthy, frustrated, or operating outside of their strengths. Building on the DISC framework introduce...

In Episode 199, the fourth installment of our series, Phil and Paul continue Season 14's focus on The People Advantage by tackling one of the most overlooked realities of leadership and communication: Communication is not measured by what you say. It's measured by what people hear, absorb, and act upon. Building on the DISC foundation from previous episodes, they explore why even well-intentioned...

In Episode 198, Phil and Paul continue Season 14's focus on The People Advantage by exploring one of the biggest mistakes leaders unintentionally make: leading everyone the same way. Building on the DISC foundation from Episodes 1 and 2, they unpack why communication styles matter—and why coaching, leading, parenting, and even marriage become significantly more effective when we learn to adapt how...

In Episode 197, Phil and Paul continue the Season 14 theme—The People Advantage—by diving into a foundational truth: you lead how you're wired, and you play how you lead. Building on Episode 1, they introduce a high-level overview of the DISC behavioral model and explore how understanding yourself and others transforms team culture, communication, and performance. This conversation unpacks why eve...

In Episode 196, Phil and Paul kick off a new format for Season 14—short, high-impact leadership episodes centered around one core theme: The People Advantage. Over the next 10 episodes, they will unpack a foundational truth: Most team problems aren't about talent or skill—they're about misunderstanding people. From communication breakdowns to misunderstood roles, this episode explores why teams un...

In Episode 195, we are re-casting our episode with Paul Caligiuri, OCFC Manager, US Nat'l Soccer Hall of Famer, Former USMNT defender/midfielder and pro player in US and Germany, one of the first Americans to play professionally in Europe, and the unlikely scorer of the "shot heard 'round the world." In the episode, Paul talks with Phil and Paul about his remarkable journey from a passionate young...

In Episode 194 , we're recasting Offseason Talk, Volume 2 , where host Phil Darke breaks down why understanding and implementing the DISC Model of Human Behavior can be one of the most practical and powerful steps you take toward building a healthier team and a healthier life. In this episode, you'll learn how DISC can help you: ·       understand yourself more clearly ·       connect better with...

In Episode 193, we are recasting our incredible interview with Cori Close, Head Coach of UCLA Women's Basketball, who talked with Phil about lessons she learned from her mentor, John Wooden, her personal "Why," what a broom and a shovel have to do with leadership, her Close Conversations, healthy conflict, gratitude, Championship Level Habits, doing the next right thing, and how work done in the d...

In Episode 192, Phil and Paul recap their highlights from the great interviews we've had in Season 13 and discuss the "Nor-Way. We discuss what it is, why it is relevant to this podcast, and whether we should implement a similar philosophy into youth sports around the world. Some of the topics covered are free play, reduced early specialization, lifelong health, and how we can reduce the dropout r...

In Episode 191, Phil and Paul sat down with Jim Spence, founder of Sports Quest, to explore a 30-year journey of soccer ministry, leadership development, and faithful obedience. Jim shares how a young Englishman with dreams of professional cricket became a lifelong soccer missionary in Houston, Texas. Through stories of shattered athletic dreams, ministry pivots, and hard-earned leadership wisdom,...

In Episode 190, Phil and Paul dive into the importance of individual and team development in every level of soccer. They discuss the role of effective communication between coaches and players, emphasizing the significance of understanding each player's personality and motivational needs. Paul brings his recent experiences from his new role as a club director to the table, particularly surrounding...

In Episode 189, Phil and Paul had a great conversation with Thuy Williams, an incredible athlete and coach of the US Amputee Soccer National Team using her skills and talents in the world of all-abilities and sports ministry. During the interview, she shares her incredible journey from being rescued out of Vietnam during Operation Babylift, to her childhood as an adoptee in the US, to becoming a c...

In Episode 188, we are re-casting our conversation with Wells Thompson, Former MLS midfielder and 1 st Round Draft Pick, Co-Founder of Soccer Resilience, husband, and father. This was our most downloaded episode of 2025 and Top 2 for both Paul and me. In this episode, he talked with Paul and Phil about his journey from childhood adversity to the MLS, his struggles with identity and mental health,...

In Episode 187, Phil and Paul reflect on their top HSEL episodes and their personal highlights of 2025. They discuss lessons learned from various guests, personal highs and lows, including transitions in their careers and families. Through their candid discussion, they emphasize the importance of slowing down, reflecting on what truly matters, beauty in brokenness, and the profound impact of socce...

In Episode 186, Carl Dambman, Athletes in Action Missionary, Olympic Wrestler, Author of In God's Grip , husband, and father, talks with Phil and Paul about his unique journey with wrestling and pioneering sports ministry behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War in the '70s and '80s. He shares about his remarkable experiences in sports ministry, including challenges and successes covertly shari...

In Episode 185, Warren Mainard, Executive Director of Impact Players, husband, and father, talks with Phil and Paul about how his tennis career shaped his approach to life and leadership. The conversation covers the importance for men to surround themselves with a band of brothers, being a thermostat not a thermometer, the concept of 'audacious authenticity,' how tennis can help us resolve conflic...

In Episode 184, Phil and Paul reflect on the first half of Season 13, discussing highlights from their conversations with Greg Rubendall, Rick McKinley, Becca Darke, and Peter Greer. They also talk about ways we can redeem time in our lives, particularly in the context of parent-child relationships, and the importance of creating meaningful time with your kids and spouses. Resources and Links from...

In Episode 183, we are sharing with you an interview from Phil's other podcast, Think Global, Do Justice, with Peter Greer, President of Hope International and Author of How Leaders Lose Their Way and How to Make Sure It Doesn't Happen to You , who discusses how leaders can avoid personal mission drift through awareness (and stopping) of our misguided pursuits and rowing against the dangerous curr...

In Episode 182, Becca Darke, Colorado College Women's Soccer Hall of Famer, former PE Teacher, former Athletes in Action staff, mother of five, and, yes, wife of Phil, shares with Phil and Paul about her journey from hockey-centric Minnesota to her youth and collegiate soccer career, how she battled injuries, and her growing faith that led her to ministry in sports. Becca shares her experiences as...

In Episode 181, we are giving you an annual dose of one of our favorite interviews of all time, going back to our conversation with Graham Daniels, Ph. D., Director of Cambridge United, Director of Christians in Sport, and former player for Cambridge United and Cardiff City. He talked with us about the "Pray, Play, Say" discipleship/leadership method, his personal why, his incredible testimony of...

In Episode 180, Rick McKinley, Missionary Athletes International's (MAI) Director of Int'l Tours. Shares with Phil and Paul his extensive journey through sports, including impactful stories from his days as an athlete, coach, and missionary. He discusses his commitment to integrating faith and soccer, describing significant moments that shaped his understanding of the Gospel and relying on God's s...

In Episode 179, Phil and Paul engage in an eclectic and wide-ranging conversation with Greg Rubendall, who has recently started a new venture in Sacramento, ASC Midtown, and a new podcast, "The Road Warrior." The episode covers topics from personal updates to more philosophical discussions touching on biomechanics, conservation genetics, classical literature, leadership, and the power of unstructu...

In Episode 178, Phil and Paul reconnect to kick off Season 13, reflecting on their eventful summer and discussing key leadership lessons they learned along the way. They share personal stories and a new role for Paul in the soccer world. They delve into important lessons such as the importance of being still, focusing on prayer, understanding the evolving roles as parents, and embracing an open-ha...

In Episode 177, we are recasting our episode with Becky Burleigh, Co-Founder of What Drives Winning, former University of Florida Women's Soccer Coach (for 27 years), and Methodist College Hall of Famer, who talked with Phil and Paul about the life and leadership lessons she learned over the course of her playing career and her extensive coaching career at University of Florida and Berry College,...